When this movie popped up on MojoHD I went into it with an open mind since I've always been a huge fan of "Time Bandits," which also happens to be one of the first movies I threw a fit about as a kid when someone accidentally taped over it. Needless to say I've had that film burned into my brain ever since, bought it on DVD as soon as I could, and have professed my love of it repeatedly to friends who watched with me and either "didn't get it" or thought the end was weird and depressing.
Those same friends would probably appreciate Baron Munchausen more since it does have an unambiguous feel-good ending, but at over two hours long I felt the movie had a tendency to drag on. In a day and age where every video at Ye Locale Box Store is "UNRELEASED DIRECTOR'S CUT WITH ADDITIONAL FOOTAGE" I simply can't imagine this movie being any longer. There are plenty of times when you wish they'd cut to the point, as even a dunce can figure out what's going to happen when Baron and the Sultan make a bet with a treasury payoff of "as much as the strongest man can carry." Given the chance I also would have sacked the entire segment with the Baron and Venus. I was positively bored to tears by the whole thing and Uma Thurman was much more attractive in Pulp Fiction.
The movie is visually stunning, especially given the quality of special effects at the time it was filmed, and Robin Williams was an unexpected and pleasant surprise as the King of the Moon. Regardless I repeatedly found myself wondering if Terry Gilliam was in command of all his faculties directing this film, as the kind of zany he espouses is best done in shotgun Monty Python fashion. They say no one expects the Spanish Inquisition, but expect to settle in with more than one box of popcorn and several (caffeinated) beverages for Baron Munchausen - a movie I'd have happily rated one to two notches higher if they had kept all of the same actors and special effects but trimmed out more of that fat.
Those same friends would probably appreciate Baron Munchausen more since it does have an unambiguous feel-good ending, but at over two hours long I felt the movie had a tendency to drag on. In a day and age where every video at Ye Locale Box Store is "UNRELEASED DIRECTOR'S CUT WITH ADDITIONAL FOOTAGE" I simply can't imagine this movie being any longer. There are plenty of times when you wish they'd cut to the point, as even a dunce can figure out what's going to happen when Baron and the Sultan make a bet with a treasury payoff of "as much as the strongest man can carry." Given the chance I also would have sacked the entire segment with the Baron and Venus. I was positively bored to tears by the whole thing and Uma Thurman was much more attractive in Pulp Fiction.
The movie is visually stunning, especially given the quality of special effects at the time it was filmed, and Robin Williams was an unexpected and pleasant surprise as the King of the Moon. Regardless I repeatedly found myself wondering if Terry Gilliam was in command of all his faculties directing this film, as the kind of zany he espouses is best done in shotgun Monty Python fashion. They say no one expects the Spanish Inquisition, but expect to settle in with more than one box of popcorn and several (caffeinated) beverages for Baron Munchausen - a movie I'd have happily rated one to two notches higher if they had kept all of the same actors and special effects but trimmed out more of that fat.