After reading Jack Mathews book 'The Battle of Brazil', I was anxious to see how the Criterion documentary measured up. After buying the 3-disc DVD edition of 'Brazil', it was the first thing I watched on the DVD set. Although the book was better and more in-depth, that doesn't mean the documentary is bad. It is still interesting and made even more interesting by actually hearing what these players actually said. A fabulous documentary.
The documentary opens with us hearing a piece of what Sid Sheinberg, then head of MCA-Universal, said during his interview conducted by Jack Mathews, then we hear Terry Gilliam saying his full and uncut Telex transmission he sent in August 1985. Revealing any more of the documentary in detail from this moment on would make it kind of confusing and would be wrong. The only thing I'll say from this moment on is that the documentary is about Terry Gilliam pressuring Universal to release his full version of 'Brazil'. That's all I will say.
The documentary is top notch, thankfully because Jack Mathews is the one responsible for bringing his book to a full-fledged documentary. My only bone to pick about it is that the book edges it out by a margin, but it still ranks a 10/10. This is a wonderful documentary.
P.S.: If you're tired, don't watch it. You need energy to watch this documentary. JUST A WARNING!!!