AUTUMN MOVIE SPECIAL
‘IN THE MODERN WORLD PEOPLE DON’T SEE WHAT IS REALY IMPORTANT ANYMORE’
been tricky (so much so that he bypassed them completely for his last film, the low-budget indie flick Tideland), but when a Terry Gilliam film hits the cinemas the public always takes notice. His last-but-one, The Brothers Grimm (which also starred Ledger), might not have been a box office smash, but it, like everything from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas back through Twelve Monkeys and on to his brilliant post-Python debut The Time Bandits, remains fondly remembered by fans. That said, Gilliam would probably go on making movies even if no one went to see them, so driven is he by his creative impulse and so dogged in his pursuit of realising his dreams. ‘I do often feel I make a film in order to find out what it is I’m making!’ Gilliam says with a laugh. ‘And I was feeling my way into this film more than I normally do.’ Having triumphed against adversity one more time with The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus, Gilliam will test fate yet again with his next project: another shot at making The Man Who Killed Don Quixote. And one suspects this time he’ll succeed. Out on general release Fri 16 Oct.
This is more his thing. This is more a Terry Gilliam film than there has been for some time.’ ‘I’m not sure whose autobiography it is,’ says Gilliam. ‘I thought it was vaguely related to mine, but I’m not sure any more. It’s about the struggle of creative people. They try to inspire others to appreciate the truth of the world, but most are not successful - that’s the reality. So we have a tragical/magical idea in the film - a group of extraordinary people in an amazing theatre, traveling round London, but nobody’s paying attention to them. I am convinced that in the modern world people don’t see what is really important anymore. There are really extraordinary and important things happening out there and nobody is paying attention.’ Getting people to pay attention is something that Gilliam has had mixed experiences with. Convincing the suits in Hollywood to green- light his wildly imaginative projects has often
14 THE LIST 27 Aug–10 Sep 2009
THE BEST OF THE REST CONTINUED......
THE FANTASTIC MR FOX Wes Anderson (The Royal Tenenbaums, The Darjeeling Limited) returns with a tale of the unexpected. His animated feature version of Roald Dahl’s much beloved children’s book reaches the screen courtesy of great voiceover work from Anderson regulars Bill Murray, Owen Wilson and Jason Schwartzman plus Hollywood hitters Meryl Streep and George Clooney. Funny, silly and faithful to the book, this is fun in that way that only great caper movies can be. The stop frame animation is excellent too. ■ Out Fri 23 Oct. SPREAD Erstwhile Scottish based filmmaker David Mackenzie (Young Adam, Hallam Foe) kicks off his US career with this fascinating update of Paul Schrader’s American Gigolo where Ashton Kutcher plays a self-centred toyboy to the rich women of LA. Jason Dean Hall’s screenplay, based on his own short story goes off the boil towards the end with Kutcher’s Nikki getting both comeuppance and cheesy epiphany in a horrible montage sequence, but there is plenty to enjoy along the way. Anne Heche as sugar mummy Samantha is fantastic. Give this lady a gong. ■ Out Fri 27 Nov.
JAMES CAMERON’S AVATAR (3D) James Titanic Cameron’s long-awaited super budgeted IMAX 3D sci-fi thriller finally arrives. Set in the future, Avatar is the
story of paraplegic war veteran Jake (Sam Worthington) who finds himself among a group transported to the planet Pandora, home of a humanoid race the Na’vi who have their own language and culture. The trouble is that Jake can’t work out who he hates more, the Earth people there or the locals. Sigourney Weaver and a whole load of special effects also star. Less a film than a media event. ■ Out Fri 18 Dec. SHERLOCK HOLMES Want to see what Jude Law was doing when he wasn’t impregnating aspiring US actresses and models? Guy Ritchie’s take on Arthur Conan Doyle’s smartypants detective keeps things in period and has some very inventive casting, not least Robert Downey Jr as the titular character and James Fox as a knight of the realm. Rachel MacAdams provides the mystery and the love interest and Law, workaholic support actor Mark Strong, Kelly Reilly and Eddie Marsan busy themselves in support roles. ■ Out Sat 26 Dec