The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

Oh, the old fool... again, he forgets that for all the intoxicating gloss, veils and crazy shapes, the whole show sways precariously in an ocean of thought and narrative confusion. But can you be mad at him for it? You can, although The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus is levels above the botched film The Brothers Grimm. It’s him again - the whimsical, wasteful, restless child and a collage maker of the impossible... However, despite the excellent acting, his last work is one of his lesser films. However, I cannot hide the fact that this quality is still damn good compared to others. (08/01/2010)

Weird movie. Interesting choice of well-known actors in small roles, but that's probably all. For me rather long-winded, and not entertaining and engaging enough. The fantasy world behind the mirror didn't appeal to me visually, nor did I find the film special in terms of story. Probably nothing for me. 55% (30/04/2016)

I have one unpleasant memory from the film "Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus", which is why I didn't see Johnny Depp in the movie. Yes, I mainly went to see the film because of Heath, who did not disappoint. I like how Gilliam dealt with the unfortunate situation. All the actors did incredibly well, and visually the film is unbelievably interesting, but that was to be expected from Gilliam. The screenplay does lag a little, but you go into it knowing that it will be more of an artistic experience rather than a popcorn flick. (07/01/2014)

Heath Ledger was resurrected to steal this his last movie. Against all odds, Gilliam successfully managed to bring the picture to a successful conclusion. Not completely first-class, but very good all the same. His imagination works on overdrive and I can’t help thinking that Parnassus is actually personification of Gilliam himself who time and again makes a bet with the devil about whether he will be able to finish his next story. The special effects, although not completely perfect, are spectacular and depict stuff I personally like to see in movies (temple carved into stone in the shape of Buddha sitting on some elephants, jellyfish flying in space, well who could resist that?). They nicely contrast with quite realistically depicted period London full of drunks and Russian mafia ;-). Heath’s stand-ins are incorporated really well into the movie and don’t interrupt its flow in any way. Even though “flow" is not exactly the right word because here and there it falls apart in Gilliam’s hands. Who knows if he really had managed shoot all of the scenes with Ledger that he needed. Don't believe everything you read. Especially “The Mirror". (03/02/2010)

Five stars, that’s all there is to it. It's rare to see something like this in my commentary, but: A person who was bored by The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, disappointed by it, or bored and disappointed together, simply has no imagination, can't think about the film and doesn't want to dream. There. Imaginarium is great - every second, every shot, it oozes typical Gilliam, whose magical world I could recognize even blindly. It's commonplace that this American Python doesn't miss the mark even when choosing actors - here he hit the mark again. Several times. Ledger, Depp, Law and Farrell were all great. A charming Lily Cole, and Christopher Plummer, who has no problem looking homeless in one shot and like a dignified magician in the next... And last but not least, Tom Waits, one of the best devils of the film world. I applaud you all. And I wish Terry Gilliam would never stop telling stories (we know how important that is for the world, don't we?).__P.S. The released DVD offers (by today's lousy standards) an unprecedented portion of interesting bonus features. But the radio interview with Heath Ledger ("I'm going to finish shooting the new Terry Gilliam movie in three weeks") made me feel pretty damn anxious. (07/08/2010)