In a film where the director used to be part of Monty Python, the lead actor died while filming, and three A-Listers came in to fill the gap, Terry Gilliam manages to tell an oddly straightforward story of a man who wagers his daughter to a devil-like character to see who garners the most souls.  It's a fairy tale, really.

     Doctor Parnassus, played by the always wonderful Christopher Plummer, is the leader of a traveling theatre troupe who lure their audience members into a magical mirror, called The Imaginarium.  As this is the work of the same man that brought us Time Bandits (1981), surrealist visuals are abound.  Each patron's choice is either the upright, noble way, which leads to survival, or the easy, fun way, which leads to the evil, underhanded Mr. Nick (Tom Waits).

     Along the way, the troupe encounters a man hanging by his neck under a bridge, named Tony (Heath Ledger).  They manage to save him, and through his subtle coercion, makes Parnassus and his daughter, Valentina (Lily Cole), fall in love with him, and thus, they decide to bring him along.  His business acumen sees their act generate an actual profit, for once.  But the others don't trust the stranger.  Nor should they. 

     With an all star cast that includes Verne Troyer, Andrew Garfield, Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell, it's held together beautifully by Gilliam, whose amazing art direction and costume design were nominated for Academy Awards.  And with it's familiar 'Through the Looking Glass' narrative, it comes off as far less complicated than Brazil (1985), and far more uplifting than 12 Monkeys (1995). 

 

What Makes This Movie Cool:  Tom Waits

     Tom Waits makes everything around him cool.  Everything.  His music.  His musical partners.  His movies.  His art.  His clothes.  He is the epitome of cool, even in his ripe old age.  And this movie is no exception.

     Also, it was on this film that Heath Ledger died for our sins.  Therefore, one must pay homage, if nothing else, to show that what he did meant something.