Plot isn’t so much an ornament or a fixture as it is a messy obstruction in “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.”
It feels like director Terry Gilliam was just looking for a visual outlet for his retro-surreal imagination, some excuse to channel Dali with giant CGI stilts and Candyland-scapes, and was content to bounce around whatever narrative path was required for maximum wonder.
The result is a carnival ride of a movie. It goes around and around until you’re back where you started and you’ve thrown up a bit of popcorn in your mouth.
Gilliam’s slapdash story concerns a series of ongoing bets between the immortal Dr. Parnassus, the benign leader of a traveling theater troupe from a magical realist world, and the Devil. Parnassus owes the Devil his beautiful 16-year-old daughter as payment for a deal, but Tony, a mysterious new troupe member with unexplained powers, does what he can to save (and woo) the girl. Or so it seems.
The plot is one huge conceit, insufficiently grounded and obnoxiously undeveloped with unconvincing conflicts galore. We know every character is strapped with multiple problems, but amidst all of Gilliam’s usual bells and whistles it’s hard to decipher just why we should care.
What everyone should care about is the fact that this was Heath Ledger’s last movie. He died in the middle of filming, leaving his character (Tony) dangling in midair. He is also the backbone of the film.
What Gilliam’s story fails to establish with its plot arc Ledger partially salvages with his acting. Such cinematic heroism is a good reminder of just how much movie-lovers lost with his death. Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law all portray physically altered versions of Ledger to fill in the missing footage, but even they pale in comparison to Ledger’s bright star.
“The Imaginarium,” like all of Gilliam’s movies, is a realistic fantasy. It has revealing angles and honest dirt. But with flying jellyfish and luminescent CGI, this one is Gilliam for a new digital decade. I think I liked him better in analog.
Contact the Diversions Editor at dive@unc.edu.
