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Zeep00
Reviews
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009)
A Boring, Annoying Mess
I'm giving this a 3 out of 10, only because the CG visuals in the fantasy sequences were cool looking. The majority of the movie is a nonsensical mess that goes from "interesting," to "boring" to "annoying" during the course of its very long two hours. If someone had had the sense to cut out all the boring parts, and the screaming and bitching that these cardboard characters did, then we might have had an amazing 60 minute movie. But studios think movies need to be at least 90 minutes, and Gilliam is apparently incapable of coherent storytelling, so we end up with a turd on the screen. We will remember Heath Leger for much better roles, movies where he played actual characters. In this tedious turdburger he shows up about 20 minutes into the movie hanging by his neck, left for dead. As distasteful as this is, it is not by far the worst thing about the movie. I really wonder where Gilliam, or anyone who greenlit this script thought the drama would come from. I'm assuming they looked at this as a drama, because lord knows there's no humor in it. There's no real drama either. The bogus "bets" between an old drunk and a devil are so ill-defined, and of so little interest to the old drunk that they can't generate the slightest dramatic tension. It's really a shame when a lot of talented people put a lot of time and money into something that is such a stinker.
Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him?) (2010)
Excellent Documentary
I saw this movie in Santa Monica on Aug. 23 and it has stayed with me. I want to thank the filmmakers for digging into the details of Harry's enigmatic, eccentric, life. And also for showing the flaws and failings of Nilsson the man. Thanks for showing the good and bad, the ups and downs, and for uncovering that amazing BBC footage. The film is also a great showcase of a vast amount of Nilsson's music, really well placed throughout the film. I recommend this movie to anyone who likes good documentaries, especially if you are interested in Harry Nilsson or the music scene of the early 70's. Some reviewer at the Ain't It Cool website wrote that this was the best movie movie they saw at the Santa Barbara Film Festival, and I believe it. The film is informative, funny, sad, touching, and full of awesome music. It succeeds on all levels. Really, really good.