The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009)
Average Rating: 6/10
Reviews Counted: 189
Fresh: 121 | Rotten: 68
Terry Gilliam remains as indulgent as ever, but The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus represents a return to the intoxicatingly imaginative, darkly beautiful power of his earlier work, with fine performances to match all the visual spectacle.
Average Rating: 5.6/10
Critic Reviews: 33
Fresh: 19 | Rotten: 14
Terry Gilliam remains as indulgent as ever, but The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus represents a return to the intoxicatingly imaginative, darkly beautiful power of his earlier work, with fine performances to match all the visual spectacle.
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Average Rating: 3/5
User Ratings: 278,554
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Movie Info
Set in the present day, director Terry Gilliam's fantastical morality tale follows the traveling show of the mysterious Dr. Parnassus (Christopher Plummer) -- a man who once won a bet with the Devil himself, and possesses the unique ability to guide the imagination of others. Many centuries ago, Dr. Parnassus won immortality in a bet that found the malevolent Mr. Nick (Tom Waits) coming up short. While few would be foolish enough to try their luck against the powers of darkness a second time,
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Cast
-
Heath Ledger
Tony -
Christopher Plummer
Doctor Parnassus -
Tom Waits
Mr. Nick -
Johnny Depp
Imaginarium Tony #1 -
Jude Law
Imaginarium Tony #2 -
Colin Farrell
Imaginarium Tony #3 -
Verne Troyer
Percy -
Andrew Garfield
Anton -
Lily Cole
Valentina -
Richard Riddell
Martin -
Katie Lyons
Martin's Girlfriend -
Richard Shanks
Friend of Martin -
Bruce Crawford
Face Changed Martin -
Johnny Harris
Policeman -
-
Mark Benton
Dad -
Lewis Gott
Diego -
Sian Scott
Linda -
Simon Day
Uncle Bob -
Moya Brady
Aunty Flo -
Charles McKeown
Fairgrounds Inspector -
Mackenzie Gray
First Monk -
Yurij Kis
Second Monk -
Ian Wallace
Third Monk -
Amanda Walker
Shopper -
Joann Condon
Shopper -
Carolyn Pickles
Shopper -
Paloma Faith
Sally -
Montserrat Lombard
Sally's Friend -
Craig Fraser
Debonair Gent -
Amy Marston
Classy Shopper #1 -
Gwendoline Christie
Classy Shopper #2 -
Lucy Russell
Classy Shopper #3 -
Maggie Steed
LV Woman -
Ben Cartwright
Policeman #1 -
Gavin Rolph
Policeman #2 -
Bobbi Bysouth
LV Woman's reflection -
Vitaliy Kravchenko
Piotr -
Ray Cooper
Vladimir -
Emil Hostina
Serge -
Igor Ingelsman
Gregor -
Sarah Groundwater
Sales Girl -
Dean Moen
Smiling Policeman -
Fraser Aitcheson
Dancing Policeman -
Michael Bean
Dancing Policeman -
Jase-Anthony Griffith
Dancing Policeman -
Scott McGillivray
Dancing Policeman -
John Stewart
Dancing Policeman -
Chris Cochrane
Dancing Policeman -
Pearce Visser
Dancing Policeman -
Patrick Bahrich
Dancing Policeman -
Georgina Hegedos
Baboushka -
Cassandra Sawtell
Olga -
Carrie Genzel
Female Journalist -
Mark Oliver
Male Journalist -
Peter Stormare
The President -
Donna Lysell
President's wife -
Michael Eklund
Tony's Assistant -
Rahul Singh
Security Guard -
Ryan Grantham
Little Anton -
D. Harlan Cutshall
Charity Guest 1 -
Deni Delory
Charity Guest 2 -
Lisa Bunting
Charity Guest 3 -
Peter New
Paramedic 1 -
Michael Jonsson
Paramedic 2 -
Emma Karwandy
Valentina's Daughter -
Quinn Lord
Young Boy -
Morris Bart & Kimberly C....
Young Boy's Father -
Erika Conway
Young Boy's Mother -
Wendy Carson
Nun 1 -
Christine McMahon
Nun 2
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All Critics (190) | Top Critics (34) | Fresh (123) | Rotten (68) | DVD (4)
The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus is one of those movies that, despite spectacular elements, doesn't add up to a spectacular film.
Top CriticTerry Gilliam, the veteran film director who cut his teeth as the animation wizard of television's legendary Monty Python's Flying Circus, has flirted with genius throughout his career, and bedded her from time to time. In The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnas
Parnassus is fun to watch a good deal of the time, and Gilliam is almost always visually surprising, but Ledger could have used a more momentous send-off.
It teases with magnificently tantalizing moments that don't quite add up to one grand insight. Which, come to think of it, is an epiphany of its own peculiar sort.
When it's all done we're left with another recent Gilliam trademark: the highly imaginative mess.
Shot through with a bold, extravagant generosity of spirit, this journey behind the literal and figurative looking glass marks a gratifying return to form for Gilliam, whose recent films haven't quite lived up to his capacities.
The film is flawed, but you don't expect narrative drive or coherence; you go for the director's flights of fantasy. Possessed of an imagination that throws off more sparks than a fizzing, spinning Catherine Wheel, Gilliam is a fabulous fabulist.
One of the greatest motion pictures ever. From its astounding themes to its brilliant cast, stunning design to enchanting score, undeniable smarts to lasting significance, this is Cinéma! Buy this movie. View this movie. Marry this movie. I have spoken.
A return to form for director Terry Gilliam?
I don't think it's such a big heresy to say that Terry Gilliam is both a genius and an annoyingly full-of-it director who's coasting on the goodwill he earned with Brazil.
It's like snorting a line of pure Gilliam.
a confusing mess. ... a promising set-up assembled with bits and pieces of Gilliam's brilliance, but he clearly did not wake up in the middle of the night with a brilliant vision
Overplotted and the film ends up as a head-scratcher -- we're supposed to sympathize with Parnassus, but the case just isn't strongly made.
Longo e com uma estrutura frouxa resultante das várias alterações, ainda peca pela resolução artificial que poderia perfeitamente ser descrita como um decepcionante diabo ex machina. Ledger merecia uma despedida melhor.
...Ledger's death casts a blue shadow over the entire proceedings, as Gilliam hasn't the heart to turn this parade of images into something like a meditation on the cost of achieving one's wildest fantasies.
I saw [this] twice on the big screen and chose it as my favorite film of 2009 - so obviously, I'm going to wholeheartedly recommend the DVD. There are tons of extras...
A trippy, uneven ride whose best assets are its imagination, Heath Ledger's final performance, and the three surprise stars who act as his replacements.
Terry Gilliam can't catch a break.
Fate's cruel trick -- taking Heath Ledger from us midway through filming -- has inspired Gilliam to make one of his most inventive and strange films.
Walks a thin line between the convenient and the absurd.
The actual story is muddled, but the imagination of the visual imagery is very good.
Audience Reviews for The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
-
- Tony: Where the hell are we?
- Percy: Geographically speaking, in the Northern Hemisphere. Socially, on the margins. And narratively, with some way to go.
-
- Anton: What's that doing in a teapot!
-
- Mr. Nick: You're probably not a betting man are you?
-
- Tony: Don't believe everything you read. Especially The Mirror.
Discussion Forum
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Latest News on The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
December 23, 2009:
Critics Consensus: Sherlock Holmes Is Worth InvestigatingThis week at the movies, we've got a legendary detective (Sherlock Holmes, starring Robert Downey...
October 25, 2009:
Terry Gilliam Talks Doctor ParnassusHe's known as Captain Chaos and his productions are notoriously problematic. Brazil (1985) almost...
October 8, 2009:
Trailer Bulletin: The Imaginarium of Doctor ParnassusIt won't be open for business until December 25, but you can take a peek inside "The Imaginarium of...
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Foreign Titles
- Das Kabinett des Dr. Parnassus (DE)
- L'Imaginarium du Docteur Parnassus (FR)
