FILM REVIEW: BRAZIL

Brazil

Runtime: 94 min (Love conquers all edition) | 142 min (director's cut)

Director:

Terry Gilliam: The Meaning of Life (1983) The Fisher King (1991) Monty Python's Flying Circus (1969) (TV)

The Cast:

Jonathan Pryce: The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988), Ronin (1998), Comic Relief: Doctor Who - The Curse of Fatal Death (1999) (TV)

Robert De Niro: Jackie Brown (1997), Cape Fear (1991), Raging Bull (1980)

Michael Palin: Monty Python's Flying Circus (1969-1974), Life of Brian (1979), A Fish Called Wanda (1988)

Kim Greist: Homeward Bound (1993), Houseguest (1995)

Quick Review:

Brazil is Terry Gilliam’s love letter to George Orwell’s 1984.  Even though the film does not contain any Big Brother figures, Brazil is an amazingly well crafted look at what humanity is capable of when faced with an oppressive force. The film is not a straightforward comedy but more of a social commentary on a society laden with red tape and bureaucracy, although Brazil still does possess the classic Python inspired humor. With all that being said, I wouldn’t recommend this film to everyone. I’ve met a lot of people that despised this movie (but they have also hated Gilliam’s other movies). However, if you are a fan of Terry Gilliam films like 1984 (1984), Equilibrium (2002) and a big fan of Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), this should be right up your alley.  

Full Review:

Terry Gilliam is a true auteur, each and every one of his films is distinctively Gilliam. Fear and Loathing in Los Vegas (1998), 12 Monkeys (1995) and Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), are easily identifiable as being his, the style and subject matter is innately personal and Brazil (1985) is no exception. In Brazil, Gilliam takes on the anti-totalitarian sub-genre of science fiction cinema that focuses on rebelling against unjustifiable governments that are controlling the general public, and the quest for individuality and existentialism. Gilliam claimed that he has never read the novel 1984 by George Orwell, even though he was originally going to title the film 1984 ½.

The film possesses the classic satire that Python fans are well use to.  In one scene, Sam Lowry (Jonathan Pryce) wakes up in the middle of the night to discover that his heating unit is malfunctioning, and the maintenance crew cannot fix it because they do not operate late at night. Sam eventually falls back to sleep but re-awakens to see a man dressed as a black ops marine with a pistol aimed at his chest calling himself a rogue duct repair man.  Harry Tuttle (Robert De Niro) claims that he use to work for the maintenance office, but was drowned in so much red tape he decided he wanted to go rogue and repair peoples’ equipment illegally because he loves the excitement. Tuttle’s hatred for paper work is only one example of Gilliam’s social commentary on society - that we are becoming so fixated on controlling each others lives that we forget how to truly live.

If you look at the information for this film that I listed, you can see that I have posted two different run times.  I did this because the film has two vastly different cuts: the studio edit and Gilliam’s desired version. The 94 minutes version is labeled the Love Conquers All cut where the studio felt that Gilliam’s film would not be marketable to general audiences and instead yield a loss in profit. The 94 min version is an example of how the editing of a film can have a huge impact upon the film’s themes and plot devices.  This version was intended to possess a ‘happy ending’, but the means that Sam reaches this ending make little to absolutely no sense.  We are introduced to monsters that never existed in the film’s universe and it is simply terrible. However, I am glad that this version of the film does exist because, in a way, it validates Gilliam’s thesis that intervention for ‘higher powers’ is not always justifiable, and that it can do more damage then good.

The longer 142 min version of the film is what Gilliam intended to be officially released.  The story is very dark and can be quite depressing, but it absolutely fantastic. In the 94 min. version we meet monster like creatures in the final moments of the film that are not introduced earlier in the film, but in this version we meet them much, much earlier in a dream sequence.  Because of this introduction, the ending actually makes a lot more sense.  With the combination of masterful editing, it creates a much more coherent story as well as an ending that is very reminiscent of 1984’s ending: bleak, depressing but highly plausible given the situation.

While I do not feel comfortable recommending this film, I did highly enjoy it and would suggest the film to anyone that is interesting in films that look at dystopic societies with a touch of sarcasm and disdain.

SHARP OBJEX Rating: 3 out of 4

Comments

[Brazilian]

This movie uses classic and timeless hits of the brazilian culture in such a horrible way. The connection between the movie itself and the sountrack is horrible, a shame for any Brazilian. If he wanted to make a movie called brazil, he shoulve at least invested in some portuguese speaking actors.

[Mitchell Tully]

I can understand where you are coming from, after reading your post and reflecting on the movie I can see why someone would be a little angry at this film.

But if you look closely this film isn't solely about one specific country (nor is it criticizing Brazil specifically) but the movie is slightly like an homage to films and art that has inspired Gilliam. The film is named after the song "Aquarela do Brasil" because it dealt with a man who wanted to explore more of his world and that is what Sam Lowry desired to do throughout the film. But he movie wasn't only inspired by that one piece of art, it was also going to be called 1984 1/2 which is a reference to both George Orwell's 1984 as well as Federico Fellini's film 8 1/2. Also in the scene where Sam is escaping we see a vacuum cleaner falling down some steps and this which is a reference to the baby carriage scene from the film Battleship Potemkin. So while I do understand why you would be upset over how you feel is a misuse of the song, or a disregard to portuguese speaking actors, I have to admit that I do not feel that Gilliam was attacking Brazil on purpose, but felt the song was a way to describe his character.

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