Time Bandits
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Movie Reviews of Time Bandits
Movie Review: Great movie! Great kid's movie and the Criterion DVD still stands up high!
Summary: 5 Stars
My uncle first introduced this movie to me a long time ago! Afterwards I thought it was weird for a couple of reasons. The first was that it was directed by Terry Gilliam of Monty Python and the other was the kooky plot and characters. But they were reasons to make me watch the movie. I fell in love with it after a couple of viewings. I have to praise Terry Gilliam for directing Heath Ledger in his last role after The Dark Knight. The Criterion DVD is still good by the way. Despite the non-anamorphic transfer, this is still a good DVD. Criterion does a fantastic job with their titles and this one is no disappointment. Hey, the movie was released in 1981 and you gotta give it that. I did want to get the Special Edition from Anchor Bay, but the Criterion version spotted my eyes first and the rest is history. I have the Criterion DVD of Time Bandits! And the day after tomorrow...... THE WORLD!!! AHAHAHA!!!Movie Review: Never mind them: Time Bandits is a GREAT film!
Summary: 5 Stars
I had a strong reaction to people's negative comments about this movie... I must admit, when I saw the movie in the theater, I can remember it being much more fast-paced then when I saw it for the second time on dvd in the 2000s...I also remember it being funnier...And I suppose the special effects are not up to modern standards... But to call Time Bandits "dated, dumb, and dull," as one reviewer wrote, is in my opinion a great injustice to a great movie.
People have to realize- Time Bandits is NOT truly a comedy or even a fantasy/sci fi movie- and those elements of comedy and sci fi/fantasy that exist in the movie are incidental to its true purpose: being a social/philosophical commentary on the evils/perversions that technology, when left unchecked, can impose on us (or more accurately: how we impose technology on ourselves and others, especially our children), and how people can lose their souls when they love and desire things, money, and power instead of people/living things, morals, and love- which are the truly important things in life. And considering how more than ever before (because there is more technology and things available to us than ever before), almost all of we Americans are about our things, acquiring more things, and having more than the Joneses next door, I think Time Bandits is MUCH more relevant, and has much more to teach us NOW, than when it came out (1981).
Since my second viewing of Time Bandits, I have watched the movie more times, and it grows on me more every time. I love the points Time Bandits subtly makes, as well as the thoughts, imagination, ideas, ideals, and feelings of adventure it provokes... I love the general feel that the movie has. Time Bandits is a great movie, and is considered to be a cult-classic by many- but if you are only into the all-too common modern mindless cookie-cutter films, which lack any real deepness, originality or imagination, you might want to rent this one first before purchasing it.
Movie Review: Terry Gilliam--Once Again At His BEST!
Summary: 5 Stars
Terry Gilliam's works are always magically a bit odd and off center, and keep the viewer mystified and off balance, and in the end...it all works out. Somehow. The relationship between Sean Connery's King Agamemnon and the protagonist (Kevin) is sweet and not-quite-happy-ending enough for me, but the film is a masterpiece in the fantasy genre. Movie Review: Does NOT Stand the Test of Time
Summary: 1 Stars
My husband, 11 year old daughter, and I watched TIME BANDITS the other evening. My husband remembered it from his college days as being extremely funny, and thought we would all enjoy it. The whole family loves British comedy, and we were really looking forward to this. Unfortunately, TIME BANDITS has not held up well over the years. We all sat there a bit glassy-eyed and slack-jawed, waiting for the laughs.
For some reason that I cannot quite my finger on, this film just isn't funny anymore (if it ever was). With supposedly Monty Python-esque humor, I would have thought that TIME BANDITS would have become a sort of timeless classic similar to the Monty Python films. But what works for Monty Python, what makes THEM classic, doesn't work or is severely lacking in TIME BANDITS.
The plot is old, predictable, disjointed, and, quite frankly, boring. The pace is plodding and tedious. The special effects, while they may possibly have been innovative in 1981, look cheap and cheesy. The acting, from this "all star" cast is mostly dreadful, although John Cleese and Sean Connery both deliver their typical fine performances. The ending is bizarre, and while I understand what the director was going for, fails miserably. And, as others have stated over and over, the quality of the disk transfer is just horrible - dark, jumpy, and full of artifacts.
I was temped to give this a two-star rating based solely on the performances John Cleese and Sean Connery, but why bother? You can see both of them in much better films. TIME BANDITS is dated, dumb, and dull. NOT RECOMMENDED.
Movie Review: Pure Chaos
Summary: 3 Stars
Terry Gilliam movies are a mixed bag, but rest assured they are always going to be surreal. The silly premise of a band of international thieves stealing a map from the Supreme Being and running amuck with comic escapades involving historical figures is wonderfully goofy gold mine to work with. Unfortunately, many of the scenes are just not that funny. Napolean's obsession with short people was just obvious and was pretty dull to watch. The scenes involving ancient Greece, outside of a great festival scene, was slow moving and didn't really do much to advance the plot. The Robin Hood scene, on the other hand, was hilarious, as well as the recurring joke with two lovers they constantly interfere with.
The villain, who else but The Evil Genius, was hilarious, and the movie kicked in to full gear when the band set out into the "Time of Legends". The chaos on the screen in the climactic battle made up for some of the misses in the film.
Oh, and there's satire of materialism, some theological studies, and an extremely amusing conception of The Supreme Being at the end. Overall, it's all too odd to feel you're being beaten over the head any of the underlying messages, and just adds to the general weirdness.
Not Gilliam's best, but good when you're in the mood for something completely different.