The Film
"The plight of the dreamer" could easily sum up both the common thread to most of writer/director Terry Gilliam's post-Monty Python feature films as well as Gilliam's own career. As the '80s drew to a close, he was completing a trilogy of sorts, begun with the fun yet esoteric Time Bandits, continued with the controversial Brazil, and capped with the sprawling period fantasy The Adventures of Baron Munchausen.
The story centers on a fabled rogue who, decades past his prime, must reunite his not-so-merry band in order to save a city under siege from imminent destruction. His impossible journey takes him to the moon and beyond, rejuvenating him in the process, leading to a wild showdown that strains credibility past the breaking point. The movie was a costly, troubled production without the benefit of any big-name stars (although a teenage Uma Thurman is positively radiant), and as such did not find a large theatrical audience. But with the happiest ending of the Bandit/Brazil/Baron trilogy by far, it has become a favorite among Gilliam fans.
The Picture
Most notable for its sumptuous, painterly palette, Munchasuen is a whimsical movie made with mostly old-school technology, heavy on the matte paintings and models, with just a touch of early digital animation. Unfortunately, digital artifacting is evident on smoke, fine textures, and in dark areas of the frame, all of which are abundant in the 1.85:1 image. Even the King of the Moon's dusty face is tainted by some twitchiness here and there, detracting from Robin Williams' performance. Hard rings also have a tendency to appear in what should be soft glows. Simpler shots are fine, and the colors, again, are gorgeous.
The Sound
A reworking of some ambitious late-'80s audio, the Blu-ray's Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track is something of a mixed bag. The big battles feature booming cannon with some directionality and bass. At one point we travel through a whirlpool in Vulcan's workshop, via the center of the Earth and out into the South Seas amid an otherworldly, rather busy sonic transition, replete with rear-channel activity. We're also given some subtle, nifty panning effects when a giant mechanical bird rips itself in three different directions and, to its credit, some clever sound work helps sell some of the cheesier visual bits, like a giant/miniature rubber fish. I did find myself frustrated though as this is such a wild film but the soundtrack genuinely wowed me too infrequently. The music mix is big and clean however, almost like the accompaniment to a live stage production.
The Extras
Gilliam dominates the commentary, as actor/co-writer Charles McKeown is apparently in the room primarily to keep the director from getting lonely. He also uses the word "nightmare" more than once to describe his filmmaking experience. In addition, "The Madness and Misadventures of Munchausen" is a full-length documentary blending behind-the-scenes video and new on-camera interviews with cast and crew. The complicated tale of the production benefits greatly from the depth of informed voices on the subject heard here. Four deleted scenes, including one alternate and one extended version, are shown in rough quality. Three storyboard sequences are presented in a novel fashion, narrated by Gilliam and McKeown, along with specific bookend interviews.
The Blu-ray-exclusive "Marvelous World of Munchausen" trivia track makes fun use of the available technology, as Gilliam-style animations reminiscent of his famous contributions to Monty Python's Flying Circus appear onscreen as we watch. These nuggets are a little lean on fresh content, repeating much of what is said on the audio commentary, but interesting in that the information is organized into different categories, and more than one can appear on screen at a given time.
Final Thoughts
I'll be blunt: The video quality of such a special film should have been better. Many Gilliam completists however will appreciate this best-ever home video version, and the uninitiated are definitely in for a treat.
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