THE IMAGINARIUM OF
DOCTOR PARNASSUS
Year: 2009
USA: Sony Pictures Classics
UK: Lionsgate UK
Cast: Johnny Depp, Heath Ledger, Jude Law, Colin Farrell, Christopher Plummer, Verne Troyer, Tom Waits, Lily Cole, Andrew Garfield, Carrie Genzel, Quinn Lord, Michael Eklund, Ian A Wallace, Paloma Faith, Johnny Harris, Mark Benton, Brad Dryborough, Mackenzie Gray, Ryan Grantham, Richard Riddel
Simon Day
Director: Terry Gilliam
Countries: France / Canada / UK
USA: 122 mins
UK: 123 mins
USA Rated: PG-13 for violent images, some sensuality, language and smoking
UK Certificate: 12A contains infrequent strong language, scenes of threat, hanging and smoking
USA Release Date: 25 December 2009
UK Release Date: 16 October 2009
Synopsis
Filmmaker Terry Gilliam (THE BROTHERS GRIMM) returns with a spectacular modern-day fantasy-adventure THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS with an all-star cast including Heath Ledger, Christopher Plummer, Verne Troyer, Andrew Garfield, Lily Cole and Tom Waits star with Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell. Directed by Terry Gilliam, the film is written by Terry Gilliam and Charles McKeown. One of the most talked-about films of recent years, Terry Gilliam's THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS was recently selected for a special out-of-competition screening at the Cannes Film Festival, 2009.
THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS is a fantastical morality tale, set in the present-day. It tells the story of Doctor Parnassus (Christopher Plummer) and his extraordinary 'Imaginarium', a travelling show where members of the audience get an irresistible opportunity to choose between light and joy or darkness and gloom. Blessed with the extraordinary gift of guiding the imaginations of others, Dr Parnassus is cursed with a dark secret. An inveterate gambler, thousands of years ago he made a bet with the devil, Mr Nick (Tom Waits) in which he won immortality. Centuries later, on meeting his one true love, Dr Parnassus made another deal with the devil, trading his immortality for youth, on condition that when his daughter reached her 16th birthday, she would become the property of Mr Nick.
Valentina (Lily Cole), is now rapidly approaching this 'coming of age' milestone and Dr Parnassus is desperate to protect her from her impending fate. Mr. Nick arrives to collect but, always keen to make a bet, renegotiates the wager. Now the winner of Valentina will be determined by whoever seduces the first five souls. Enlisting a series of wild, comical and compelling characters in his journey, Dr Parnassus promises his daughter's hand in marriage to the man that helps him win. In this captivating, explosive and wonderfully imaginative race against time, Dr Parnassus must fight to save his daughter in a never-ending landscape of surreal obstacles - and undo the mistakes of his past once and for all!