Media Consumes Me

For anyone who doesn’t know, Terry Gilliam (Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Brazil) has a masterpiece awaiting its day: The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus, a film that offers oh-so-much. Typical Gilliam surrealistic landscapes? Check. A deep and fantastical morality tale, showered with imagination? Check. Tom Waits as the fucking devil? One hell of a check!

The film, somehow, didn’t get picked up immediately after it premiered at Cannes. The hows and whys are now irrelevant, however, as Sony is closing on a deal that will provide them distribution rights. According to Variety, we may by lucky enough to see Dr. Parnassus as early as this year. Let’s just hope the distribution isn’t too limited, as so many fear might be the case.

The story centers on the title character, Dr. Parnassus (Christopher Plummer), and his Imaginarium: a traveling show that offers its audience an opportunity to choose between joyful light and gloomy darkness. Despite the good Doctor’s many blessings, he houses one especially execrable secret: a pair of bets with the devil, known within the story as Mr. Nick (Tom Waits). The first bet provides him with immortality… an immortality which he later trades for his youth after meeting the lady of his dreams. Unfortunately, this second deal comes with the condition that his first-born will become the property of Mr. Nick on its 16th birthday.

When Parnassus’ daughter, Valentina (Lily Cole), finally hits her sweet 16th, that handsome devil comes to collect his literal dues. Always ready for another deal, however, Mr. Nick can’t resist negotiating another contract. The wager? The first to seduce five souls will be the one to claim Valentina. The Doctor then promises his daughter’s hand to whomever  helps him win the bet… and the race begins!

As the man attempting to lend the good Doctor (and his daughter) a hand, Heath Ledger steps in… the young actor’s last performance. Given that he passed away in the middle of shooting, the slack left in his role has been taken up by several actors. Apparently the character undergoes several transformations: from Heath to Johnny Depp, and later onto Jude Law then Colin Farrell. A plethora of pretty boys all playing a guy named Tony.

I hope you enjoy the trailer, as I certainly have. Pray that the release of this coming masterpiece is both immediate and wide-spread.