Brazil

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Summary: A profound experience, more eerily relevant than ever today
Review: In case no one's told you yet, "Brazil" is a really great film. I can think of no other movie that has stuck with me so vividly, for so many years, after only one viewing.

That's right, despite the fact that I consider "Brazil" one of the greatest films of all time, I've only seen it once, and have no plans ever to see it again. The visuals are rich, with bizarrely Orwellian settings, the performances were brilliant, the writing superb, and despite all that, or perhaps because of it, I can't make myself go through it again.

"Brazil" manages to be both deeply depressing and funny at the same time. The story centers on a man who works in an administrative position at the Bureau of Information Retrieval, an enormous agency whose job it is to spy on people, invading their lives and torturing them as needed, all in an effort to "stop terrorism". Adding insult to injury, the Bureau then bills its torture victims for its "Information Retrieval" costs incurred while conducting its investigations.

It becomes painfully clear in the course of the film that these putative efforts to stop terrorism are meaningless. The terrorists, if there were any in the first place, have become nothing but an excuse for oppression. The government has a strange way of responding instantly to any terrorist act, as if they knew it was going to happen beforehand.

Despite the grim setting and even grimmer events that transpire, "Brazil" nonetheless remains entertaining, absurdly funny, and even occasionally (for brief periods, anyway) uplifting. I think most people will gain something from watching this film at least once, Once may even be enough.

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Summary: Get the Criterion Version
Review: One of my favorite films of all time. A rare film that actually has a unique production design that is not derivitive of other films and a great story at the same time. But by all means, do not buy anything but the Criterion Collection version unless you hate yourself.

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Summary: Nominated for "Most Overrated Cult Film"
Review: I am sorry, I have seen this movie three times, including recently in it's "restored glory" (mostly because I have been subjected to pressure from friends who keep claiming this is one of the greatest films ever made). I can see and appriciate a uniquiness in the visuals and story that this film has, but it completely fails to grip me. This movie seems to be too long, too redundant/monotonous, to bill this as a De Niro movie is a false advertising, and Pryce is more compelling selling luxury cars. Maybe because I am a huge Monty Python and Robert De Niro fan I have never been able to look at this movie properly. Sorry, but this movie just doesn't cut it for me.

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Summary: What a great movie....
Review: I bought this dvd on a whim and boy did I enjoy it. I recommend this to all.

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Summary: Fascinating!
Review: Brazil is like a dream gone bad. We see that individuality is not valued. We also see that one can dream outsde the stringent boundaries of society. Our protagonist is lost in the governmental mindlessness of redtape. Some outlaws exist, led by Robert DeNiro, who try to bring free thought to our mindless society. The rich are free to fulfill the idiocies of their existence while the workers are chained to their mundane lives. There is horror in this movie which comes from the mind. No blood is spilled and there is very little romance. Our hero yearns to have his own little patch of peace where he can live his life by his own rules. Society does not want this, he must conform. Finally the movie ends on a dream of false hope. A devastating piece of work. A must see!

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Summary: Great F*ing Film
Review: This film is by far one of the most perfectly done and ambitiously derived I have ever seen. If you are a fan of good films and see this for Borders' very low price snatch it up, you won't be sorry.

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Summary: Terry Gilliam's best film and my personal favorite
Review: How to describe Brazil to someone who might never have seen it? Its my favorite film but I still find it hard to put into words just what makes it so special. This is one of the unusual films that, despite its considerable length, never fails to surprise. On each viewing, I discover some new nuance, some previously unseen humor that only makes me appreciate this film all the more. Every frame of Brazil contains a new surprise and it would be unfair to rob the viewer of those delightful discoveries by revealing too much about the film itself. The plot is rather complex but, taken on its own terms, remains comendably coherent. Sam Lowry is a burned-out civil servant in a country that seems to be England but apparently isn't. He spends his days relishing his obscurity, living a highly detailed fantasy life where he takes the form of a winged hero that lives the type of exciting life that the rather drab Lowry can only dream of. However, when an innocent man is arrested for "terrorist acts" and later killed during questioning, Lowry finds himself drawn into the nightmarish reality that he'd rather pretend didn't exist. To give any further details would be unfair.

So, what is this film? Some people have called it science fiction but it isn't. Instead, its clearly a satire of everything reality has to offer. Lowry lives in a tyranny that is maintained not through any grand schemes but instead through the oppression of constant and continual paperwork. Its a world where people have sacrificed their individual liberties to a state that promises to fix any and all problems but only after the right forms have been filed with the right departments. And, most frighteningly, its an increasingly plausible vision of a world where a man can be branded a criminal because he actually fixes a malfunctioning heating duct himself rather than waiting for "Central Services" to arrive. As a filmmaker, Gilliam has always had the ability to create some of the most amazing dreamscapes that one could imagine and no where is this more obvious than in Brazil.

Some critics have complained that the film is, at times, excessive and lacks a strong central story. These critics miss the point. This film isn't about a central story. Its about a vision of a society that matches our own more than we'd like to admit. While the nominal villians at first come across as comical buffoons, they are revealed -- at the film's haunting end -- to be far more powerful and far more dangerous than anyone could have guessed.

However, Brazil isn't a somber film. Instead, its one of the funniest comedies I've ever seen. Despite the dark mood of many of the film's scenes, one can't help but laught out loud at the horrifically absurd situations that Lowry finds himself in. Gilliam, of course, got his first taste of fame as a member of Monty Python and Brazil is filled with that troupe's anarchistic sense of humor. As well, it features several wonderful performances. Though Gilliam envisioned a younger man in the role, Jonathan Pryce is irreplaceable as Sam -- bringing a everyman feeling to a role that, as repeated viewings reveal, turns out to be a bit of a jerk. Robert De Niro turns in a wonderful cameo and nice work is done by English character actors like Ian Holm, Jim Broadbent, Peter Vaughnn, and Ian Richardson. However, my favorite performances are contributed by two people you might not expect. Katherine Helmond, sadly known mostly for appearing in subpar sitcoms, is a true wonder as Sam's narcisstic mother while fellow Python alum Michael Palin manages to be both comically bland and believably threatening as Sam's friend Jack Lint. (Palin also contributed one of my favorite throw away lines. When asked about his twins, Palin blandly responds, "Triplettes now.") Only Kim Griest, playing Pryce's dream girl, is a disappointment. Supposedly, she and Gilliam did not get along on the set and its obvious from her somewhat detached performance.

Well, I wish I could sum this review up with something more eloquent and thought provoking but nothing I could say could hope to match up to the film itself. So, I'll end with this. If you've never seen Brazil, see it immediately! (Just be careful to avoid the 90 minute version which was cut without Gilliam's input by nervous studio execs.)

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Summary: The Real Deal Brazil Review
Review: Brazil. All the other reviews say it is so artful and depressing and dark humor and on and on. I'm glad none of the reviews give the ending away, and i don't want to put down the other reviews. Watch this movie with an open mind. I read so many reviews before I watched the movie i think it may have ruined it a little by making my expectations too high (still my favorite movie, though). Don't expect Brazil to be some visual masterpiece with a thought-provoking plot and a suprise ending. Just watch it, maybe you'll find that it really is.
By the way. For the parent, it is rated R for mild violence, very mild sexuality, and very mild language (in my opinion it could've been PG-13). Keep in mind I'm not the official source to look to for movie ratings.
Hope this movie turns out to be everything you DIDN'T expect it to be!

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Summary: 'BRAZIL' a bleak vision of a twisted future
Review: If this wasn't a book, I wouldn't believe it. If this wasn't a movie, It would have to be a book, and I still wouldn't believe it. This is how incredible, under-rated and underlooked Terry Gilliam's "Brazil" is. And no amount of verbosity can measure up to what this film is. The zany, off-beat, and sometimes blunt and sadistic humor of Pythoner Terry Gilliam is mixed with the undertones of a all-knowing, "Big Brother" government, Central Services and the Minstry of Information in post-modern society fraught with over commercialism, strict conformity, swift yet undemocratic justice, a common interest in the greater good, an over reliance on facts and figures, in short, a world defunct of dreams and imagination. Enter Sam Lowry, a person like any other, an employee of the Ministry of Information, who kindles his imagination and love interest in an environment that enforces the opposite of that. Ultimately, through a series of events and complications between his friends, mother, and a conspicuous revelutionaire played excellently by Robert DeNiro, who specializes in sabotaging the handiwork of Central Services, Sam must face the reality of his world versus his own dreams and hopes. The Criterion Collection edition of Brazil is absolutely splendid! Remastered and re-edited, Gilliam presents "Brazil" in its final cut. The second disc provides plenty of behind the scenes insight with pictures, documentaries, and commentaries that go in depth into the creation of "Brazil". The third disc is not incredibly wonderful, but worth checking out as it is the re-cut of the original made into the "Love Conquers All" version of "Brazil" for all you optimists. "Brazil" is Gilliam at his best, a true masterpiece of the imagination! "Brazil" excels on many levels, and it's all captured here on this remarkable 3 DVD set!

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Summary: I understand this movie, but I don't understand anyone
Review: having a love affair with it. The acting is good, the images (for 1980's standards) are fun to watch and the story is worth being told. What's pitiful is the writing, direction and editing. These three things, especially the writing, make the movie very difficult to watch. Character development and motivation is kept to a minimum, and instead we are typically rushed into another fantasy sequence or great set design that sometimes makes a curious commentary, but usually has nothing to do with the story.

If you have high standards for a movie, Brazil is a disaster. A few good parts don't usually make a movie good. A few bad ones (especially when its writing and editing) can ruin a movie. It's not bad to use a little discretion in film making, but Terry Gilliam threw everything at the screen and virtually none of it sticks.