Synopses & Reviews
Terry Gilliam presents a sustained and comprehensive examination of one of cinemas most challenging and lauded auteurs. It proposes fresh ways of seeing Gilliam that go beyond reductive readings of him as a gifted but manic fantasist. Analyzing his work over nearly four decades, from the brilliant anarchy of his Monty Python animations through the nightmarish masterpiece Brazil to the provocative Gothic horror of Tideland, Marks critically examines the variety and richness of Gilliams sometimes troubled but always provocative output.
The book situates Gilliam within the cultural contexts of the British, European and American film industries, and examines his struggles against aesthetic and commercial pressures. Gilliam emerges as a passionate, committed and immensely creative director, whose completed body of work encompasses a dizzying and inventive array of material: anarchic satire, childhood and adult fantasy, dystopia, romantic comedy, surrealism, road movie, fairy tale and gothic horror. The book shows how Gilliam employs, interweaves and refashions these genres to create magical interfaces between constricted reality and the illuminating, frightening but liberating worlds of the imagination.
Synopsis
Terry Gilliam presents a sustained examination of one of cinema's most challenging and lauded auteurs, proposing fresh ways of seeing Gilliam that go beyond reductive readings of him as a gifted but manic fantasist. Analysing Gilliam's work over nearly four decades, from the brilliant anarchy of his Monty Python animations through the nightmarish masterpiece Brazil to the provocative Gothic horror of Tideland, it critically examines the variety and richness of Gilliam's sometimes troubled but always provocative output. The book situates Gilliam within the competing cultural contexts of the British, European and American film industries, examining his regular struggles against aesthetic and commercial pressures. He emerges as a passionate, immensely creative director, whose work encompasses a dizzying array of material: anarchic satire, childhood and adult fantasy, dystopia, romantic comedy, surrealism, road movie, fairy tale and the Gothic. The book charts how Gilliam interweaves these genres and forms to create magical interfaces between reality and the illuminating, frightening but liberating worlds of the imagination. Scrutinising the neglected importance of literature and adaptation in Gilliam's career, this study also observes him through the lenses of auteurism, genre, performance, design and national culture, explaining how someone born in Minnesota and raised in California came to be one of British television and film's most compelling figures.
Synopsis
This book is the most sustained and comprehensive examination to date of one of cinema's most challenging and lauded auteur. It proposes new ways of seeing Gilliam and his films that go beyond reductive readings of him as a gifted but manic fantasist. It analyses Gilliam's work over nearly four decades, from Monty Python, to Brazil and Tideland.
About the Author
Peter Marks is Senior Lecturer in English at the University of Sydney.
Table of Contents
List of plates * Series editors foreword * Acknowledgements * Introduction * Something completely different * Monsters and gods * Time and meaning * Dreams, fantasies and nightmares * Pasts, presents and futures in America * Transatlantic Gonzo * Fairy tales, nightmares and fantasies * Filmography * Bibliography * Index