Time Bandits
Handmade Films
2 DVD Special Edition
Shock DVD
While
we are romping through history, we should remember that the overall theme has
already been explored in Terry Gilliam’s wonderful “Time Bandits”. Co-written
with Michel Palin, the 1981 film manages to lampoon time travellers, good and
bad, Creation, and a number of periods of time and historical figures. This is
pretty much what you would expect from a bunch of ex-Monty Pythons.
The
story is of a group of dwarves who have stolen a map of The Firmament. It was
built in a rush job, since it had to be done in only six days, and there are
weaknesses in reality where time portals open and close. The map shows where
these are. The dwarves intend to use the portals to go from era to era looting
and pillaging. They accidentally pick up an English schoolboy, Kevin, along the
way. One time portal opens in the back of his bedroom closet. From here the
story is a set of brief interludes with some great actors playing cameo roles.
There
is the height-obsessed Napoleon (Ian Holm) who knows the height of every world
conqueror and has noted that they are all short, like him. So why is everyone
else so tall?
Sean
Connery plays King Agamemnon. He is quite willing to adopt young Kevin as his
son until the dwarves snatch Kevin away again.
John
Cleese turns in a great performance as the vacuous insincere politician Robin
Hood. “So you’re a robber, are you? How long have you been a robber? Four foot one? That’s a long time”
All
is not well, though. The Supreme Being wants his map back as it shows a way to
release the Evil One from his Fortress of Ultimate Darkness. The Evil One wants
to be free as he thinks the Supreme Being has lost his touch and become
obsessed with things like forty three varieties of parakeet and nipples on men.
If he can take over the world he can run it on truly efficient technological
lines. There will be a confrontation where Kevin will learn a lot about true
friendship.
Time
Bandits is a great film in the best Monty Python tradition. Unfortunately it is
not as well-known as, say, Life of Brian, but even though it was made around
thirty years ago it is still worth revisiting.
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