Fox: I put
Heath Ledger's name in quotes not out of any disrespect, but because I don't know how much actual face time he's given in the film. Regardless, this film will arrive with the weight of Ledger's last
everything on it. I think it's kind of poignant that the film involves people going through a glass mirror... darkly or otherwise. I wasn't so fond of
The Dark Knight, or the thought that Ledger will be remembered as The Joker. I'm not trying to ignite another
TDK debate, I just think Ledger's talent deserves a better epitaph than it will likely get.
Also, I'm thrilled to see Terry Gilliam up on his feet again. I only saw part of his last movie
Tideland, and it bummed me out. It was like watching an artist stewing in his own personal, horrible, dirty hell. I love his visions. Usually we get CGI blockbusters in the summer, so a production design extravaganza from Gilliam & Friends could be a refreshing break from that.
Verne Troyer??? I don't know. All I can saw is that Gilliam really likes dwarves.
Nathaniel: You know who else likes dwarves?
David Lynch. Who, speaking of, also likes the multiple actors as one person and/or one actor as multiple people cinematic mind games. That's something else Parnassus will have given the Depp, Farrell & Law solution to the Ledger tragedy. Sight unseen and given the nature of the film, it seems like the best possible solution. If you have to have three other actors step in for you, could you do any better?
P.S. I hope
Tom Waits sings. I can listen to him croon endlessly. Heavy rotation on the iPod y'all.
Whitney: I hope the revenue this movie sparks by being "Heath Ledger's Last Movie of All Time. Really. This is the Last One. Not Like 2Pac. This is Really The Last Movie" will finance his
Don Quixote project that he's been trying to make his whole career. Ledger was really funny in Gilliam's last work, so I'm thinking four Ledgers will be even better.
Joe: Oooh, thanks to Whitney for reminding me how much I liked Heath in
The Brothers Grimm. Which was otherwise disappointing. I tend to respect Gilliam's weirdness from afar; the films themselves are hit-or-miss. Given the circumstances, I hope this one pulls it all together.
Nathaniel: And now I'm sad again. 2005 was such an incredible year in Ledger's career. Think of the range displayed alone:
The Lords of Dogtown, Casanova, Brokeback Mountain and
The Brothers Grimm. Joe, I share your hope. I would love for Gilliam to have a success as big critically and commercially and Academy-ically (yeah I butchered the word to make a shiny gold man point) as
The Fisher King again.
Matt Damon, Ledger and Gilliam on the set of The Brothers Grimm (2005)
I still need to see
The Brothers Grimm. A mad rush to Netflix!
Parnassus would've made my list even without Ledger because of Gilliam alone. His floundering ability to get movies done drives me bonkers, so every one that makes it's way across the finish line is something to be cherished. I'm even one of the like ten people who defended and liked
Tideland. But with this being the last footage we'll see of Ledger, absent a 2-Pac-or-Elvis-like ressurection, and with the actors stepping in to cover Heath being three of my absolute favorites, this became an even higher priority.
As for Troyer, to quote Colin Farrell's character in
In Bruges, "They're filming midgets! They're filming midgets!" I share his enthusiasm.
Nathaniel: Where do
you stand on Gilliam? Or are you seated? Reclining? Perhaps jumping up and down? Do tell in the comments.
In case you missed any entries they went like so...
Why did Sting quit acting? He was doing it pretty regularly for awhile and his performances were fairly well received. Why do you suppose Gwen Stefani never tried again after that bizarre SAG nomination for The Aviator? Cyndi Lauper keeps dipping her toes in. She's already won an Emmy and she has a lead role in an indie called Here and There (pictured left) which is about New Yorkers marrying Serbian immigrants for the ole cash/citizenship papers deal. It's currently working the festival circuit.
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