In 1989, Terry Gilliam began working on "The Man Who Killed Don Quixote." In 2000, Gilliam spent an awful week in Spain attempting in vain to film the movie.
Gilliam has periodically attempted to return to this film every few years since. I have been hearing about this film for my entire life. It was worth the wait.
The film opens with an acknowledgment of the infamous life of the movie: "And now, after more than 25 years of filming, and un-filming, a film by Terry Gilliam." This got a very loud laugh out of the crowd at the movie theater, the first of many that this very funny film earns.
Adam Driver stars as Toby, a director who has flown to Spain to direct a "Don Quixote" inspired commercial. The shoot is going terribly -- obviously inspired by Gilliam's previous attempt at this movie -- with nothing working, despite Toby's best efforts.
This is actually Toby's second time to direct a "Don Quixote" movie. Ten years ago, Toby directed a student film adaptation of the book that launched his career. After discovering that the village where Toby shot the student film is only a short drive from the set of the commercial, he decides to go visit the place and see if he can find any of the cast.
Toby finds that the actor who played Quixote 10 years ago has since gone completely insane. He now believes that he is the immortal Don Quixote. The actor, played brilliantly by Jonathan Pryce, recognizes Toby, but mistakes him as his loyal squire, Sancho Panza.
Due to some incredibly bad luck for Toby, he is being hunted by the local police, so his options are to go on an adventure with Quixote, or face a Spanish prison.
Things get weird from here. Quixote and Toby do eventually find their adventure after Toby runs into another star from his student film, a young woman named Angelica, played wonderfully by Joana Ribeiro. Angelica appears to be in a violent relationship. Toby convinces the chivalrous knight to investigate, leading to some incredibly bizarre places and scenes.
Regardless of how good the film is, "The Man Who Killed Don Quixote" is very easy to admire. Gilliam's 30-year quest to bring this movie to movie theaters is the stuff of legend. I honestly never thought I would see this film. But you can't judge a movie on how inspiring the story of its creation is. On its own merits, I loved this movie.
This movie is incredibly funny and there isn't a bad performance in the film. Pryce gives one of the best performances of his great career. Another actor who gives a memorable performance is Oscar Jaenada, who plays a mysterious character only referred to as the Gypsy.
If you have ever seen a Gilliam movie, you know they are very weird. This movie is no different. While I loved the movie, I can see many people being turned off by the weirdness of the film.
Entertainment on 04/13/2019