[youtube="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFxqw0jbC2Y"]
When Heath Ledger died, he was in the midst of filming his final role in Terry Gilliam’s new film, “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus”. He had not yet filmed all of his scenes, so Gilliam was left with a decision to make. Would Ledger’s death bring the film to a screeching halt? Keep in mind that Gilliam is no stranger to unforeseen disasters on a movie set. Look no further that the riveting documentary “Lost in La Mancha”, which chronicled Gilliam’s most recent effort at getting his long-anticipated film about Don Quixote off the ground. It was a case where everything that could go wrong with a film, did go wrong.
Rather than shut down production, Gilliam decided to push ahead with “Parnassus”. The script was rewritten and several actors joined the cast as a favour to Ledger, including Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law. Each of these actors along with Heath play “transformations” of the same character. From the looks of the trailer, they are all strikingly similar in appearance.
Gilliam’s films are typically guarantees of great spectacle. I haven’t enjoyed all of his work, but he is undeniably ambitious and has a style all his own. “Parnassus” looks to be every bit the circus its title suggests. It’s gratifying to see Christopher Plummer featured so prominently. He’s an actor more active than a lot of actors half his age, yet recently he hasn’t seemed to land projects that put his talents front and centre. As much as people will be looking forward to Ledger giving one last performance, Plummer as the titular character just might mark one of his greatest roles.
Of course, that’s dependent on whether the film succeeds. Time will tell if Ledger’s death had a negative impact on the script, co-written by Gilliam and Charles McKeown, who last collaborated on “The Adventures of Baron Munchausen” and the classic “Brazil”. I’ll say this: Casting Tom Waits as the Devil is a stroke of genius, and he looks to play the part for all it’s worth. The film looks bright and colourful and exciting. It has a powerful cast and Gilliam’s imagination seems endless. Here’s to hoping Ledger’s last work does him proud.
