By Dalton Silvernail
If there’s a movie I could try to oversell, it would be Terry Gilliam’s 1995 Twelve Monkeys. A psychological/suspense thriller, Twelve Monkeys is film making at its best.
Set in a post-apocalyptic future where humanity has been forced underground by an airborne virus, criminal James Cole (Bruce Willis) must travel into the past to gather information on “The Army of the 12 Monkeys” and its connection to the virus in exchange for a pardon.
In his first trip Cole is placed in a mental hospital where he meets psychologist Kathryn Railly (Madeleine Stowe) and Jeffrey Goines (Brad Pitt), the lunatic son of a pharmaceutical company CEO. Haunted by a recurring nightmare and increasingly questioning his sanity, Cole struggles in a world he doesn’t understand. Forcing Raily to aid him, he slowly uncovers the connection between the virus, Goines, and “The Army of the Twelve Monkeys.”
Watching this movie made me realize how capable Bruce Willis is of portraying more than a strong, silent hero or wise-cracking, cut loose cop. Willis’ convincing portrayal of a complex and troubled character did not fall short of enthralling. I find it somewhat upsetting that he was not cast in that sort of role more often. And while the plot itself effectively creates great suspense, the slow emotional progression of Willis’ character makes every twist and turn even more mesmerizing.
Not to be outdone, Stowe’s performance astounds differently. Her character evolves from a rational, emotionally stable, psychoanalyst to an impulsive, desperate woman who finds herself believing Cole’s insane narrative of the dystopian future from which he comes. Complementing Willis’ performance, Stowe’s characterization is easily one the better examples of an effective supporting role I have ever seen.
Perhaps the most surprising and entertaining performer is Brad Pitt. Surprising not because I thought of him as an incapable actor, but because it was a role so different from any other of his I have seen. This is all the proof anyone will ever need that Pitt is capable of method acting and portraying demanding characters. It’s rare to find an actor comfortable with becoming a character so detached from reality and even rarer to find someone who masters every subtle, physical detail of the role. Every twitch, nail bite and gesture is so convincing that you wonder if Pitt actually went insane during filming. Even the way he blinks befits the character. While there is little to no emotional or personality development of his character through the film, Pitt knew Giones so well that from his first frame to his last, the character never became jaded.
Every shot, line and set is so befitting of the genre that it’s difficult to believe this film shares a director with Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Comparing this film to Brazil, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and The Holy Grail, I can only conclude that Gillium is a man that doesn’t simply understand a particular genre, but rather understands the art of film in its entirety.
Netflix-it: Twelve Monkeys
If there’s a movie I could try to over sell, it would be Terry Gilliam’s 1995 Twelve Monkeys. A psychological/suspense thriller, Twelve Monkeys is film making at its best.
Set in a post-apocalyptic future where humanity has been forced underground by an air born virus, criminal James Cole (Bruce Willis) must travel into the past to gather information on “The Army of the 12 Monkeys” and its connection to the virus in exchange for a pardon.
In his first trip Cole is placed in a mental hospital where he meets psychologist Kathryn Railly (Madeleine Stowe) and the lunatic son of a pharmaceutical company CEO, Jeffrey Goines (Brad Pitt). Haunted by a recurring nightmare and increasingly questioning his sanity, Cole struggles in a world he doesn’t understand. Forcing Dr. Raily to aid him, he slowly uncovers the connection between the virus, Goines, and The Army of the Twelve Monkeys.
Watching this movie made me realize how capable Bruce Willis is of portraying more than a strong, silent hero or wise-cracking, cut loose cop. Willis’ convincing portrayal of a complex and troubled character did not fall short of enthralling. I find it somewhat upsetting that he was not cast in that sort of role more often. And while the plot itself effectively creates great suspense, the slow emotional progression of Willis’ character makes every twist and turns even more mesmerizing.
Not to be outdone, Madeleine Stowe’s performance astounds differently. Her character evolves from a rational, emotionally stable, psycho-analyst to an impulsive, desperate woman who finds herself believing Cole’s insane narrative of the dystopian future from which he comes. Complementing Willis’ performance, Stowe’s characterization is easily one the better examples of an effective supporting role I have ever seen.
Perhaps the most surprising and entertaining performer is Brad Pitt. Surprising not because I thought of him as an incapable actor, but because it was a role so different from any other of his I have seen. This is all the proof anyone will ever need that Pitt is capable of method acting and portraying demanding characters. It’s rare to find an actor comfortable with becoming a character so detached from reality and even rarer to find someone who masters every subtle, physical detail of the role. Every twitch, nail bite and gesture is so convincing that you wonder
If there’s a movie I could try to over sell, it would be Terry Gilliam’s 1995 Twelve Monkeys. A psychological/suspense thriller, Twelve Monkeys is film making at its best.Set in a post-apocalyptic future where humanity has been forced underground by an air born virus, criminal James Cole (Bruce Willis) must travel into the past to gather information on “The Army of the 12 Monkeys” and its connection to the virus in exchange for a pardon.
In his first trip Cole is placed in a mental hospital where he meets psychologist Kathryn Railly (Madeleine Stowe) and the lunatic son of a pharmaceutical company CEO, Jeffrey Goines (Brad Pitt). Haunted by a recurring nightmare and increasingly questioning his sanity, Cole struggles in a world he doesn’t understand. Forcing Dr. Raily to aid him, he slowly uncovers the connection between the virus, Goines, and The Army of the Twelve Monkeys.
Watching this movie made me realize how capable Bruce Willis is of portraying more than a strong, silent hero or wise-cracking, cut loose cop. Willis’ convincing portrayal of a complex and troubled character did not fall short of enthralling. I find it somewhat upsetting that he was not cast in that sort of role more often. And while the plot itself effectively creates great suspense, the slow emotional progression of Willis’ character makes every twist and turns even more mesmerizing.
Not to be outdone, Madeleine Stowe’s performance astounds differently. Her character evolves from a rational, emotionally stable, psycho-analyst to an impulsive, desperate woman who finds herself believing Cole’s insane narrative of the dystopian future from which he comes. Complementing Willis’ performance, Stowe’s characterization is easily one the better examples of an effective supporting role I have ever seen.
Perhaps the most surprising and entertaining performer is Brad Pitt. Surprising not because I thought of him as an incapable actor, but because it was a role so different from any other of his I have seen. This is all the proof anyone will ever need that Pitt is capable of method acting and portraying demanding characters. It’s rare to find an actor comfortable with becoming a character so detached from reality and even rarer to find someone who masters every subtle, physical detail of the role. Every twitch, nail bite and gesture is so convincing that you wonder if Pitt actually went insane during filming. Even the way he blinks befits the character. While there is little to no emotional or personality development of his character through the film, Pitt knew Giones so well that from his first frame to his last the character never became jaded.
Every shot, line, and set is so befitting of the genre, that it’s difficult to believe this film shares Gilliam’s previous works include Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Comparing this film to Brazil, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and the Holy Grail, I can only conclude that Terry Gillium is a man that doesn’t simply understand a particular genre, but rather understands the art of film in its entirety.
if Pitt actually went insane during filming. Even the way he blinks befits the character. While there is little to no emotional or personality development of his character through the film, Pitt knew Giones so well that from his first frame to his last the character never became jaded.
Every shot, line, and set is so befitting of the genre, that it’s difficult to believe this film shares Gilliam’s previous works include Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Comparing this film to Brazil, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and the Holy Grail, I can only conclude that Terry Gillium is a man that doesn’t simply understand a particular genre, but rather understands the art of film in its entirety.
