Twelve Monkeys

Bruce Willis, Madeleine Stowe, Brad Pitt

Directed by Terry Gilliam

Rating: B

Time traveling, an army of 12 Monkeys, and a virus set to kill five billion people makes for a promising movie. Oh yeah, and Bruce Willis plays the lead character in this mind-twisting sci-fi thriller.

Time traveling movies may be predictable but in this one, director Terry Gilliam has viewers guessing all the way up to the last twenty minutes. It may become a bit confusing when James Cole (Willis) is sent back and forth in time to feed information to future scientists about a rebel group called the 12 Monkeys. At first Cole is sent six years earlier than his set date of 1996 and finds himself in a mental institution for beating up police officers in a post-time jump haze. Add some mumbling and an insane Brad Pitt come the next scene, viewers may be questioning why they are still watching it.

It's not until a few time jumps later and a psychiatrist once held hostage by Cole that he starts to get help trying to prevent the destruction of mankind. It's up to the two to find the 12  Monkey's and grab a sample of the virus to prevent the oncoming apocalypse.

Similar to this movie is 2012's "Looper" where events come full circle, which seems to be the pattern in time traveling movies. In both movies, Bruce Willis comes back in time to change future events and what drives him to try doing so is to get his life back. In "Twelve Monkeys" Cole is a prisoner volunteering to reduce his sentence by going on a mission to find the 12 Monkeys. It shows a serious acting skill to see Willis in a role as a man who is sane but appears to be insane. Brad Pitt is equally frightening as a mentally unstable person in this movie, who gets worked up as he goes into a spiel about life.

While it may seem slow in the beginning and a little confusing, "Twelve Monkeys" is worth sticking out to the end. Chances are if you liked "Looper", "One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest", or "Children of Men", then "Twelve Monkeys" is the sci-fi thriller for you.

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

Heath Ledger, Andrew Garfield, Lily Cole, Christopher Plummer

Directed by Terry Gilliam

Rating: 4 stars

A traveling theater company in London, England, displays a routine show with a magical twist. Anton (Andrew Garfield) usually escorts an audience member on stage through an extraordinary mirror. Upon entering the mirror, the audience member enters into their desire. However, the theater company's act doesn't intrigue many people. While traveling across a bridge, they come across a hanged man not quite dead. This man has trouble remembering who he is but finds out his name is Tony (Heath Ledger). Tony has some good ideas to help the company earn more money. The only problem is, Tony attracts quite a bit of trouble during an act and brings trouble inside the mirror.

A little known fact to many people is that The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus is actually Heath Ledger's final film. This movie deserved four stars and is a great end to Heath Ledger's acting career. Since Heath Ledger died halfway through making the film, Terry Gilliam had to find a replacement. He not only found one but three replacements: Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Ferrell. Now, you might think that it's a bit silly that three people would be playing Ledger's role but it actually fits perfectly. Since crossing the mirror transforms into whatever the person entering desires, the character Tony changes actors each time he crosses the mirror. In order to go into the mirror, Dr. Parnassus (Christopher Plummer) has to meditate for the passing to work. Otherwise, you pass the mirror into the back of the stage. The main plot of the movie is that Dr. Parnassus made a bet with Mr. Nick (Tom Waits) who is also the devil. Each person to go into the mirror has to make a choice and that choice is either giving your soul to the devil or choosing not to give your soul. It's not as simple as saying "no thanks" because Mr. Nick has tricks up his sleeve. If Mr. Nick collects five souls before Dr. Parnassus, Mr. Nick gets Valentina (Lily Cole), Dr. Parnassus' daughter. The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus is clever and an interesting film to watch. I would definitely recommend this movie to watch if you're a fan of the bizarre, dream-like movies. However, this movie does not have a happy ending but one that makes you think.