Time Bandits (1981)

Terry Gilliam had directed one movie - Jabberwocky - outside of working with Monty Python prior to making Time Bandits.  His comic art, and his set design, were aspects that helped both Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Life of Brian stand out as comedy films, but it was no surprise that major studios had their doubts about producing his script for Time Bandits after the uneven comedy fantasy of Jabberwocky. 

Nominally a children's movie, it was to feature a cast of dwarf actors and go to some dark places in its fantasy setting.  Lucky for Gilliam there was George Harrison.  Harrison had come to the Pythons' rescue with funding to make Life of Brian and he did so again for Time Bandits.  The result was not only a unique fantasy film but a movie that would set Gilliam apart as a director, having both a certain aesthetic as well as subversive undertone to stories that would become more pronounced in his later movies.  

Kevin (Craig Warnock) is an 11-year-old boy who loves history.  His parents love their gadgets and trying to outdo their neighbors and care little about their son's interests, much less their son.  One night a knight on horseback bursts out of Kevin's closet and exits into an open forest in the opposite wall.  Determined to get proof of what happened the next night Kevin takes a Polaroid camera to bed with him.  While the knight doesn't reappear his bedroom is invaded by six dwarfs - Randall (David Rappaport), Fidgit (Kenny Baker), Strutter (Malcolm Dixon), Og (Mike Edmonds), Wally (Jack Purvis) and Vermin (Tiny Ross) - carrying a map that a certain Supreme Being (Sir Ralph Richardson) wants returned.

When the troop flees their former employer Kevin is dragged along with them, finding himself in the middle of Napoleon's (Ian Holm) invasion of Italy.  Randall says his group is a bunch of robbers, planning on getting rich by using the map, which contains the locations of certain holes in reality that allow travel through time, to steal from historical figures.  Soon they are traveling through the Middle Ages and Greece, but the Supreme Being isn't the only one who has noted their adventures.  The Evil Genius (David Warner), locked away by the Supreme Being in the Fortress of Ultimate Darkness, hatches a scheme to trick the dwarfs into bringing him the map so that he may escape and remake the universe in his image. 

The best Terry Gilliam movies have a certain visual style to them, much like his cartoons he drew for Monty Python.  He uses lots of plastic, tubing, wires and valves to build his world, particularly when technology is involved.  Anything technological is treated as nightmarish, in this case being within the realm of the Evil Genius.  The Fortress of Ultimate Darkness is itself a combination of dark stone and what looks like Lego blocks, all covered in layers of dust.  It is hard to describe, but when one is watching a Terry Gilliam film, one knows.  

Craig Warnock was a great choice for Kevin.  Normally children in fantasy films are hard to tolerate, but though he has quite a bit of knowledge about where they are traveling Kevin never comes across as a know-it-all.  Instead, like in the scenes in Greece where he meets King Agamemnon (Sean Connery), he learns from where he is, taking in the sites and adapting.  It is good that Time Bandits never comes across as a history lesson since its idea of history is to let the comedic and fantasy elements overcome any true attempts at accuracy.  What Kevin does do with his companions is attempt to keep them on a moral path, something that frustrates the Evil Genius to no end.

The reason for hiring little people as actors was because Gilliam wanted companions that Kevin would be able to relate to rather than the tall, oppressive adults that made up the rest of his life.  That said the comedic aspects rely more on situation and dialogue rather than going for too many cheap jokes based on their size.  In fact, the only one obsessed with size is Napoleon, while none of the dwarfs seem to care.  They get along fine as they are, although it is obvious why the Supreme Being is frustrated with all of them.  

Though conceived as a children's film Time Bandits works better when watched as a teenager or adult.  I remember seeing it around the age of 12 and not liking it.  It certainly doesn't talk down to children, but I think a problem with it is that, if one is under the age of 16, most of the jokes just don't hit.  The visuals do, but the dwarfs themselves are not that likeable, the movie is still structured in a similar episodic form as Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Gilliam's sense of humor just doesn't translate well for children.  It is perfect for teenagers and up as by that point the trust in adults has eroded enough that much of the movie connects better than it does for someone just looking for escapist fantasy.

What Terry Gilliam was able to accomplish with a low budget and a lot of imagination is a movie that still entertains over 40 years later.  As I write this it is just days away from a television adaptation of the story - sans little people - bringing the story to a modern audience.  As usual the best way to do that is through the original, as it remains a unique take on fantasy and time travel.

Time Bandits (1981)

Time: 110 minutes

Starring: Craig Warnock, David Rappaport, Kenny Baker, Malcolm Dixon, Mike Edmonds, Jack Purvis, Tiny Ross, David Warner

Director: Terry Gilliam