Reviewed by Matthew Constantine / Writer for Independent Propaganda
Purchase Tideland DVD from Amazon.com
Terry Gilliam is a cracked man.
I’m tempted to leave this review at that, but I guess I should go on. With Tideland, he sets off in a different direction from his usual stuff. While still fanciful, it’s much darker than anything else he’s done. It’s an exploration of a cruel world through the eyes of an innocent girl, and it’s at times funny, heartwarming, frightening, cringe inducing, and always beautiful.
Jodelle Ferland stars as Jeliza-Rose, the child of loser junkies who’ve hit the end of their bad trip. The girl turns in an amazing performance for such a young child. She carries the movie on her shoulders, and does it well.
The story follows Jeliza and her father (Jeff Bridges playing a has-been rocker, obsessed with Norse Mythology) as they flee from civilization to his childhood home somewhere out in the country. She finds a wondrous world of imagination fueled by the madness of the people she meets.
But, like Pan’s Labyrinth, this is not a simple fairy tale. And this is not a movie for children. The MPAA got the rating on this one right (I guess they have to get some things right). It’s an R for “bizarre and disturbing content, including drug use, sexuality, and gruesome situations- All involving a child.” That’s true. Though the “sexuality” isn’t graphic, it’s very frank. The “gruesome” and “drug use” however, are very graphic.
It will not be to everyone’s taste, and even fans of Gilliam might have a hard time with this one. However, I found it to be a fascinating journey through innocence and imagination. It reminded me of what the world was like when I was a child, when fear, exhilaration, joy, and wonder went hand in hand with every experience. And it served as a reminder of how strong children can be.
The film is based on a book I have not read by Mitch Cullin.
And Terry Gilliam is a cracked man.
About The Reviewer: Matthew is a writer living in Northern New England. He has written for On the Fly Publications and Global Cafe. A longtime film fan, his list of favorite movies includes the classics Casablanca, Citizen Kane, Lawrence of Arabia, and Commando.
[tags]TIDELAND, DVD, Terry Gilliam[tags]
Leave a Reply