|
 Lost
in LaMancha
Starring: Terry
Gilliam, Jean Rochefort, Jonny Depp and the crew of The Man Who Killed Don
Quixote
Directed by: Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe
Interview w/Directors
HERE
Bluntly
Speaking? Lost in Lamancha is very unique and brutally honesty. And
it's that refreshing honesty that stitches together production footage, behind
the scenes going-ons and "Gilliam-esque" animations ( by mega-talent
Chaim Bianco) that make this film a must see. Lost
in La Mancha follows director Terry Gilliam as he attempted to get his version
of Don Quixote, The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, made. Filmmakers
Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe and are great believers in Terry and had already made
a winning documentary on him a few years back called The Hamster Factor and
Other Tales of 12 Monkeys . That 'behind the scenes ' piece focused on Gilliam
in action and in production of his box office hit 12 Monkeys . Their newest
peek into the 'makings' is shot while Gilliam's The Man Who Killed Don Quixote
was in pre-production. The
magic of Lost in La Mancha is the unique honesty. We watch Gilliam's own
dream film being arranged, meticulously organized and professionally pulled together.
But the road to LaMancha quickly gets rocky as we veer off on an almost surreal
journey and are privy to film making realities. Realities of a small budget (a
mere 32 million) film being pitted against multiple calamities and wrath-like
unseen forces that finally take their toll. There's a nausea that overcomes you
as you sit and watch a set destroyed by a flash flood, the lead actor fall gravely
ill and the crew start to suspect there's something beyond their control
at work. Still filmmakers Fulton and Pepe stay steady. Even as all the little
cogs in Gilliam's Quixote come to a screeching halt they film on. For
those who do know the Quixote tale, you'll have an extra treat as you spot the
touching similarities between Gilliam and Quixote; like their perpetual abilities
to live with images dancing about in their heads...or the "giants" they
are always up against.
Filmmaker Terry Gilliam is a genius…in a
chitty chitty bang bang meets Orson Welles way. If an x-ray were made of his brain
in action I imagine it would look frightfully similar to the Mousetrap game, resting
on a DaVinci. His brilliant work speaks for itself. And here as the "star"
in front of the camera, Gilliam again shines. He is, apparently, one of the last
honest men on earth. Ego is cast aside for his obvious love of his medium as he
let (encouraged) a film be made and released that ended up to be about
his own film being ruined. Wow.
I already had a big old vat of respect for the guy now I am simply in awe.  Filled
with laughter and sparks, Lost in LaMancha also has a smorgasbord of selected
sadness'. But truly the saddest of them all is the reality that The Man Who
Killed Don Quixote, which would have been a perfect match between subject
and director, may never get made.
The
team of Fulton and Pepe managed to create an impeccable dramatic documentary on
Terry's heaping helping of humble pie. And Gilliam's candor as we watch his personal
horror unfold is remarkable. But as Terry himself said, " Somebody should
get a movie out of it!" And Fulton and Pepe most certainly did - run and
see this brave entrancing film by two extremely talented filmmakers.
Snack Recommendation:
Comfort foods.
Interview
w/Directors HERE | 
