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Lost In La Mancha review
:. Director: Keith Fulton & Louis Pepe
:. Genre: Documentary
:. Running Time: 1:33
:. Year: 2003
:. Country: US/UK
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Lost in La Mancha is a disaster occurring in slow motion: You know the fate of this doomed enterprise but you're powerless to intervene. Terry Gilliam (12 Monkeys, Brazil, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas) held the kernel of a Don Quixote movie in his mind for more than 10 years before he connected all the necessary dots—mainly financiers, it seems—to bring The Man Who Killed Don Quixote to the screen. The actors and crew were mostly in place, props and sets meticulously created, and locations in Spain scouted. But through a confluence of disastrous events—is it the notorious "Quixote curse?"—the picture ran aground not so much as a week after production began.
Narrated somewhat pointlessly by Jeff Bridges, this documentary is a look at the process of a big budget film being born and then dying a sudden death. Surprisingly, the birth, a rare look into the development of what would've likely been a great film, is far more interesting than the death. The usual recipients of cinematic glory—the actors (Jean Rochefort, Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis - Girl on the Bridge)—are nowhere to be found in the pre-production phase. Instead, we are privy to Gilliam's wonderfully inked storyboards (he ought to release a comic version of the tale), back-and-forth dialogues on the logistics of a marionette vs. human fight, and many discussions of the pivotal windmill scene.
The filmmakers (Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe, who came by this project after filming a short student documentary of 12 Monkeys that pleased Gilliam) also provide us some background on Gilliam's body of work, including the fantastic mess The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, which suffered grand financial woes. The use of Monty Pythonesque animation to render these sequences is both a silly and sweet homage to the man that originally created them. They're unnecessary to tell the story but provide a nice respite from the straight documentary style.
As the film progresses from pre-production to actual film shooting, tragedy begins to strike. First, they realize their first shooting location is under the flight path of a military base. Then, Rochefort takes ill. And finally, in an act of God that is both terrible and funny, the equipment is nearly swept away on a river of mud during an unexpected hailstorm. (This prompts one of Gilliam's more surreal one-liners: "If it's not an F-16, it must be thunder.") These problems mount until the insurance company, producers and financiers are all knocking upon the door, trying to figure out how to save the mess. This is where the film begins to lose its momentum. Waiting for insurance adjusters and discussing complex contracts just don't invite good visuals. It's all standing around and furrowing brows. We, as an audience, know what is going to happen. Now we're just waiting for the painfully slow deathblow.
While this withering ends leaves much to be desired, Lost in La Mancha's strengths override it, especially for fans of Gilliam. It's a look into the personality of a truly avant-garde filmmaker, one who tries his best to work within the system though his overactive imagination always seems to win out. Gilliam's irrepressible giggle and imagination are inspiring. The philosophic allusions made between the source material and the events lend an added level of depth and it's lovely to hear Gilliam discussing a 17th century novel with such love. And the aforementioned glimpses into the processes of preproduction—especially the role of first assistant director Phillip A. Patterson—are an eye-opening treat.
But regardless of the strengths and weaknesses of the film, be prepared to leave disappointed. For the teasing glimpses of what could've been a great film drive home the point that this particular Gilliam vision is likely lost forever.
Laura Tiffany
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