The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus

*Seen at the Chicago Film Festival*

I have never felt so great of a high then when this film started. It was "Mystery Film" night where you just walked into the theatre, sat down and waited for the credits to start so you could figure out what was playing.

It opens and the words: "London, England" appear. Chatter amongst the crowd, "Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes!" "I can't wait for Jude Law!". Then it happened, the words in script: The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus. The crowd erupts in applause and euphoria. I myself felt a shortness of breath as I excitedly tapped the random movie goer next to me and my festival friend.

This film was nothing short of brilliant. There were slow parts, but the times spent in Dr. Parnassus's mirror are just so wonderful, you never want them to end.

For those of you who aren't aware, this is the film Heath Ledger was filming before his untimely death. This left the director and writers scrambling to finish the production without its main character. Jude Law, Colin Farrell and Johnny Depp assumed responsibilities to finish the film in Ledger's place. I thought this bit would be confusing seeing as Farrell and Depp don't really resemble Ledger; however, the production crew wrote this perfectly. I really could not imagine the film with Ledger continuing on with the character after seeing this.

I felt like I was in a grown-up Alice & Wonderland that would return to reality ever so often. Definitely one you should see on the big screen to truly enjoy the imagination of Dr. Parnassus.

You see how people of all ages and genders would fork over any amount to enjoy a few moments of excitement in Dr. Parnassus's imagination. You also learn the "joy" of everlasting life isn't usually all that great, which teen girls wrapped in the Twilight saga will already be fully aware of.

Note: A few scenes were trippy and quite reminiscent of Bono's scene in Across the Universe