Review of Brazil (1985) by Calibmcbolts — 29 May 2016

Terry Gilliam's Brazil is a highly engaging black comedy that uses a dystopian society as its backdrop, and puts a unique twist on the genre, and through Gilliam's camera lens, it's a truly bizarre and memorable vision. The dystopian genre is very interesting, and it's one that is always exciting to see what they'll come up with it. With Brazil you have something totally different, you have hints of humor thrown into the film's storyline, and it adds something to the enjoyment of the film. Dystopian society films are often dark, nightmarish portraits of a society, but with this film we get something very different. The formula here has been reworked to give the storyline a bit more range than your standard dystopian film, and in turn it makes for a truly engaging experience. In the hands of Terry Gilliam, you have a well crafted picture with some truly stellar performances from its cast, especially from lead actor Jonathan Pryce who lights up every scene that he's in. Brazil is a great film, one that succeeds at delivering a different take on your standard dystopian society film, and in the hands of Terry Gilliam, he crafts a standout picture that is sure to please genre fans looking for something a bit different. Brazil is eccentric in the way that it's told, and it makes for a truly entertaining two and a half hours. If you enjoy Gilliam's work, you're sure to enjoy this. What makes Brazil great is the fact that it has your standard dark, atmospheric elements than are synonymous with the genre, but there are also lighter touches comic relief to really make it stand out among other films. Brazil is great filmmaking and one of the finest dystopian society films I've seen. With a great mix of comedy and serious content, Brazil is a standout genre film that elevates the bar and makes for a truly worthwhile viewing experience.

I have thought of my own reason why this movie is called Brazil/ the ending, reason 1, obviously is that the song 'Brazil' is played numerous times throughout the film.

Reason 2: So, I've never been to Brazil and when I look up Google images and I see these beautiful pictures of Rio de Janeiro etc. and the amazing weather, it just looks like the dream place to live, a paradise....but apparently it's a pretty dangerous place to live, with the slums it has a pretty high death rate, you have to be smart and know what streets are safe to walk down ect. It's safe to pressume Brazil is a False paradise.

Just like the end of the film is a false paradise for Sam. He's living the perfect life in his mind with his dream girl away from all the faulty machinery that's been ruining his whole life...but in reality, he's not in paradise, he's strapped in a chair without a state of mind. And to top things off he hums the song Brazil before the credits role indicating that he's in a false paradise.