Review of Time Bandits (1981) by David K — 31 Mar 2009

It's really simple, if you don't laugh within the first five minutes when a knight, on horseback, mysteriously appears in a boy's bedroom, destroys the lights and the furniture, hops over the bed, and gallops off into the wilderness, I'm afraid "Time Bandits" will be laborious and boring for you. For me however, I thought it was great!

This is a children's movie with very mature questions at hand. Gilliam is brilliant because he subtley poses these questions without overshadowing the adventure we're on. The film is mostly concerned with authority, and never believing, at face value, what "grown-ups" or authoritative figures have to say. We get numerous examples of this notion as the main characters travel through various points in time and meet different authoritative figures.

First, we meet Napolean who babbles on and on about his own inferiority complex. We move on to Robin Hood who turns out to be a hustler who preys upon the idiocy of the lower class. (Relevant to modern times?) We then meet a King who proclaims that the most important thing to ruling is deception. We soon find ourselves face to face with pure "evil." This guy wants nothing more than to get involved with computers to beseech his own terror onto the world. Ultimately, we come across the "supreme being." It turns out he's just like everyone else trying to get ahead in the world.

What I found most interesting was how Gilliam questions humor and entertainment throughout the film. What is entertainment? More importantly, what is WORTHWHILE entertainment? After the film, we could all go home and sit in front of the T.V. and watch mindless gameshows of married couples flirting with killing each other. Or we can try to broaden ourselves and venture out to other cultures.

As a children's movie, the message of "Time Bandits" is perfect; stand up for yourself, question authority, and venture out of the norm. However, I think the brilliance really lies in it's social commentary. The film's universal questions allow for it to be timeless and cross-cultural; something I think Terry Gilliam was shooting for.