Review of Time Bandits (1981) by Laura B — 24 Sep 2008

Time Bandits is more than a film, it is a journey through time, imagination, and wonder. From the moment the film starts we are introduced to the idea of this magically map, and from there we move in into space, into the Earth, and finally into the house of the main character Kevin played by Craig Warnock.

And we are also introduced to his life, and we see him reading up on history and being fascinated by the wonder of it, and parents make him go to bed, and we see the kid angry at not being able to read more, so in a way, this is the perfect kid for this adventure to happen to.

As he lies in bed, his life will change when six little people crash through his closet with a mysterious map. From here the journey and the madness begins from the mind of the brilliant director Terry Gilliam, and we can see a lot of his other films in this one, films like Monty Python and the Holy Grail, 12 Monkeys, and Brazil.

We get to meet Sean Connery as an epic King Agamemnon and John Clesse as the ridiculous Robin Hood who is more an idiot in this film than a hero. And a wonderful Ian Holm as the short Napoleon who loves seeing little people getting hit.

Both other than the ridiculous story and wonderful characters, really in this film it is all about the journey through a world that you really want, almost like a childhood fantasy and this film will leave you in such a great mood.

The sets are massive in scale and the worlds are majestic, from the vast deserts of Greece, to the dark tower where the Evil Genius played by David Warner lives, it is really a wonderful place to imagine yourself in.

As the little people and Kevin travel through time, through random holes in the universe, they are on a constant search for treasures of time, but Kevin is just along for the ride. While all this is happening an all knowing Supreme Being played by Ralph Richardson is chasing after them to trying to get back the map before the Evil Genius can get it and control the universe and shape time the way he pleases.

And through all of this is one of the best family adventure that anyone can enjoy immensely. As we enter the world we enter through the map, and so as we leave the map as it closes, but the adventure, as shown in the end, never ends, and that is what makes it so much fun.