In association with

Lost In La Mancha [2002]
from Optimum Home Entertainment
starring Terry Gilliam, Johnny Depp, Jeff Bridges, Tony Grisoni, Philip A. Patterson
directed by Keith Fulton, Louis Pepe

Features:

• PAL

Editorial Review:

Lost in La Mancha is not so much a "making of", more an "unmaking of" documentary which follows director Terry Gilliam through eight weeks of pre-production, six days of filming and finally the aftermath as his long planned feature The Man Who Killed Don Quixote falls apart. Documentarians Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe--the team who produced the excellent feature-length The Hamster Factor about Gilliam's Twelve Monkeys--reveal a tragi-comedy about the director's struggle to bring to life another of his wondrous stories of madness and sanity, fantasy and reality. Unfortunately Gilliam's take on Spanish classic Don Quixote is mirrored all too closely by reality, as everything goes wrong, from noise-ridden locations to flash-flooding to a seriously ill star, Jean Rochefort. Gilliam goes from boyish enthusiasm to bad tempered frustration to near despair, the victim of circumstances beyond his control which turn a cherished dream into a farcical nightmare. Meanwhile, we get glimpses of what could have been and are left hoping that someday, somehow, Gilliam will realise his remarkable vision. --Gary S Dalkin

Customer Reviews:

• Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0

• Shattered dreams...
  A documentary about the making of a film that never got past the shooting of a couple of scenes doesn't seem to promise much, but the story of what was to turn out to be a real-life "disaster movie" is riveting stuff.
  Terry Gilliam's obsession with "Don Quixote" is infectious and his enthusiasm for the task he faces coupled with glimpses of what it could have been really make you wish that things had turned out better. The insights into how a film is planned and the hugely complex logistics of a "live... more info

• A terrible waste!
  My friend and I watched this DVD when it arrived, eagre to see the film-making process of Terry Gilliam, of whom we are both fans.

  It didn't bode well from early on in pre-production, but Gilliam's enthusiasm and faith in his project was infectious and people involved in the film all did their best to try and make it work. However, it does seem as though the project was jinxed from the start, even though, if the film DOES get made, I am sure it will be fabulous, as the scenes they DID manage to shoot... more info

• The windmill wins one
  For a film maker, as with any other working bloke, it sometimes just doesn't pay to get out of bed in the morning.

  LOST IN LA MANCHA is a cautionary tale about the making of a feature film, or rather the un-making of it.

  For years, Director Terry Gilliam dreamed of making a screen adaptation of the Don Quixote story - you know, that old and senile Spanish knight who tilts at windmills. In 2000, with a budget of $32 million, Terry set about to do just that. His film, entitled "The Man Who Killed Don... more info

Similar Products:

More from Amazon