The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (Criterion Collection)

Director: Terry Gilliam
Screenplay: Charles McKowan, Terry Gilliam
Based on a Novel by: Gottfried August Bürger
Starring: John Neville, Eric Idle, Sarah Polley, Oliver Reed, Jonathan Pryce, Uma Thurman, Robin Williams
Country: UK, Germany
Running Time: 126 min
Year: 1988
BBFC Certificate: 12 (Film rated PG)

It’s common in modern pop culture to revisit things which previously received less than favourable critical attention and re-evaluate them with the benefit of hindsight to find some worth. One of the best opportunities to do just that is with lavish re-issues from popular boutique labels such as Arrow, Signature and, in the case of Terry Gilliam’s The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, Criterion.

Released in 1988 following Gilliam’s critically acclaimed dystopian Sci-Fi Brazil, Baron Munchausen heralded a return to a more whimsical and fantastical type of tale than it’s much darker predecessor. Feeling more akin to the directors 1981 cult classic Time Bandits, The Adventures of Baron Munchausen tells the tale of an elderly adventurer thrust back into the limelight to confront the legacy of his old escapades which has inadvertently caused a war with the Turkish Empire that has been raging for decades. Teaming up with Sally, the daughter of the owner of a travelling band of actors, Baron Munchausen travels to the moon and back again, gathering his band of superpowered misfits to take on the marauding Turkish army and save a town under siege.

At its heart, The Adventures of Baron Munchausen is a story about the very art of storytelling and the “tall-tale”, as well as how a healthy dose of imagination can help us through the most difficult of times. Chock full of Gilliam’s Pythonesque absurdity, given weight by the very presence of his former Python partner Eric Idle in the rather impressive cast which is in itself a veritable cornucopia of British talent (Sting even pops up in a “blink and you miss it” cameo) topped off by a career defining performance from actor John Neville in the lead. With a grandiose and lavish production design to back it up, Baron Munchausen looks and feels like a director playing with all the toys his budget will afford him – something that was very much the case in this instance.

On its release, the film was largely buried by the distributors at Columbia Pictures. Having run massively over budget and releasing during a transitionary time for the studio, there was a strong will to simply cut losses and release the film with little fanfare and, in the US, in limited cinema screens. This coupled with some (possibly manufactured) bad press led to Baron Munchausen largely going down in history as Terry Gilliam’s folly, a film largely ridiculed for its excesses and lack of substance.

Revisiting The Adventures of Baron Munchausen 35 years later on this Criterion Collection release, we find a film that is far more interesting than its reputation would have you believe, while simultaneously clearly being the result of a wildly out of control production. The core themes of storytelling, as well as challenging the ravages of time and age are clearly present as Gilliam weaves his tall-tale, delivering a film in which (similarly to Time Bandits and Brazil before it) you’re never clear if what you are watching is fantasy or reality, there’s a poignant tale at the centre here of an elderly man who simply doesn’t want to let his past go, cheating death at every turn and becoming both physically and figuratively young in the process. It looks fabulous, sounds superb with an action packed score composed by Michael Kamen (Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, X-Men) and has enough absurd wit to make you chortle.

And yet we also find a film which shows Gilliam at his most Gilliam, throwing everything possible at the screen in a tale which can often be far too indulgent and extravagant for its own good. Scenes have a tendency to well overstay their welcome and key plot points can get lost in all the absurdity. A standout example is probably the sequence where the Baron and his young accomplice visit the Moon to rescue Eric Idle’s Berthold and are captured by the King of the Moon played by Robin Williams in an uncredited role. Williams here is clearly ad-libbing his little heart out and Gilliam wants to use ALL of it, meaning you get an incredibly extended sequence of some of the most manic Robin Williams material you’ll see. There’s some fun moments, but it’s all a little too much and the film just grinds to a halt while Gilliam lingers on Williams. This is a common occurrence, whether the director wants to show you just how brilliant a certain set piece is, or just how amazing this cameo looks, it leads to a film which drags its over 2 hour run time out for far longer than is needed.

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen is also a bit of a tonal mess, not sure of its audience. It’s silly and absurd enough to play for kids yet also crass and crude with an overtly sexual tone at times to perhaps feel like it’s angling more towards adult viewers. Perhaps all of this is indicative of Columbia’s lack of interest in the film, that it didn’t get the attention it deserved in the edit to wrestle some of Gilliams more over the top whims from the story; perhaps it’s just a result of the chaotic performance which bloated the budget and created an environment that genuinely scarred poor young Sarah Polley (only 8 years old at the time) for a large amount of her career.

Regardless, there is merit to be found at the centre of this beautiful mess, with its practical visual effects, massive sets and lavish production values; the story of one man fighting back against growing old, of feeding the mind of the young with tales of adventure and derring do, and of not letting one’s life be ruled by corruption and the follies of war. Well worth revisiting for fans of Gilliams work and for those looking for an interesting doorway into a filmmaking time long gone. They don’t make them like this any more!

Bonus Features

• New 4K digital restoration, approved by writer-director Terry Gilliam, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
• One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and two Blu-rays with the film and special features
• Audio commentary featuring Gilliam and his co-screenwriter, Charles McKeown
• Documentary on the making of the film
• New video essay by critic and filmmaker David Cairns about the history of the Baron Munchausen character
• Behind-the-scenes footage of the film’s special effects, narrated by Gilliam
• Deleted scenes with commentary by Gilliam
• Storyboards for unfilmed scenes, narrated by Gilliam and McKeown
• Original marketing materials including a trailer and electronic-press-kit featurettes, as well as preview cards and advertising proposals read by Gilliam
• Miracle of Flight (1974), an animated short film by Gilliam
• Episode of The South Bank Show from 1991 on Gilliam
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
• PLUS: An essay by critic and author Michael Koresky

Criterion have, once again, delivered on the bonus features in this new release of Baron Munchausen. While we didn’t get a chance to look at the full UHD release, the new transfer looks just as nice on the Blu-Ray release, with strong detail and colours showing through, and crisp clear audio to boot.

The bonus features present on the disc are many and varied and while they don’t dig too deeply into the films troubled production there’s enough variety of both new and archive materials here to keep fans happy.