Time Bandits

1981 little people extravaganza

Rating: 16/20

Plot: Kevin, an imaginative youngster living in a house where imagination doesn't seem to be allowed, makes a giant mess with his toys. Then, in a stunning twist ending, he kills his parents.

If Terry Gilliam made this now, it would likely be one of the greatest children movies of all time. You get the sense he's still learning the craft, hinting at the greatness to come in Munchausen and Brazil, both movies which I like better than this one. At times, there's an 80's kid fantasy flick vibe (see: The Neverending Story), but there's the playfulness, the imagination, the terrific character acting (with a few big names), and the grabass jamboree of historical and folkloric references make this more timeless and, well, fun. Some moments threaten to cross into kid-unfriendly territories, but I probably should have forced the children to watch this one with me. It's definitely the type of movie that will swoop right over the heads of a lot of children (and adults probably), but there's enough zaniness and action sequences to keep them interested. The humor and allusions are directed toward the adults. The rambling plot, always threatening to become incoherent at any second, and a climactic goofy fight scene that goes on far too long could be a turn off for a lot of people, but I really think it'd be mostly people who don't like to enjoy themselves who would really hate Time Bandits. Of course, for me, it's the stampede of little people who are nearly on screen the entire time that makes this a near-masterpiece. I suppose I'm a lot like the Napoleon character in this when he says, "Little things hitting each other. That's what I like!" You're not going to find a movie this side of Even Dwarfs Started Small or Big Terror in Tiny Town with more little-people-per-square-foot-of-screen. That should be a statistic.