DVDs in Review

Time Bandits

Title: Time Bandits (1980)

Release date: October 5 2009

Certificate: PG

Format: Reviewed on DVD, available on Blu-ray

DVD RRP: £15.99

Rating: 4/5

Issued once again on DVD to coincide with the eventual cinema release of Heath Ledger's last performance in the much beleaguered 'The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus', director Terry Gilliam's fantasy classic still has plenty to offer even nearly 30 years on.

While nowhere near as fantastic as his own 'Brazil' or 'Twelve Monkeys', this ranks as one of his best forays into fantasy.

It follows a group of dwarves who have stolen a map belonging to The Supreme Being (aka God) which details all of the time holes in the fabric of the universe that enable people time travel should they be in the right place at the right time.

The gang use the map to hunt for treasure, loot it and move on, which pits them against some very interesting historical characters, all of which are played unforgettably by brilliant actors - for example John Cleese plays a polite Robin Hood and Ian Holm goes for a frantic, size-obsessed Napoleon.

The sheer amount of detail and visual wit which Gilliam brings to 'Time Bandits' is extraordinary even if the dramatic arcs are sometimes not bending as much as they should. Our reference point is a young boy who is thrust into this fantasy world - which makes this the perfect escapist comedy for a child to watch.

An adult may find 'Time Bandits' as an actual story to be lacking and only amusingly episodic, but to watch and behold as a cinematic experience, few live-action films come close.

To bear in mind that this was before CGI made things easy to gloss around, 'Time Bandits' is a revelation of artistic design. It looks as though no compromises have been made.

This DVD from Optimum contains a new, exclusive interview with Gilliam, a trailer and a scrapbook. While it isn't a Monty Python film, it's another great chance to see Gilliam, Cleese and Palin offer something both magical, absurd and truly original.