Brazil
It's only a state of mind.
Country
Production
Genre
Budget
$15 000 000
Box office
$9 929 135
Director
Actors
Scenario
Producer
Arnon Milchan, Patrick Cassavetti
Camera operator
Roger Pratt
Composer
Artist
Norman Garwood, Françoise Benoît-Fresco, Dennis Bosher
Audition
Irene Lamb, Margery Simkin
Editing
Short description
Low-level bureaucrat Sam Lowry escapes the monotony of his day-to-day life through a recurring daydream of himself as a virtuous hero saving a beautiful damsel. Investigating a case that led to the wrongful arrest and eventual death of an innocent man instead of wanted terrorist Harry Tuttle, he meets the woman from his daydream, and in trying to help her gets caught in a web of mistaken identities, mindless bureaucracy and lies.
What's left behind the scenes
- The film parodies a famous scene from Sergei Eisenstein's "Battleship Potemkin".
- With this film, Terry Gilliam traveled to 80 countries, and in each one, he was told the same phrase: “You know, there’s a piece of our country in your film too.”
- The leitmotif of the film is the 1939 song "Aquarela do Brazil" by Ary Barroso, performed in various variations – from sublime and inspiring to menacingly ominous.
- Actresses such as Kelly McGillis, Ellen Barkin, Kathleen Turner, and Jamie Lee Curtis auditioned for the role that Kim Greist ultimately received.
- Terry Gilliam regretted after filming that he had rejected Ellen Barkin's candidacy for the lead female role.
- Arnon Milchan recommended Robert De Niro for one of the roles in the film.
- The scene of the battle with the samurai covered in electronic components parodies Luke Skywalker’s dreamlike battle with his father in the fifth episode and simultaneously symbolizes Terry Gilliam’s love for the films of Akira Kurosawa.
- Kelly McGillis, Ellen Barkin, Kathleen Turner, and Jamie Lee Curtis were among the actresses who auditioned for the role that Kim Greist eventually landed.
- The year the film was made – 1984 – coincides with the title of George Orwell’s famous dystopian novel. The film was originally to be called “1984 ½” and the musical theme was to be the song Malia Elena, but midway through filming, the director changed the theme and title to something more suitable to the content. Furthermore, the office of the Minister of Information in the film is located on the 84th floor of the building.
- In 2004, the film “Brazil” was included by Total Film magazine in its list of the twenty greatest English films of all time. In 2005, Time magazine film critics Richard Corliss and Richard Schickel named “Brazil” among the 100 best films of all time. In 2006, Channel 4, shortly before showing it on BBC Four, recognized “Brazil” as one of “50 Films to See Before You Die.”
- The dream sequences in Sam Lowry feature sky vistas created for Wolfgang Petersen's 'The NeverEnding Story,' but were not included in the final cut.
- The distribution of 'Brazil' in the United States was controlled by Universal Pictures. Universal executives found the film's ending overtly pessimistic, and company chairman Sid Sheinberg subjected Terry Gilliam's work to significant editorial revisions, giving it a so-called 'happy ending'; this approach met with strong objections from the director. As with 'Blade Runner,' released three years earlier, this version of 'Brazil' was created by the studio with an ending more palatable from a consumer perspective. After a prolonged delay, Gilliam placed a full-page advertisement in the trade journal Variety, prompting Sheinberg to release 'Brazil' in its cut version. Ultimately, after Gilliam held a series of private screenings (without the company's approval), the film won the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Picture, which prompted Universal to release a 131-minute altered version under Gilliam's control in 1985.
- The film's year of creation—1984—coincides with the title of George Orwell's famous dystopian novel. Originally, the film was to be titled "1984 ½" with a song by Malia Elena as its musical theme; however, halfway through filming, the director changed the theme and title to better suit the content. Additionally, the Minister of Information's office in the film is located on the 84th floor of the building.
- The film parodies a famous scene from Sergei Eisenstein's movie 'Battleship Potemkin'.
- With this film, Terry Gilliam traveled to 80 countries, and in every one, he was told the same phrase: 'You know, there is a little bit of our country in your movie'.
- The film's leitmotif is the 1939 song 'Aquarela do Brasil' by Ary Barroso, performed in various variations—from the sublime and uplifting to the menacingly sinister.
- Actresses such as Kelly McGillis, Ellen Barkin, Kathleen Turner, and Jamie Lee Curtis auditioned for the role that eventually went to Kim Greist.
- After filming ended, Terry Gilliam regretted rejecting Ellen Barkin for the lead female role.
- The dream sequences featuring Sam Lowry use shots of the sky created for Wolfgang Petersen's 'The NeverEnding Story' that did not make the final cut.
- The distribution of 'Brazil' in the US was controlled by Universal Pictures. Universal's board considered the film's ending to be clearly unsuccessful, and the company's chairman, Sid Sheinberg, subjected Terry Gilliam's work to significant editorial changes, giving it a so-called 'happy ending'; this approach met with strong objections from the director. Much like with the film 'Blade Runner' released three years earlier, this version of 'Brazil' was created by the studio with an ending more acceptable for consumer considerations. After a prolonged delay, Gilliam placed a full-page advertisement in the industry magazine Variety, prompting Sheinberg to release 'Brazil' in its truncated version. Ultimately, after Gilliam held a series of private screenings (without the company's approval), the film was awarded 'Best Picture' by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, which prompted Universal to release the modified 131-minute version under Gilliam's control in 1985.
- The battle scene with a samurai covered in electronic components parodies Luke Skywalker's dreamlike battle with his father in Episode V, while simultaneously symbolizing Terry Gilliam's love for the films of Akira Kurosawa.
Similar movies
8.5/10
8.4/10
7.3/10
7.2/10
7.2/10
7.1/10
7.1/10
6.9/10
6.9/10
6.9/10
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
