The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

Release date(s) : May 22, 2009(Cannes Film Festival)

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus is a 2009 fantasy film directed by Terry Gilliam and written by Gilliam and Charles McKeown. The film follows the leader of a traveling theater troupe who, having made a deal with the Devil, takes audience members through a magical mirror to explore their imaginations.

Heath Ledger, Christopher Plummer, Lily Cole, and Tom Waits star in the film, though Ledger's death one-third of the way through filming caused production to be temporarily suspended. Ledger's role was recast with Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell portraying transformations of Ledger's character Tony as he travels through a dream world.

Doctor Parnassus' (Christopher Plummer) theatre troupe, which includes sleight of hand expert Anton (Andrew Garfield), dwarf Percy (Verne Troyer), and Parnassus' daughter Valentina (Lily Cole), performs outside a pub in London. A drunkard barges onstage, crashing through a stage mirror. He is thrown into a journey of the imagination that culminates in his being offered a choice between enlightenment and a pub. After he enters the pub, it explodes. Parnassus says he has lost another one to Mr. Nick (Tom Waits).

Mr. Nick reminds Parnassus that in three days Valentina will turn 16, at which point her soul will be his. As the troupe crosses a bridge, Anton spies someone hanging beneath it. They rescue the hanging man (Heath Ledger), who spits out a golden pipe when revived. Claiming to have amnesia, the man joins the troupe as a barker. Parnassus becomes despondent over the impending loss of his daughter. Mr. Nick visits Parnassus, revealing that the hanging man is a disgraced philanthropist named Tony. He offers Parnassus a wager: Valentina can stay with whoever wins five souls first.

Directed by
Terry Gilliam

Produced by
Samuel Hadida
Amy Gilliam
William Vince
Terry Gilliam

Written by
Terry Gilliam
Charles McKeown

Starring
Heath Ledger
Christopher Plummer
Verne Troyer
Lily Cole
Andrew Garfield
Tom Waits
Johnny Depp
Colin Farrell
Jude Law