Twelve Monkeys (1995)

What a waste of my time!!!

just watch it!

A bit overrated, but still an amazing film

Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

A fine film 'Twelve Monkeys' conveys a confusing story of rebellion, activism and time travel as well as cause and effect. The content seems bulky and is indeed however it's communicated well through the narrative and story which despite seeming fractured on a surface level is quite simple to follow, littered with surprisingly great performances from what's now recognised as a fantastic cast and brilliantly shot to convey multiple atmospheres there's many a reason why this film is highly regarded however for those who are more aware of the world of film and other releases within and outside of this genre a potential issue arises. The climax is triggered by a viewing of 'Vertigo' (Hitchcock,1958) rather fitting giving the relevance it has in relation to character identity and to some extent conspiracy which can sort of be applied to this film itself yet all seems a bit jarring having now seen both films. It's well documented that 'La Jetée' (Marker, 1962) was the main inspiration for 'Twelve Monkeys' but it feels a little cheap given that it's essentially beat for beat tha same film only the 'remake' (and I use that term very lightly) is slightly padded out by a few subplots which are mostly irrelevant to the core story of the film, nevertheless it's not all bad and the well shot '95 release is worth one watch at least.

Let me start by saying that I am not a huge Terry Gilliam fan. Honestly most of his films I could do without. But I sort of saw this one by accident and I must say I am glad I did.Twelve Monkeys wasn't so much good on account of the story. I suppose it was unique enough and original enough to keep me entertained. In many ways it was similar to other science fiction films of past and present but there were some aspects of the story that I had not seen before, which was nice. But the best thing about the film was Bruce Willis.Let me clarify. I am not a huge Bruce Willis fan by any means. I like him in some things and dislike him in others. But the thing that made this role so good for him was that it allowed him to branch out. People, this is Bruce Willis like you have never seen him before. He is believable in the role and he makes the film worth watching. It is a completely different character for him and I think you will like it a lot.

Like most time traveler movies, there are several paradoxes where the traveler literally "meets himself coming and going". Some are in the form of flashbacks and flash-forwards. An old picture from a World War One history book. The feeling (by several characters) that they have "been there" before. Like "Kpax" the "hero" (Bruce Willis) is thought insane, so much so that he begins to doubt his own sanity. He is from the future but has no gadgets and arrives almost naked. He is yanked back and forth through time and is "volunteered" to try and stop a madman from releasing a plague that destroys 90% of the Earth's population. It's haunting, but not really enjoyable as we all know that "you can't change the future", or so we are told. He witnesses his own death though the eyes of a child is the only "clue" I will give you. I didn't really like it. Rated up as "8" due to apocalyptic views of the future, with great set decoration.

In a futuristic world where most of the human race has gone extinct as a result of a purposely released virus, convict James is sent into the past, numerous times, in a desperate attempt to discover the author and try to develop a cure. Bruce Willis' character, with his time travels, seems to become more and more confused about which is the present or which is reality, beginning to doubt his mental condition. At the same time, he must focus on the mission he has been assigned, fact which will prove to be more problematic than expected, as he is easily stolen by the beauty of nature, as he's never seen it before. Add a female psychiatrist to the equation and you'll get a very complex and tangled storyline in which James struggles to find his place.Although I enjoyed its plot, I feel that James is being dragged away from one place to another, always being the wrong man at the wrong time, always suffering or being injured and thus, being unable to do more to defend the beloved or to advance into his investigation. Although unexpected and unpredictable as the entire movie, I was somehow disappointed by its finale, which doesn't do anything to bring the slightest change to the apocalyptic situation.