The Fisher King (1991)

Jeff Bridges Film Fest Movie #14

Synopsis: Ever wanted to see Howard Stern walk through the movie Excalibur during a weird acid flashback? This comes close... 

Blurb From the VHS Jacket: “Robin Williams, Jeff Bridges, Amanda Plummer and Mercedes Ruehl star in Terry Gilliam’s must-see comic masterpiece. Williams is Parry, a homeless history professor who lives in a fantasy world of castles, Red Knights and damsels in distress. Bridges co-stars as Jack, New York’s #1 shock dee-jay, whose off-hand arrogance triggers a tragedy which ruins his career. Penniless and without prospects, Jack finds himself plucked from disaster by the most improbably of saviours... Parry.” 

What Did I Learn?: There's three things in this world that you need: Respect for all kinds of life, a nice bowel movement on a regular basis, and a navy blazer.

You Might Like This Movie If: you don't mind hearing a certain song repeated over and over again.

 

Really?: 1) The Fisher King is a very strange modern fantasy movie, so it might not be entirely fair to judge it on this basis. That said, take a drink every time somebody starts screaming for no good reason. 2) So wait – why would a couple of toughs save Jack from an attempted suicide just so they can, um... burn him alive for no good reason? WTF? 

Rating: I have to give The Fisher King a somewhat mixed review. Like Terry Gilliam’s other films, it is highly imaginative, there are a lot of stunning visuals, and Mercedes Ruehl is wonderful as Jack’s long-suffering girlfriend (Bridges is also quite good, but I had a hard time believing his character development near the end). Unfortunately, the plot becomes increasingly difficult to swallow, many of the jokes fall flat (Bridges has a few good lines near the end, though) Williams is a bit wacky and manic for my taste, and too many scenes descend into pointless screaming matches. 6.5/10 stars. 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0101889/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1