Tideland - Trailer (2005)

From the world's most visionary contemporary filmmaker comes the unforgettable tale of one extraordinary little girl. Poetic, darkly funny, and infused with amazing performances and beautiful photography this unique and incredible film is director Terry Gilliam at his very best.

Enter the magical world of Jeliza-Rose (Jodelle Ferland), an unusual child with an even more unusual story. Hers is a world where squirrels talk, where fireflies have names, and where the heads of dolls, long since separated from their bodies, are her closest friends.

After the sudden death of her junkie mother (Jennifer Tilly), Jeliza embarks on a strange journey with her father (Jeff Bridges), a rock-and-roll musician well past his prime. But this journey offers little for Jeliza by way of consolation and as the vast loneliness of her new existence grows she falls deeper and deeper into the twisted world of fantasy that she has created in her mind.

My thoughts:

Young girl, rock 'n' roll, drugs, dead people, a nutty sister and her disabled brother, a talking squirrel, dolls' heads and a trip to Canada; sounds a lot of fun doesn't it? Doesn't it? Depending on your point of view, this is either a film that wonderfully follows the adventures of an isolated, young girl bought up by irresponsible junkie parents, which explores how she copes with this through her imagination; or a sleazy and slightly icky movie about an abusive couple of weirdos who take advantage of a young girl's naivety. To be fair, it's probably a bit of both.

I enjoyed this drama-fantasy-black comedy. It looks nice on the screen, Jodelle Ferland (who plays the girl in it) is brilliant (as is Brendan Fletcher who plays the disabled brother Dickens) and it didn't really remind me of any other film. Most of it takes place on an isolated prairie in Canada that makes Norfolk seem positively urbane. Humm, I'm struggling a bit to describe it properly; (but then again I've been awake for nearly 20 hours today, so I'm probably losing the plot now in more ways than one.) Look, just go and watch it and then you'll understand.

Recommended for people who like weird films, but ones that make sense.

No cats and no decapitations. However, there're some cute bunnies and a squirrel, and a dead person does get her head sort of badly dented.

Top badass moment? Probably Dickens' submarine. Having your own submarine when you live in the middle of a huge field of dead looking grass miles from the sea, has to be badass. (It wasn't exactly a real submarine though).

7 out of 10.

Category:

Film & Animation

Tags:

• Imagination Train Dolls