Tideland
I need to bathe
Posted by: Gaunt, September 11, 2005 04:09 PM
Terry Gilliam is a marvellous director. The acting, writing and cinematography in Tideland are all well above standard. So the movie is technically excellent and satisfying to watch. But that tells you nothing of what it is about, which is crucial.
You know how the Victorians took all the raping and murder and incest and general horror out of fairy tales? They missed this one.
Tideland is a fairy tale. Cute little girl off on an adventure to a magical place, meeting fantastic people, and travelling with her boon companions. And everything is horribly twisted and wretched.
There are no adults in the movie. At least not mentally or emotionally. They all have a child's motivations, a child's dreams, a child's understanding of the world, and a child's limited concept of morality. Their love is only the love of a child for a favourite toy, shallow and fleeting.
Do they hold onto childhood's capacity to escape into fantasy because their lives are bleak and empty? Or has their isolation stunted them in childhood?
I don't know. Bees are bad, fireflies are good, and these people are as incestuous as a nest of farm cats.