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An unknown and lethal virus has wiped out five billion people in 1996. Only 1% of the population has survived by the year 2035, and is forced to live underground. A convict (James Cole) reluctantly volunteers to be sent back in time to 1996 to gather information about the origin of the epidemic (who he's told was spread by a mysterious "Army of the Twelve Monkeys") and locate the virus before it mutates so that scientists can study it. Unfortunately Cole is mistakenly sent to 1990, six years earlier than expected, and is arrested and locked up in a mental institution, where he meets Dr. Kathryn Railly, a psychiatrist, and Jeffrey Goines, the insane son of a famous scientist and virus expert.
Very strange, surreal, well done movie. Great acting jobs by Brad Pitt and Bruce Willis (never thought I'd say that). Lots to talk about afterwards. What strikes me the most, when watching it now, is how many ways it subtly relates to other filmes with the same actors. Bruce Willis says, at one point, "All I see are dead people," like a character does in his other Philadelphia-based blockbuster, the Sixth Sense. (Incidentally, both characters were named Cole.) The huge collection of plane tickets while travelling to many cities to caused mayhem reminded me of Brad Pitt's Fight Club. And Bruce Willis being haunted by a dream of something that happened to him as a child is similar to his story in Pulp Fiction.
One of Terry Gilliam's better movies, IMO.
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I just watched it. Awesome movie. I’ll probably watch it again someday, as there was likely a lot of stuff that I didn’t pick up on while trying to figure out what was going on.
I wouldn't call this a remake, but it is a "re-imagining" of a short French film called "La Jetee". It's actually a strange film--it's actually not really a film, it's basicallly just a series of pictures telling the story. I believe it may be on the latest DVD release of 12 Monkeys, but I'm not sure.
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---------------------------------------------------- "I don't flop. I don't complain. I beat you." - Shaquille O'Neal
I thought this pretty interesting from the IMDB trivia section.
"Terry Gilliam was afraid that Brad Pitt wouldn't be able to pull off the nervous, rapid speech. He sent him to a speech coach but in the end he just took away Pitt's cigarettes, and Pitt played the part exactly as Gilliam wanted."
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