Gilliam's sudden inspiration and investigation of famous songs that led to the birth of "Brazil"

Why Brazil?

However, to be honest, the best part of Gilliam's work is not tracing the genealogy or relationships in a linear way or seeking a logical explanation. Rather, it is the sudden inspiration that strikes him that makes his unpredictable creativity shine. In particular, the introduction of the word "Brazil" into this work, a nuance that ordinary people would never think of, is a typical example of this.

Why Brazil? It seems that the idea for the project was inspired by the South Wales port city of Port Talbot, which he visited while filming Jabberwocky (1977). (The city also became a hot topic in 2018 when Banksy created graffiti art there.)

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In this city known for its steel industry, the dust, smoke and soot generated by various work processes at the time lightly stained the surroundings. As the beautiful sunset suddenly shone into this situation, Gilliam somehow imagined in his mind the image of a man sitting on the beach. There was a radio beside him. At that moment, a cheerful Latin song he had never heard before began to play from the speakers.

The image of a man who decides to escape reality for a moment in a situation where he is torn apart by such contrasts was the source of inspiration for this film. In other words, "Brazil" is not only a song playing on the radio (although it seems that a different song called "Marie Elena" was originally intended), but also an icon or a switch that leads the protagonist's heart to "somewhere other than here."

How did the famous actor De Niro come to appear?