“Baron” is not a huge failure! What is the artistry of director Terry Gilliam's work, which was achieved through hardships?

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2019.10.09Atsunobu Ushizu

The production site was plagued by a series of troubles as if cursed.

One of the reasons for the confusion is said to be the producer's grandstanding. Upon meeting the film's producer, Thomas Shewley, he apparently introduced himself by asking, ``Please call me Rambo,'' due to his rugged appearance. He is the type of person that normal people would be wary of, but for some reason, Gilliam has a good impression of him as someone you can rely on, and he comes to have a great deal of trust in him. It seems like the downfall has already begun from here.

Eventually, Schurry suggested that the film's production base be located in Italy, citing the cost savings. Things were fine until I took that idea and moved there. Rome, the capital of art, is completely different in terms of its atmosphere, history, and people's sensibilities, and it seemed like a stimulating environment perfect for filmmaking. However, the problems became more apparent day by day.

For example, deep rifts were carved into culture, customs, the way the staff thought, and even the way film production should be done. An experienced producer would have carefully launched a project that included these things, but Schurry, who seemed like a dependable man, turned out to be just a ``cool, cool'' guy whose name was Rimbaud.

Gilliam said of the scene at the time, ``It's like the Tower of Babel.Communication is standardized in English, but you can't read deep down.'' While the British staff think rationally without regard to hierarchy, the Italian staff are more craftsman-like and place emphasis on vertical connections, so the chain of command often does not work properly.

In the meantime, production costs were already running low, and troubles continued to occur even when filming on location as far as Spain. In the end, an accountant from an insurance company came on board and stopped production, saying, ``This is no good.'' The project was revised from the ground up, filming resumed despite being told this and that by people with no artistic ability, and after much patience, they were finally able to complete the project.

Around this time, Gilliam was having a dispute with his insurance company, and in a fit of anger, he smashed the windshield of a car parked at the scene, and when he looked closely, it was his own car.

As a result, the cost was a double score of just over $46 million, compared to the original budget of about $20 million. Like Cleopatra (63), which turned the management of 20th Century Fox on its head in the early 1960s, part of the film was shot in Cinecittà on the outskirts of Rome, so it will no doubt be branded as a ``failure that will go down in film history.'' It was probably named to represent the extremely difficult childbirth in this area.

The surprising richness of imagination

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