Image courtesy of IMDb
Hello, everyone. In my previous post, I provided an update on the changes that had to be made to the schedule due to current events. I have since had to amend it with further updates, the first of which I closed out by hinting at the possibility of surprise reviews in between that I ultimately decided to add to the list.
The subject of this review is one such occasion.
Given the circumstances, I decided to start catching up by seeing what was On Demand for free. I saw that they had just added this one, so I figured I’d start here.
Clearly by total coincidence, I picked a movie that focuses on a virus.
There’s actually more to it than that. It’s not just about a virus, but it’s also about someone trying to prevent the outbreak before it happens, so it’s made more interesting with a time travel aspect added to the plot.
Ladies and gentlemen, I present my review of the sci-fi thriller 12 Monkeys.
The story is set in 2035. The majority of the human race had been decimated by a plague in 1996, and those that remained had no choice but to go underground in order to survive. The ones responsible for the chaos are believed to be part of a group called the Army of the Twelve Monkeys. In the present, a prisoner named James Cole is chosen to be sent back to 1996 to not only locate the virus, but also provide information that could prove vital in developing a cure.
Initially, he is sent back too early, arriving in 1990. Upon being arrested and put in a mental hospital under the care of Dr. Kathryn Railly, he also meets fellow patient Jeffrey Goines, who has a very radical outlook on certain aspects of society.
Upon being brought back and giving the scientists the information he gathered, Cole is then sent to the correct time. When he arrives, however, he slowly discovers that Dr. Railly and Jeffrey each play an important part in the events that are about to transpire.
What Worked: First of all, the acting is fantastic in this movie.
Bruce Willis gives one of his best performances as James Cole, showing that he can play a more serious role outside of his action hero persona. He had that in Unbreakable, but even more so here.
Madeleine Stowe (The Last of the Mohicans) is really good as Dr. Railly, playing off of him very well. She shows commitment to helping him when we first meet her, and then gradually comes to realize what’s at stake when he needs her help.
David Morse (who, following this, would be in another movie I intend to cover very soon) plays a character named Dr. Peters, who we’re first introduced to in 1996 when we see Dr. Railly again. He’s not in it that much, but the scenes he is in I recommend keeping in mind, particularly that scene.
Christopher Plummer also has a small role in this as Dr. Leland Goines, Jeffrey’s father and a virologist.
I saved the best for last for a reason. He also ends up being very crucial to the plot in ways that I won’t get into. The best performance in the movie for me was actually Brad Pitt as Jeffrey himself. When he first showed up in the mental hospital, from that moment on, I loved him in this.
Not only does Bruce Willis give one of his best performances, but also Brad Pitt gives one of his. He is excellent in this movie. He was nominated for Best Supporting Actor, and he may not have won, but he at least deserved that nomination.
The great performances are accompanied by a smart script from duo David and Janet Peoples. David in particular has done some pretty well known work, having also written Unforgiven and co-written Blade Runner.
What really makes this movie as unique as it is comes in three aspects. The first is the score from composer Paul Buckmaster. Although he didn’t do much in the way of film composing, he was very prominent in the music industry nonetheless, having worked with the likes of David Bowie and Elton John, along with numerous others. Even so, he brings a very distinct style to his score here. It sounds like something out of a French movie. Now, this may seem baffling at first. However, once you see that this was inspired by the 1962 French short titled La Jetée (or “The Jetty”*), it makes sense, as it feels like it’s their way of honoring the source material in some capacity other than acknowledging it in the opening credits.
The second aspect is Roger Pratt’s gorgeous cinematography. He frequently collaborates with director Terry Gilliam (of Monty Python fame), and it shows, because their particular visual techniques complement each other perfectly. Outside of working with Terry Gilliam, he has also shot such films as Tim Burton’s Batman, Troy, and two installments of Harry Potter (those being Chamber of Secrets and Goblet of Fire).
The third aspect is the production design. This movie cost nearly 30 million dollars, and it looks like it was more in the range of 40-50 million. I similarly praised Underwater for this in my review. Whenever a movie looks like it cost more than it actually did, that’s never a bad thing for me. I give credit where credit is due if they manage to pull it off by creating something that impressive with the very modest amount given to them. Underwater was one such example, as is this, and there are plenty of others, one of which is another 2020 release that will be covered in the near future.
The biggest praise I can give to this is how they approach time travel here. Instead of trying to change the past, the protagonist is merely observing it in order to help make a better future. I thought that was very clever.
It also benefits the story structure, because it makes you want to see what happens next even more. It all culminates in a brilliant twist, and that alone is something you need to see for yourself.
At first I thought I predicted how it would play out, having been accustomed to how it’s been done in other time travel stories. Then I realized that there had been details leading up to it which are very easy to overlook.
This is one of those movies that upon first viewing, you may have some questions about certain things. With multiple viewings, you might actually catch some of those details you initially missed. Once you’ve pieced everything together, though, you see how shocking the twist really is.
What Didn’t Work: My only flaw is that there are a couple pacing issues. It’s a little slow in the first act, but then it picks up once Cole is brought back to 2035 and sent to the correct time and the second act begins. Shortly after the second act begins, there’s another pacing issue, but then after a few minutes, it picks back up again and doesn’t stop.
Overall: 12 Monkeys is an excellent sci-fi thriller with equally excellent performances (particularly from Bruce Willis and especially Brad Pitt), a captivating and thought provoking story, and a fantastic variation on the time travel formula with a unique visual style to accompany it. Although it does center around a virus, it’s not so much an outbreak movie with time travel in it as it is the other way around. Rather than showing the cause and effects of the virus or even the aftermath, it focuses more on trying to prevent it, which also makes it a clever variation on the genre of outbreak movies by having it be a “What If?” scenario.
In saying that, it’s both straightforward and complex at the same time. The plot is easy to follow, but how it unfolds requires your utmost attention.
It may take multiple viewings, but it rightfully earns its rewatchability because on the first viewing alone it’s as great as it is, and then it gets even better upon revisiting it.
Regardless of whether you’re viewing it for the first time or revisiting it, it’s always entertaining from start to finish, and will stick with you long afterwards.
*As for what a jetty is, it’s part of a building that ties to a certain character trait given to James Cole. All I can say is this building ultimately ends up having major significance throughout the movie. In fact, it’s one of the key elements of the short that inspired its use in this movie, so it actually factors heavily into both of them.