Hoooooeeeeee! Bodacious movie!

Terry Gilliam loves this kind of movie to direct, and direct it he does! Bruce Willis shows still more of his as yet not-fully-discovered talent. He did the Schwarzenegger bit in the Die Hard series, the rough but brave protective father in Armageddon and, guess what? He does an outstanding job of communicating the agonized confusion of the unwilling hero of Twelve Monkeys.

In this film, Willis is a prisoner who is sent back in time to try and prevent a devastating plague which had decimated mankind. A quick summary of the plot -- if such is possible with any Gilliam film -- puts Willis in contact with various leads that may or may not lead him to the source of the plague in time to stop it.

A major problem with this, however, is that Willis can't remember exactly what it is he is supposed to do, or where he is, or even when he is. He encounters a demented Brad Pitt in the mental hospital -- or is it a sane Brad Pitt in the prison? And, who are those people who are trying to keep Pitt from helping Willis? Oh my God, this gets so darned confusing!

There are countless hints and tips and leads tossed recklessly around during the course of the film, and Willis tries to field them all without too much success. Heck, even you, who get to see the whole thing, aren't doing a much better job of fielding all these hints. And, what's the big thing about 12 monkeys? What have they got to do with the price of tea in China?

Of course, the 12 monkeys are not only significant to the overall plot, they almost get Willis killed before he can even find out why he's where he thinks he is at the time he thinks he is for the reason he thinks he is. And, believe me, That's BAD!!!

Well, the long and the short of the matter is that he also encounters the sexy Madeline Stowe, who doesn't really appeal to him half as much as she appeals to me. She has something to do with saving the world, but Willis can't figure out what it is, and I don't think I can either. Oh, well, when you look like she does, who cares?

All in all, if you're as confused as I am, you'll probably love the movie as much as I did. Really, folks, it's a dynamite movie and you'd better not let it slip past. Check it out -- you'll be glad you did.