"Strange Brew" Film Series

The Webster University Film Series, "Strange Brew", at screened "Jabberwocky" Wednesday evening. This is Terry Gilliam's first film (1977).

A Jabberwocky, loosely based on Lewis Carrol's poem of the same name, is a destructive and mythical beast. Set in the Middle Ages, pockets of "normalcy" exist where the monster has not yet ravaged.

Dennis Cooper, son of a barrel-maker, is in love with "lovely" (ugly!), Griselda Fish-finger. His father has a heart attack and renounces Dennis. Dennis goes to the City to find a job where King Bruno the Questionable declares a jousting tournament to find the hero who will slay the monster. The prize: 1/2 of his kingdom and the hand of his daughter, the princess, in marriage.

Costuming and scenary are incredible: the filth of the City, the crumbling castle, the beggars, the mendicants, tradesmen, royalty, and clergy. Plenty of slapstick and visual jokes fill the screen, e.g., the "pissing off" skits and the merchant selling cabbages in the background of many scenes.

The movie is a great metaphor for our times as ordinary people (us) try to survive the Jabberwocky (a raging and jobless economy).

The director, Terry Gilliam, went on the co-produce "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" and others, like "Time Bandits".

Through a series of mishaps, coincidences, and farces, Dennis slays the Jabberwocky. The King keeps his promises and Dennis is swept away from Griselda by the princess. Their carriage careens through throngs of cheering people into the setting sun.

The "Strange Brew" series continues on July 5, Thursday, with "Rock and Rule" (1983), an animated rock saga with music by Lou Reed, Blondie, Iggy Pop, and Earth Wind and Fire. On August 1, "Fists of Fury" (1971), Bruce Lee's first feature length film will be shown.

So, pull up a chair, grab a Schlafly brew, and enjoy some "cult" films this summer. More information can be found at www.webster.edu/filmseries .