The theatrical look from The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

It’s not difficult to spot a Terry Gilliam film. The former Python began his career as an animator and over the years has carved out a very distinctive niche in Hollywood as one of the most visually exciting directors around. His fantasy films a feast for the eyes, rich with sumptuous beauty, decadent detail and with a flair for the incredible and imaginative. And it’s to the realms of the imagination that he strays for his latest, the title-tastic, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.

The film follows the titular Dr Parnassus (screen veteran Christopher Plummer), the leader of a fantastical travelling theatre troupe which includes among its peculiar performers Dr Parnassus’s sidekick, Percy (Austin Powers’s Mini Me, Verne Troyer) and sleight of hand expert, Anton (BAFTA award-winner Andrew Garfield). The showman’s speciality being the use of a magic mirror (no, not that one) which audience members pass through to explore a world of limitless imagination.

Not that everything is within the control of the aged Parnassus, as years ago he began trading bets with the devil himself, known as Mr Nick (growling singer songwriter Tom Waits, who also worked with Gilliam on 1991’s The Fisher King). He won immortality, but upon falling in love hastily swapped youth in exchange for guardianship of his daughter once she reached her 16th birthday. And with that milestone approaching for the innocent Valentina (supermodel Lily Cole in her first featured role after breaking through in 2007’s St. Trinian’s), matters are further complicated by the arrival of a mysterious outsider, Tony (primarily played by Heath Ledger, however after the Oscar-winner’s untimely death, the part was split between fellow A-listers Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell, the surreal tone of the movie allowing for such unconventional casting).

And responsible for dressing the stars of this extraordinary fantasy yarn is Monique Prudhomme. The Canadian garnered a Costume Designer’s Guild award nomination for her work on indie hit, Juno and follows up Juno MacGuff’s slacker style with the creative confections that make up many of the onscreen ensembles in TIODP. But where to start with such an eclectic and extravagant story?