And now for something completely different.If you are looking for a rock-‘em sock’ em tell all of Terry Gilliam’s Python days, this is not the volume for you. Gilliam says that other Python biographies have taken care of that. And in any case It was never intended to have been that. It was Holly, my daughter, had assembled all the art work I had done since childhood, and it was me talking about art. It was supposed to be a classy, classy book, for intelligent, sophisticated rich people. And as

A colorful biography of the life and times of Terry Gilliam. The book itself is stylized and contains various pictures as well as art work by TG. It was nevertheless too shallow to retain my attention as I was more curious to learn about his creative process rather than read about various arbitrary incidents of his life.

A hilarious and heartwarming as well as heartbreaking look into the life and work of Terry G. as told by Terry G! Loved it!!!

Romp through Gilliam's US childhood, adolescence and uni then bursting into London: 'London is the Place for Me' by Chapter 7. Python fans (of which I'm not) will be scrolling through every detail whereas I was captivated by his ups and downs, how he managed to carve a place for himself in some of 20th century's most irreverent humour through his animation skills. How his wife and family gave him stability in the movie-making journey. Guy's a genius and has humility. Not blowing his trumpet so m...

If Gilliam had an opinion about someone good or bad,he is certainly not afraid to voice it.A lot of interesting history about entertainment and politics.I was interested in the processes in his artwork.It reminded me of Sally Mann and how her technique was made up as she went along.3.5 stars.

A really interesting peek into the life of one of my favorite directors. It's funny, interesting, and makes me want to make more things. The only downside is that he mostly just hits the highlights of making some of his movies and there are times when I wish he would have went a little more in-depth. But it's a fun book. Go read it!

This brilliantly and irreverently illustrated autobiography of Monty Python’s animator, the director of a raft of fabulous films and a guy with an interesting take on Hollywood and the British film industry. “When [The Life of Brian] came out and caused so much trouble, I was in heaven. The fact that the Catholics, the Protestants and the Jews, were all simultaneously marching in protest at the film’s sacrilegious treatment of important religious themes was just the icing on the cake. It takes a...

First off, this is certainly a beautifully designed book, which should come as no surprise. It should also come as no surprise that Gilliam favors run-on sentences and lengthy parenthetical digressions. This can make the book a bit wearying, especially in its second, more cantankerous half. It's a lot more interesting to focus on Gilliam's less-often discussed pre-Python life and work. Even Terry G. himself admits that the Python years and the making (or unmaking) of many of his films have been

I almost didn't sign up for this Goodreads giveaway, as biography/memoir is my least favorite genre. Could anything be duller than someone recounting their so-so high school years? Gilliam's memoir has a few yawns, but it's also packed with pictures and drawings that lend more of a scrapbook feel than bland autobiography, or as the man himself puts it - something closer to a Grand Theft Auto-biography: a high speed car chase . . . with lots of skids and crashes, many of the best moments whizzing...

Surprisingly bland, sturdy. No drugs, for instance. But actually this is well and good - a stable life being very helpful in the production of the wild and new. Lots and lots of name-dropping, which I feel is included for our benefit rather than his; "ah, yes, recognise that one, ok".He endorses something that I, a sheltered western European, have previously felt about America, but which I assumed was a ridiculous exaggeration: Disembarking in Southampton, I remember... feeling, for the first...

Of all the Pythons, Terry Gilliam has made the most impact beyond the troupe. His films, whilst occasionally difficult and usually overbudget, have a creative vision that few other directors can boast. And yet he still carries the scars of feeling like the stupid one compared to his eloquent fellows. Fittingly, therefore, his "pre-posthumous memoir" is not a dense and detailed biography as afforded to John Cleese or Michael Palin, but a lavishly illustrated series of anecdotes going through Gill...

I wish this had been longer. I've long been a Monty Python fan as well as a Terry Gilliam fan (ever since seeing Brazil in its initial theatrical run), so I suppose no single volume could ever satisfy me completely. He seems to have a good head on his shoulders, not letting his success go to his head. Of course the book is copiously illustrated with film stills, photos, drawings, collages, etc. Just one would expect from a director noted for his visuals as well as the Pythons' resident animator....

I am a Monty Python fan, and I was interested in hearing the perspectives of the only American member of that group. Plus, Terry Gilliam directed "Time Bandits," which was one of my favorite movies when I was a kid.His book was interesting, and he is definitely a very funny guy, with some great stories. He obviously has an artist's mentality, and I like his descriptions of the battles he fought, and continues to fight, in order to make movies the way he likes to make them. I respect that, even t...

This is very much like a typical Terry Gilliam film. It looks lovely and seems the best fist at a personal idea, but isn't actually as well constructed as could be expected. It uses the exact same gag about Palin's diaries twice, skips over a lot of what has allegedly been over-told, which of course is what everybody was really there for, and calls back twice to something he thought was important in his oeuvre – so important he hardly mentioned it in passing the first time, and never got to desc...

Terry Gilliam has spoken through his art & films throughout his creative life but it's rewarding to now read his story in his own words. The term is too easily thrown around these days but Gilliam, for me, is an actual visionary & his films (Brazil, 12 Monkeys, The Fisher King, The Adventures Of Baron Munchhausen - my personal favourite, etc etc) have created worlds that overlap with the one the rest of us live in. Unlike many film directors, he credits his collaborators for much of what ends up...

As you would expect from Terry "Patsy" Gilliam, this is a memoir/autobiography that eschews the convention. He knows exactly what to tell, how to tell it, and does not get bogged down with the details of most personal reflections that bore the reader. Gilliam explains just enough of his childhood to set the stage for how those events of youth shaped his comedy, art and directing as an adult. But he doesn't give away too much. I was fascinated by the number of big names he knows, people that he k...

I had only intended to dip into this book, but once I'd begun I ended up reading it from cover to cover. This is a highly entertaining autobiography by a unique talent. His passion, energy and self depreciating sense of humour really shine through. Highly recommended for anyone with even a passing interest in his work, or Monty Python; but with enough new details for a fan like myself. Plus it's wonderful illustrated - of course, it's Gilliam!

I suppose it's appropriate that the best bits were the (many) illustrations and marginalia. He really doesn't like Spielberg, does he?

Another Python memoir! How many can there be...? Oh and along comes (the increasingly accurately named, as Mr Gilliam puts it) Eric Idle's one too! Festooned in Python autobiogs! Fortunately so far they are high quality, with Mr Cleese's still taking the top spot, of which more later. Mr Gilliam's is a lavishly produced big format graphical affair as one might expect, with lots of old pictures, cheeky cartoons, and big fonts throughout. It is a good fun read, but any detail has been sacrificed a...

Pros: The way it was put together was simply beautiful. The early on focus on the graphic/artistic nature of his career. The focus on the way his career and his approach to filmmaking have changed for good or for ill.Cons: Not enough information regarding the process of directing. Too many names-dropped. Petty disagreements with critics. Very little emphasis on the time with Monty Python (I know he said it'd be that way...doesn't mean I didn't want Python anyway). Too much grousing about America...