“What are we going to do here?” “A Robbery!”
A movie like Time Bandits is only possible when minds are allowed to soar, and Terry Gilliam is a bona fide big dreamer worthy of paying very close attention to. The motives of adult characters in this film are hysterically pedestrian, and Gilliam satirizes their petty and selfish ambitions from the very beginning. Kevin, our child hero, anchors our sense of intelligence by delving into the majestic fantasies of classic literature while his mother and father obsess over kitchen appliances and game shows. His young mind is busy with imagination and possibility, but Kevin is trapped within the confines of domestic doldrums and plastic covered furniture. That is until a troupe of sleazy crooks spill out of his bedroom cabinet, trying to be sneaky, making all kind of plans, shooting off a machine gun, and ready to rough up kids to avoid getting in trouble.