The Dillon Empire: Simon Dillon on Substack

The Dillon Empire: Simon Dillon on Substack

Share this post

The Dillon Empire: Simon Dillon on Substack
The Dillon Empire: Simon Dillon on Substack
Brazil: 40 Years On

Brazil: 40 Years On

Four decades on, Terry Gilliam's dystopian masterpiece continues to impress

Simon Dillon's avatar
Simon Dillon
Feb 18, 2025
∙ Paid
1

Share this post

The Dillon Empire: Simon Dillon on Substack
The Dillon Empire: Simon Dillon on Substack
Brazil: 40 Years On
Share
Credit: 20th Century Fox/Universal

I didn’t see Terry Gilliam’s dystopian satire Brazil (1985) in the cinema, but discovered it later, one night on a BBC2 screening in my early teens. A few people had told me they hated it, but I had the opposite reaction. The film blew my adolescent mind. It was vivid, bold, and bracingly bizarre. I wasn’t quite sure what it was about, nor did I understand all the reference points as I’d yet to read Nineteen Eighty-Four (or A Clockwork Orange — another key inspiration), but I loved the sublime strangeness of Gilliam’s lunatic fascist bureaucracy (hilariously set twenty minutes into the future). I also felt a curious affinity with the protagonist, Ministry of Information employee Sam Lowry (Jonathan Pryce).

Keep reading with a 7-day free trial

Subscribe to The Dillon Empire: Simon Dillon on Substack to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in
© 2025 Simon Dillon
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture

Share