Inspired by Chris Marker's acclaimed short film La Jetée (which is included on the DVD Short Cinema Journal, Volume 2), 12 Monkeys combines intricate, intelligent storytelling with the uniquely imaginative vision of director Terry Gilliam. The story opens in the wintry wasteland of the year 2035, where a virulent plague has forced humans to live in a squalid, oppressively regimented underground. Bruce Willis plays a societal outcast who is given the opportunity to erase his criminal record by "volunteering" to time-travel into the past to obtain a pure sample of the deadly virus that will help future scientists to develop a cure. But in bouncing from 1918 to the early and mid-1990s, he undergoes an ordeal that forces him to question his own perceptions of reality. Caught between the dangers of the past and the devastation of the future, he encounters a psychiatrist (Madeleine Stowe) who is initially convinced he's insane, and a wacky mental patient (Brad Pitt in a twitchy Oscar-nominated role) with links to a radical group that may have unleashed the deadly virus. Equal parts mystery, tragedy, psychological thriller, and apocalyptic drama, 12 Monkeys ranks as one of the best science fiction films of the '90s, boosted by Gilliam's visual ingenuity and one of the finest performances of Willis's career. The Collector's Edition DVD includes a fascinating behind-the-scenes documentary (The Hamster Factor and Other Tales of 12 Monkeys) in addition to the theatrical trailer, production notes, and a 12 Monkeys archive of still photos, design concepts, and storyboards. --Jeff Shannon
Joseph Melito | Young Cole |
Bruce Willis | James Cole |
Madeleine Stowe | Kathryn Railly |
Jon Seda | Jose |
Brad Pitt | Jeffrey Goines |
Michael Chance | Scarface |
Vernon Campbell | Tiny |
H. Michael Walls | Botanist |
Bob Adrian | Geologist |
Simon Jones | Zoologist |
Carol Florence | Astrophysicist |
Bill Raymond | Microbiologist |
Ernest Abuba | Engineer |
Irma St. Paule | Poet |
Joey Perillo | Detective Franki |
Bruce Kirkpatrick | Policeman No. 1 |
Paul Buckmaster | Composer |
Roger Pratt | Cinematographer |
Wilfred Williams | Policeman No. 2 |
Mick Audsley | Editor |
Rozwill Young | Billings |
Jeffrey Beecroft | Production Designer |
Nell Johnson | Ward Nurse |
Frederick Strother | L.J. Washington |
Rick Warner | Dr. Casey |
Frank Gorshin | Dr. Fletcher |
Anthony 'Chip' Brienza | Dr. Goodin |
Joilet Harris | Harassed Mother |
Drucie McDaniel | Waltzing Woman Patient |
John Blaisse | Old Man Patient |
Louis Lippa | Patient at Gate |
Stan Kang | X-Ray Doctor |
Pat Dias | WWI Captain |
Aaron Michael Lacey | WWI Sergeant |
David Morse | Dr. Peters |
Charles Techman | Professor |
Jann Ellis | Marilou |
Johnnie Hobbs Jr. | Officer No. 1 |
Janet Zappala | Anchorwoman |
Thomas Roy | Evangelist |
Harry O'Toole | Louie |
Korchenko | Thug No. 1 |
Chuck Jeffreys | Thug No. 2 |
LisaGay Hamilton | Teddy |
Felix Pire | Fale |
Matt Ross | Bee |
Barry Price | Agent No. 1 |
John Panzarella | Agent No. 2 |
Christopher Plummer | Dr. Goines |
Larry Daly | Agent No. 3 |
Arthur Fennell | Anchorman |
Karl Warren | Pompous Man |
Christopher Meloni | Lt. Halperin |
Paul Meshejian | Detective Dalva |
Robert O'Neill | Wayne |
Kevin Thigpen | Kweskin |
Lee Golden | Hotel Clerk |
Joseph McKenna | Wallace |
Jeff Tanner | Plain Clothes Cop |
Faith Potts | Store Clerk |
Michael Ryan Segal | Weller |
Annie Golden | Woman Cabbie |
Lisa Talerico | Ticket Agent |
Stephen Bridgewater | Airport Detective |
Ray Huffman | Plump Businessman |
Jodi Dawson | Gift Store Clerk |
Jack Dougherty | Airport Security No. 1 |
Lenny Daniels | Airport Security No. 2 |
Herbert C. Hauls Jr. | Airport Security No. 3 |
Charley Scalies | Impatient Traveler |
Carolyn Walker | Terrified Traveler |
Tiffany Baldwin | Student in Airport |
Bart the Bear | Bear |
Al Brown | Policeman |
C.J. Byrnes | Psychiatric Patient |
Phillip V. Caruso | French War Photographer |
Tom Detrik | FBI Agent |
Donald Faison | Psyciatric Prisoner |
Kelly Farnan | Kissing Couple |
Joe Gerety | Sprayer |
Laura Glas | Terrified Traveler #2 |
Robert Gleason | First Man at Book Signing |
John Hagy | Bus Passenger |
Adam Hatley | Drug Addict |
Bonnie Loev | Time Portal Nurse |
Julie Mabry | Prostitute |
Raymond Mamrak | Travler |
Sal Mazzotta | Prisoner Joey |
Allelon Ruggiero | Inpatient |
Renee Spei | Demon |
Richard Stanley | Man in Transit Lounge |
Thang | Monkey Member |
Susan Wool-Rush | Avid Fan |
Ruth Leon Weiman | Traveler |