So if you’re in need of a werewolf hunter, a ghost catcher or a vampire slayer, there’s only one man for the job and that’s macho man, Dwayne Johnson.

The 39-year-old Californian actor has always had an action-packed acting career, so his next film, The Monster Hunter’s Survival Guide, should be a piece of cake.
The 260lb pro-wrestler, has been asked to star in the live-action monster adventure film which is set to be produced by Simon King (This Means War), however, it is still in the early stages, having no writer or director yet.
The film is based on John Paul Russ’ comic book of the same name that is written like a ‘How To’ for those looking to slay the undead or deal with supernatural forces.
Zenescope Entertainment – who also produced other famous reads such as Charmed and The Grim Fairy Tales – published five issues of Russ’ monster themed comics.
It has been an extraordinary rebound year for Dwayne Johnson, who appeared in The Fast and the Furious 5
and even returned to the wrestling ring as The Rock, hosting WrestleMania XXVII. However, we will next see Johnson in The Mysterious Island and G.I. Joe 2: Retaliation, which are set to be released next year.

Instead of scrapping the film altogether, as Gilliam did in ‘The Man Who Killed Don Quixote’, or resorting to CGI to digitally recreate Ledger, Gilliam decided to film the ‘Imaginarium’ sequences using three different actors for Ledger’s character Tony: Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell. Surprisingly, this works extremely well, and although most viewers will be well aware of the reasons behind this, it does not detract away from the storyline, as these characters merge in the same brilliant way that Gilliam blends reality with fantasy in the film.

Welcome to the world of 1,000 year-old Doctor Parnassus (Christopher Plummer) and his travelling company of performers, which include his beautiful daughter Valentina (Lily Cole), illusionist Anton (Andrew Garfield) and midget Percy (Verne Troyer). Unbeknown to his daughter, Parnassus has gambled with the devilish Mr Nick (Tom Waits) and lost, meaning that Mr Nick is to have possession of Valentina on her 16^th birthday, which is just three days away as the film begins. Yet, always the gambler, Mr Nick places one last wager: ‘the first to five souls’ between Parnassus and himself keeps Valentina. The arrival of the mysterious Tony, first portrayed in a poignant shot of Ledger hanging by his neck and apparently dead, changes the dynamic within the company as Parnassus prepares to save his daughter.

It is by entering through a magical mirror in Parnassus’ possession that both the characters’ and Gilliam’s imagination is let loose. For a child, this new world is full of chocolate and video games, for a particular woman it is a haven of shoes, jewellery and forbidden sex.  Although there is a vast amount of CGI in these scenes, there are also realms in the ‘Imaginarium’ that are created from cardboard cut-outs – much more like Gilliam’s surreal settings in ‘Brazil’ and ‘Time Bandits’.

The similarities to Gilliam’s past work don’t end here; there are nods to Gilliam’s contributions to Monthy Python, most evident in a musical scene where policemen dance in fishnets and heels, and the darker ‘reality’ scenes by Battersea Power Station are strangely reminiscent of the fantasy elements of ‘Twelve Monkeys’.

Despite the stellar cast, and the wonderful blur of bizarre fantasy and magical realism, the film’s finale is disappointing. It seems slightly incohesive, even for a dream-like sequence, and definitely requires a second viewing to work out the fast-paced ending.

Yet, ending aside, the film visually remains one of Gilliam’s finest works, and merits a great review, particularly considering the unfortunate circumstances surrounding the film.  Ultimately the viewer is left with the final words ‘A film from Heath Ledger and friends’ which really echoes the overshadowing feel of the film, for despite the film’s brilliance, it will forever be remembered as Ledger’s last living work.