
Intrigued by history but neglected by his parents, Kevin, an eleven-year-old schoolboy, gets the chance to make his dream come true when a band of six time-travelling dwarfs appears out of thin air in his bedroom. Having stolen the Supreme Being's one-of-a-kind map of time and space, the audacious time-bandits whisk Kevin off on an exciting journey to the depths of history, skipping from one era to another. Now, to further complicate matters, the dangerous arch-rival known as... (Full plot summary below)
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Intrigued by history but neglected by his parents, Kevin, an eleven-year-old schoolboy, gets the chance to make his dream come true when a band of six time-travelling dwarfs appears out of thin air in his bedroom. Having stolen the Supreme Being's one-of-a-kind map of time and space, the audacious time-bandits whisk Kevin off on an exciting journey to the depths of history, skipping from one era to another. Now, to further complicate matters, the dangerous arch-rival known as the Evil Genius is hot on their trail, bent on getting his hands on the precious map. But, who would have thought that Kevin's seemingly unexceptional room was the entrance to a mysterious wormhole and the portal to a marvellous world of adventure?
Leave your thoughts about Time Bandits.
| EmpireIan NathanFor a kids film this is pleasingly dark with Gilliam delivering as much classical fairy tale as knockabout comedy. |
| Empire MagazineIan FreerFor a kids film this is pleasingly dark with Gilliam delivering as much classical fairy tale as knockabout comedy. |
| Time Out LondonNigel FloydAn extraordinarily inventive fantasy in which schoolboy Warnock is rescued from a dull suburban existence by a band of renegade dwarfs, who emerge from his wardrobe and whisk him off on an incredible journey through time and space. Sometime Monty Python animator Gilliam fills the screen with bizarre images, and directs with a breathless ingenuity. |
| Washington PostGary ArnoldParents may not approve of this dark, violent 1981 children's film, which is what makes it such a good one. The film is resolutely, passionately antiadult, yet much of the humor has an adult sophistication and edge to it; this is one kids' movie that doesn't condescend. |
| ReelViewsJames BerardinelliThe blend of quick-moving adventure, familiar faces, lowbrow slapstick, highbrow wit, and visual style offers more than one thing to just about everyone. And, with an ending that mocks the idea of happily ever after, Time Bandits concludes perfectly. |
| New York TimesVincent CanbyTime Bandits is a cheerfully irreverent lark - part fairy tale, part science fiction and part comedy. It's a fantastic though wobbly flight through history and legend in the company of a small boy named Kevin and six dwarfs named Randall, Fidgit, Wally, Og, Stutter and Vermin. |
| NewsweekDavid AnsenWonderfully whimsical children’s fantasy about a young boy’s journey through the space-time continuum in the company of six cantankerous dwarves. |
| Q Network Film DeskJames Kendrickone of the greatest of children's fantasy movies |
| People MagazineRalph NovakThis is an enterprising project in free-form cinema; it's just not very entertaining. |
| Sci-Fi Movie PageJames O'EhleyHollywood wouldn't have touched this subject matter with a three-foot barge pole and for this alone the movie should be commended. That it also happens to be a very funny and well-made movie is a bonus. |