9. Brazil
Compared to his more modest efforts, there's no doubting that Terry Gilliam's Brazil isn't just the most ambitious film he ever made, but one of the most ambitious and daring that anyone has ever made. A visually stunning science fiction satire, Gilliam clearly uses George Orwell's 1984 as his key influence but imbues the story with more silliness, making for an experience that's often hilariously slapdash, though culminates in a wrenching gut-punch of an ending that brings Gilliam's key thesis home. So audacious was Gilliam's vision that studio executives balked at releasing his bleakly funny cut of the film, instead showing preference towards the "Love Conquers All" edit, an overly optimistic, saccharine equivalent that essentially strips the film of its bite. Gilliam's original cut, thankfully the one that most remember, has impeccable set design but also extremely smart ideas about the world it helps create. Though Gilliam is often accused of being style over substance, his grim, magnificent film is without question his highly substantial masterpiece.