Review: Big Fish (2003)
JoBlo
RATING: 7/10
http://www.joblo.com/bigfish.htm
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PLOT:
The story of an elderly man who likes to tell tall tales that everyone, but his
son, likes to hear. Upon his deathbed, his boy comes to see him one last time
and tries to figure out what his real father is like. As the tales unfold, we
see what actually drove the man and led him to fantasize so much. What was
real? What wasn't? Is it all just in the ear of the listener? Tim Burton
leading an orchestra of cinema...ensues.
CRITIQUE:
BIG FISH was one of the films that I was most looking forward to this year,
most notably because it was led by Tim Burton, the man behind some of my
favorite movies of all-time like EDWARD SCISSORHANDS and THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE
CHRISTMAS. But as I walked out of my screening, I realized that I was never
particularly overwhelmed or as emotionally involved as I would have liked to
have been, despite enjoying the film as a whole and being entertained. I could
see how the film could have reached down to my heartstrings and played them for
a few rounds, but I'm not sure if it was the mood that I was in, the structure
of the film itself (goes back and forth between the present and flashbacks
throughout) or the fact that we spend a little bit of time with many different
characters -- hence the lack of any major connection to just one -- but I just
wasn't able to relate to it more poignantly. It did, however, work effectively
on many other fronts including and foremost, its beauty of composition with a
variety of shots feeling like they came straight out of a fairy tale novel,
with its overall mood and atmosphere reinforcing that, as well as Danny
Elfman's lush score. I wanted to move into that small town of Spectre!
(although figuratively, it is a place that many people find themselves in life:
happy, yet complacent) The actors, and characters, were also well played,
specifically Ewan McGregor who overplayed his Southern accent as he did in DOWN
WITH LOVE and Jessica Lange, who it was nice to see back again. Incidentally,
can there be a greater actress to play the "young version" of Lange in this
film than Alison Lohmann? I think not. The smaller parts by Danny DeVito, the
always-adorable Helena Bonham Carter and Steve Buscemi also helped make the
quirky film, that much quirkier.
The bits that I liked best about the picture were its tall tales though, as
presented by the sturdy Albert Finney to his son Billy Crudup. Almost every
single yarn was a fun one to hear and see presented on the big screen (see
Giants, Two-Headed Asian Singers, Werewolves!) As the childhood stories built
to the more adult ones, the deeper nature of their meaning also grew, as did
the imagination of the man telling them. The entire film has a lot more
symbolism than I picked up on during my first viewing, but you don't need to
connect all those dots in order to enjoy the movie. The film's greatest
downside, in my opinion, was its predictability of conclusion, which I guessed
about as soon as the movie started, as well as its freakish similarity to
another such child-to-adult "fairy-tale" that won a few Oscars back in 1994,
called FORREST GUMP. I'm not even talking about the basic outline of a
small-town boy with a heavy Southern accent heading out into the world and
tumbling into all kinds of bizarre adventures. I'm talking about specifics too,
including his call to war, his deathbed scene with a parent, his lover named
Jenny, the advice he offers a friend who gets rich from it and so on and
yes...so forth. Very, very eerie. It was almost to a point that I expected the
lead character to start playing ping-pong and shake hands with a President, but
the film obviously has many differences as well, including its greater emphasis
on the surreal, the flighty, the magical and the Burton (all fans of the
visionary will sense him all around) In the end, the film plays sincerely,
moves at a nice pace, doesn't outstay its welcome and offers several funny
moments, intertwined with some emotional and entertaining ones. The film didn't
move or surprise me per se, but it's definitely a solid addition to Mr.
Burton's impressive resume and should fulfill all those who adore him.
Where's JoBlo coming from?
About Schmidt (7/10) - Beautiful Girls (9/10) - Chocolat (6/10) - The Family
Man (8/10) - The Nightmare Before Christmas (10/10) - Shrek (8/10) - Sleepy
Hollow (8/10)
Review Date: November 25, 2003
Director: Tim Burton
Writer: John August
Producers: Richard Zanuck, Dan Jinks, Bruce Cohen
Actors: Ewan McGregor as Young Edward
Albert Finney as Old Edward
Jessica Lange as Sandy
Genre: Drama
Year of Release: 2003
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Laura Clifford
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'When the legend becomes fact, print the legend'
Maxwell Scott, "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance"
William Bloom (Billy Crudup, "Almost Famous") became estranged from his
wildly popular father Ed (Albert Finney, "Erin Brockovich") after one too
many of his important achievements were overwhelmed by his dad's
frequently-told tall tales. After many years living in Paris with his
French wife Josephine (Marion Cotillard, "Taxi 3"), William learns from his
mother, Sandra (Jessica Lange, "Titus"), that his dad is dying and it is
time for William to try and make his peace with the "Big Fish."
Tim Burton rebounds, if not spectacularly, with his homey, comedic Southern
gothic rumination on the power of myth-making. Burton's direction of John
August's ("Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle") adaptation of the Daniel
Wallace novel is episodic and tonally uneven in its acting, but he socks
over an emotional payoff with the film's conclusion.
William Bloom's life and heritage have been embroidered from the day he was
born, which Ed immortalized with the tale of his encounter of a legendary,
female catfish. 'The only way to catch an uncatchable woman is to offer
her a wedding ring,' he says, recounting how he had used his as a lure,
then let the big fish go so as not to incur the wrath of his beloved. Will
and his pregnant wife's presence at Ed's bedside presents the opportunity
for Ed to go over his life story once more and Burton flashes back and
forth weaving his tale like the storytelling of Rob Reiner's "The Princess
Bride" with more present day action and less linearity.
As a child, Ed dared a visit to a one-eyed witch (Helena Bonham Carter,
"The Heart of Me") whose glass eye was said to foretell one's own death.
After his buddies fates are shown, Ed's is hidden from us, but his reaction
lets us know that this vision will empower him for years to come. He
describes a radical growth spurt that kept him in traction (in a machine
that looks like a product of "Edward Scissorhands's" Inventor Vincent
Price's lab, one of the few truly Burtonesque visual touchstones) for
years. Then, as a young man (Ewan McGregor, "Moulin Rouge"), he takes on a
real, cave-dwelling monster that's been eating everything in town. But
that real giant, Karl (Matthew McGrory, "House of 1000 Corpses"), is onto
Ed's psychology, so Ed decides to get the nuisance out of town by
accompanying him himself. Ashton, North Carolina throws a parade to escort
the duo out and the witch appears to offer Ed one last piece of advice -
that the way to become the biggest fish is never to be caught.
Ed takes a detour that leads him into the timeless town of Spectre, whose
denizens's shoes all dangle from a power line while they happily cavort
barefoot on streets of grass. After observing famous poet Norther
Winslow's (Steve Buscemi, "Mr. Deeds") inability to finish a poem and being
told by Mildred (Missi Pyle, "Bringing Down the House") that he's quite a
catch, Ed decides to hightail it out of there, but not before promising
young Jenny (Hailey Anne Nelson) that he'll return someday. Ed and Karl
then fall upon a circus where Karl is particularly welcomed, towering over
ringleader/owner Amos's (Danny DeVito, "Death to Smoochy") Colossus by
several feet. There, Ed catches a glimpse of the girl he believes he is
destined to marry (Alison Lohman, "Matchstick Men," as the young Sandra),
and he agrees to work for Amos free, receiving one tidbit of information
about her each month. A magical courtship later, Ed has a stint in the
Korean War which he escapes with the help of conjoined Korean singing twins
Ping (Ada Tai, "Rush Hour") and Jing (Arlene Tai, "Rush Hour") before
becoming a traveling salesman who once again finds Spectre and Jenny
(Helena Bonham Carter again), now fallen upon hard times.
The wonderful Albert Finney is beautifully cast as the unrepentant charmer.
Even though Finney spends most of the film bed-ridden, his Ed is a life
force, obviously still madly in love with his wife (he and the woefully
underutilized Lange have one marvelous scene in a bathtub). When Ed lures
his foreign daughter-in-law in with an elaborate version of a hoary old
joke, Finney even caught me unawares with the punchline. Yet while Finney
is brilliantly paired up physically with McGregor, McGregor is a major
disappointment portraying the younger version of the character. McGregor
is all shiny surface optimism, lacking the layers Finney gives the
character. Lohman is more successful standing in for Lange, capturing the
older actress's essence. What an amazing year for the actress, believably
playing a thirteen year old in "Matchstick Men" and a woman of marriageable
age here. Billy Crudup, a talented actor, is miscast, neither looking like
the progeny of Ed and Sandra, nor ever seeming comfortable in the role of
the unforgiving son. McGrory, Buscemi (who makes an amusing reappearance
in Ed's tales), DeVito, and Bonham Carter are all pluses in the supporting
arena. Robert Guillaume (TV's "Benson") is solid as the long time family
doctor, although it is highly questionable that a black man would have been
allowed to work as a white woman's obstetrician in the 1930's South.
Production designer Dennis Gassner ("Road to Perdition") does not deliver a
Burtonesque landscape, with Amos's traveling circus a particularly missed
opportunity. Cinematography by Philippe Rousselot ("Planet of the Apes")'s
palette meanders from brilliantly bright (a field of daffodils) to limply
pallid (Ed's first meeting with Karl). Original Music by Danny Elfman
("Hulk") is comfortably expected.
Burton does a good job continuing to touch upon the film's themes
throughout the film (the woman/fish/Eve metaphor, the tradition of
storytelling and its cultural commonalities), but Ed's past is delivered in
fits and starts and the love story, which is central, is largely abandoned
in the present, leaving a gaping hole. Burton seems unsure of himself here
and the film lacks his usual sharp directorial vision - it would have been
interesting to see what the Coen brothers would have done with this
material. Still, when "Big Fish" comes to its thoroughly expected
conclusion, it is quite satisfying nonetheless.
B-
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Harvey S. Karten
Reviewed by: Harvey S. Karten
Grade: B+
Columbia Pictures
Directed by: Tim Burton
Written by: John August, book by Daniel Wallace
Cast: Ewan McGregor, Albert Finney, Billy Crudup, Jessica
Lange, Alison Lohman
Screened at: Sony, NYC, 12/4/03
TV has been around for only three generations and movies for
five. That leaves tens of thousands of generations that
depended on story-telling for passing on the myths of the
various cultures and to enable fathers and sons, sometimes
mothers and daughters to bond. The little one would stay in bed
and beg daddy to read from the good books, or even better to
relate tales of daddy's own childhood, which is all to the good.
While there is still some of this ancient entertainment going
around for example I regularly see moms and little girls and
boys in the Barnes and Noble children's room showing their tots
the pictures and reading the wonderful classics like "The Wizard
of Oz" I can't help looking with regret at how the story-tellers on
television, kids glued to the tube sometimes on the sets in their
own rooms are actually causing more alienation between the
generations.
In "Big Fish," the contemporary parents and a recently-married
young man presumably have TV's in their homes. What's
significant, though, is that the tales, often taller than they are
truthful, are still being related and passed down from one man
to many others in the greater family. The ironic difference is
that the elderly father's palaver has been creating a schism
rather than a bond, the young man so filled with his dad's
largely false anecdotes about the latter's youth that he never
really got to know the old man. As Edward Bloom (the old man
played by Albert Finney) tells his young 'un, William Bloom (Billy
Crudup), their relationship is like an iceberg. Ninety percent is
underwater and unable to be seen and accessed, only ten
percent is visible. Old Ed is given to stories that his son has
heard over and over, particularly one about the giant catfish that
ate Ed's wedding band and required him to snatch the fish in his
hands and shake the ring from its mouth.
As the twenty-something William, now married to someone he
met in Paris while working for a global press outfit, gets
increasingly frustrated, Edward, now dying of cancer and
remaining in bed throughout the film banters on and on, each
story different from the others, but all the characters destined to
meet at the conclusion whether metaphorically or physically is
unimportant.
Edward's stories may remind you of Walter Mitty fantasies
given a surreal treatment in Norman Z. McLeod's 1947 comedy
about a milquetoast who imagines greatness, but even more
about Robert Zemeckis's 1994 film "Forrest Gump," about a
mentally challenged fellow who, without realizing much, is put
into a variety of backdrops and real-life events. Yet Edward
Bloom is neither milquetoast nor brain-damaged: simply a man
who has always told tales with great charm while paradoxically
keeping his son at arm's length, never revealing the real
Edward Bloom but only the hyperbolic one.
Director Tim Burton, who splashes the big screen with surreal
images, is in his element. The regisseur of such imaginative
movies as "Sleepy Hollow" (about a bumbling constable who
tries to use scientific methods to figure out a series of
beheadings) and "The Nightmare Before Christmas" (a Pumpkin
King tires of the old routine in Halloween Town and falls in love
with Christmas) displays the likes of ol' Edward, recast in the
stories decades earlier in a role played by Ewan McGregor as
the ultimate Mr. Clean. In his youth, we're to believe that he
indentured himself to a circus impresario (Danny De Vito) in
return for the boss' willingness to reveal one new fact about the
woman of Edward's dreams, Sandy Bloom (Alison Lohman), so
that in due time Edward would get to propose to the woman he
had never spoken to. Few movies about love at first sight are
so elaborately constructed as this one, which allows Edward to
call florists across a wide area to send daffodils, Sandy's
favorite flower, to the grounds of Sandy's college dorm.
The inventiveness of this Edward knows few bounds. He even
parachuted into Korea during the war 1950-53, defeated two
North Korean guards in the dark, and ran away to America with
twin singers. The story of the huge catfish that ate Edward's
golden wedding band only to spit it out after being violently
jostled by the fisherman may have been inspired by the biblical
story of Jonah and the Whale. All of this is by way of Burton's
conveying, via John August's adaptation of Daniel Wallace's
book, "Big Fish, A Novel of Mythic Proportions," that stories from
the Bible, the Koran, presumably the Bhagavad Gita and The
Book of Zoroaster, are myths somehow essential to pass down
through the generations to bind each to the others.
"Big Fish," whose ensemble includes Steve Buscemi as the
leading poet of a small Alabama town who turns bank robber
(filmed near Montgomery in Wetumpka); Jessica Lange as
Sandy, the wife of the dying man who was allegedly courted in
an all-out campaign decades earlier; Helena Bonham Carter as
the grown woman whom young Edward knew when she was a
little girl in a town that proved to be too small for his dreams;
and Billy Crudup as the guy wanting to know more about his
dad before the latter would son die but who realizes that the
stories he heard, however embellished, really do identify the
man whose dreams were too small to fit in a sleepy, Central
Alabama ville. "Big Fish" is a lovely tale, heightened by a
surrealism in short supply in the movie theaters this summer, an
ode to the inevitable bond existing not only between people of
diverse interests but between folks of different generations as
far back as we can imagine.
Rated PG-13. 120 minutes.(c) 2003 by Harvey Karten at
Harvey...@cs.com
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Susan Granger
This is the multi-layered history of charming, irascible Edward Bloom
(Albert Finney), a consummate story-teller who weaves the improbable events of
his life in Ashton, Alabama, into an elaborate tapestry of tall-tales. As he
lies dying, his wife (Jessica Lange) summons home their estranged son (Billy
Crudup), a reporter based in Paris, who begs for the truth, asking, "Who are
you?" So, in flashbacks, the wild, weird adventures of his father's life
unfold.
Years ago, young Edward (Ewan McGregor), "a man intended for larger
things," embarked on an odyssey which began with a gentle giant (Matthew
McGrory) and stumbling into the idyllic town of Specter. Subsequently, he
befriended some quirky, colorful characters, including a circus ring-master
(Danny DeVito), a rueful bank robber (Steve Buscemi), and conjoined twins (Ada
& Arlene Tai). Then there's the fanciful courtship of his wife (Alison Lohman)
at Auburn. But most influential was the enchanted witch (Helena Bonham Carter)
who told him that "the biggest fish in the river gets that way by never being
caught," a philosophy he quickly embraced.
Adapted by John August from Daniel Wallace's "Big Fish: A Novel of Mythic
Proportions," this innovative, inventive fable of paternal conflict revolves
around the surreal visual brilliance of director Tim Burton, augmented by
Philippe Rousselot's awesome cinematography and Danny Elfman's musical score.
Does magical realism always make sense? No. But Albert Finney, Tim Burton and
all the creators of "Big Fish" should be contenders for Oscar gold. On the
Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, "Big Fish" is a wondrous, magical 10. Reality
is highly over-rated. Go for fantasy. Catch one of the best films of the year!
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Steve Rhodes
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2003 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): **
BIG FISH is an overstuffed Christmas movie about a dying father who has spent
his life telling non-stop tall tales to his family and about his estranged,
grownup son who wants his dad to stop lying and finally tell the truth. This
PG-rated fairy tale for adults is directed by Tim Burton (SLEEPY HOLLOW) and
features Albert Finney as the father, Edward Bloom, and Billy Crudup as his
son, William. Ewan McGregor, as the young adult Edward, is actually the star
of the movie as well as of all of the older Edward's whoppers. The episodic
story has a cast of thousands that includes parts for Jessica Lange, Alison
Lohman, Helena Bonham Carter, Steve Buscemi and Danny DeVito, among others.
As the father retells his oft-told tales, he peppers us with little homilies.
"A giant of a man can't have an ordinary sized life," the younger Edward
remarks. His character is so much like a slightly smarter Forrest Gump that I
kept waiting for the Ping-Pong competition.
DeVito plays Amos, a circus ringmaster and the owner of a giant, Colossus
(George McArthur), not quite as big as Karl (Matthew McGrory), Edward's giant.
Amos likes to lecture Edward with thoughts such as, "You're a big fish in a
small pond; but this here is an ocean, and you're drowning." Edward works for
three years for Amos while getting one clue a month as to the identity of the
woman that Edward saw once briefly in a crowd and fell in love with.
MATCHSTICK MEN's female lead, Alison Lohman, plays the part of Edward's love
interest. Like the rest of the cast, Lohman was much better in every other
movie she has been in.
The movie works sporadically but then falls into another long lull. Burton
seems more interested in the fanciful set decoration that in fashioning a
compelling story. The characters' bad and wavering Southern accents are an apt
metaphor for the movie itself. The accents come and go but sometimes, as much
by accident as by design, they do ring true.
BIG FISH runs a long 2:00. The film is rated PG for "a fight scene, some
images of nudity and a suggestive reference" and would be acceptable for kids
around 9 and up, but most kids will find little to interest them in the story.
The film, which is playing now in limited release, opens nationwide in the
United States on Christmas Day, 2003. In the Silicon Valley, it will be
showing at the AMC theaters, the Century theaters and the Camera Cinemas.
Web: http://www.InternetReviews.com
Email: Steve....@InternetReviews.com
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Jon Popick
"We Put the SIN in Cinema"
© Copyright 2003 Planet Sick-Boy. All Rights Reserved.
Tim Burton's Big Fish is a lot like that Federal Express commercial where
the young office worker suggests using the overnight delivery company to
save money and then tells the story of his claim to fame until the day he
dies. Thankfully, the "story" in Fish is much more interesting than the
FedEx ad, even though its repeated just as often.
William Bloom (Billy Crudup, Charlotte Gray) doesn't feel the same way,
though. He's never been able to establish a relationship with his father
Edward (Albert Finney, Traffic), because instead of dispensing wisdom via
typical father-son chats, Ed chooses to tell tall tales about his life (his
younger version is played by Down With Love's Ewan McGregor). Ed's accounts
are of giants, witches, werewolves, bank-robbing poets, conjoined twins and
circus strongmen. Instead of telling William about the birds and the bees,
Ed conjures up the story of a bird who caused him to be chased by bees until
he discovered a magic town from which nobody leaves. When a young William
(Grayson Stone) complains about having to stay in bed for a week with the
chicken pox, Ed replies, "Heck, when I was little, I had to stay in bed for
three whole years," before launching into a tale about how fast he grew as a
boy.
Eager to escape his father and the stories, an adult William leaves Ashton,
Alabama, moves to Paris and doesn't speak to his father for three years.
Then, out of the blue, he gets the big call from his mom (Jessica Lange,
Titus): His dad is dying, so he'd better get back and patch things up. And
that sets up Fish's dual narrative - Ed's unusual tales of his youth
juxtaposed against William's last attempt to learn something real about his
pop.
Fish, which is inexplicably rated PG-13 despite being the best family film
since the PG-13-rated Whale Rider, invokes the memories of a lot of other
films, despite being original enough to not be considered a cheap knockoff.
There's Secondhand Lions (old guy telling kid unbelievable stories about his
youth), The Princess Bride (old guy telling kid stories), The Barbarian
Invasions (father and son trying to mend relationship), Burton's own
Pee-Wee's Big Adventure (unlikely hero has unlikelier exploits), at least a
couple of Terry Gilliam films (the dark kids' stuff) and Forrest Gump (too
many similarities to mention). I also found it comparable to The Straight
Story (which was rated G, by the way) in that both are incredibly
well-crafted stories made by filmmakers who usually tread in much darker
waters.
Fish also features some of the year's best casting (Alison Lohman as a young
Lange is dead ringer), as well as a very strong ensemble performance which
includes a pair of cameos from Faye Dunaway and Julianne Moore. Helena
Bonham Carter lends a smashingly consistent accent to one character, and
Danny Elfman contributes his usual odd-but-rousing score. Fish is a big
step in the right direction for screenwriter John August (he adapted Daniel
Wallace's novel) after following up the brilliant Go with the two Charlie's
Angels flicks. Ditto for Burton (Planet of the Apes), who since 1994 has
offered a very good film every other outing. Of course, that doesn't bode
well for his upcoming version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but
we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.
2:02 - PG-13 for a fight scene, some images of nudity and a suggestive
reference
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Robin Clifford
Will Bloom (Billy Crudup), a reporter for the
Associated Press in Paris, takes an urgent phone call
from his mother (Jessica Lange) all the way from
Ashton, Alabama. She tells him that his tall-tale
telling father, Edward (Albert Finney), is dying from
cancer. Will and his pretty, pregnant wife, Josephine
(Marion Cotillard), jump on a plane and the proverbial
prodigal son returns home to confront and console the
man he has clashed with all of his life in Tim
Burton's "Big Fish."
Will, a straightforward seeker of truth, has never
fallen to the charms of the outrageous yarns that his
father has always told, captivating everyone he meets.
For all of his life the younger Bloom has heard the
stories about giants and werewolves, conjoined Korean
Lounge singers, a witch with a prophetic glass eye, a
magical town and, of course, a very big fish.
This fish story turns to Edward in youthful form, a
young man who has the world by the tail and can't wait
to leave his hometown of Ashton. First, though, he
volunteers to do battle with a monster ravaging the
countryside, devouring cattle. The "beast," it turns
out, is really a misunderstood giant named Karl
(Matthew McGrory) that Edward cleans up and the two
hit the road for adventures unknown.
The pair part ways when Edward decides to take the
path less traveled and ends up in a dark and scary
forest where he is chased by angry bees and swarmed by
giant jumping spiders. He falls upon the small,
picturesque town of Spectre where the streets are made
of well-mowed grass and nobody wears shoes. Edward is
intoxicated by the town and its people, including poet
Norther Winslow (Steve Buscemi), who eventually turns
bank robber then Wall Street entrepreneur. As taken as
he is to Spectre it is still a small pond and Edward
is a big fish with even bigger ambitions and he moves
on.
After teaming up with Karl again, they attend the
circus run by ringmaster Amos Calloway (Danny DeVito)
where Edward spots Sandra (Alison Lohman), the young
woman he knows will be his wife and life long
companion. But, before he can meet her, she is
spirited away and he indentures himself to Amos on the
circus owner's promise to divulge a piece of
information about Sandra every month. Three long years
later, with Edward mastering all the arts and tasks of
the big top, he gets all of the vital pieces and finds
his true love. And, he is not remotely discouraged to
find out she is engaged to his old high school rival,
Don Price (David Denman). Edward finally woos prettt
Sandra with a little display of 10000 daffodils, her
favorite flower.
These are some of the stories that Edward has always
woven through his middle years and beyond and Will has
never believed any of them. As father and son spend
time together, Will begins to see that, in his dad's
wild fabrications, there is an underlying truth in the
tales. "Big Fish" is both a realization of Edward's
stories and the reconciliation and understanding that
is gained between an ailing father and his son.
I liked, but didn't love, "Big Fish." Parts of it were
excellent but the main problem was Ewan McGregor as
Edward Bloom the younger. I don't think it's the
actor's fault but his Edward is more an ever smiling,
glad handing caricature than genuine character.
McGregor gives an effervescent perf, not much
different from his in "Down with Love," and is likable
as heck but not very more than a cartoonish sketch of
a character. Though younger Edward is the film's
prominent character, he is overshadowed by the
supporting actors and the often-quirky stories.
Albert Finney and Jessica Lange, when together as the
mature Blooms, have the best chemistry in "Big Fish,"
but their scenes are far too infrequent. There are
some very nice casting choices with the younger
versions of the characters morphing smoothly into
their older counterparts. McGregor is much like the
Albert Finney of "Tom Jones (1963)" fame. Alison
Lohman is a dead ringer to Lange as younger Sandra.
Helena Bonham Carter does triple duty as the Witch and
the younger and senior Jenny, the unrequited love of
the ever-faithful-to-Sandra Edward. Steve Buscemi and
Danny Devito perform their expanded cameo roles well
enough.
"Big Fish" is mid-level Tim Burton. It's not as good
as, say, "Beetlejuice," Edward Scissorhands" or "Ed
Wood," but way better than "Mars Attacks" and "Planet
of the Apes." The story, adapted from the Daniel
Wallace novel by scripter John August, is a collection
of fantasy tales that readily display the adventures
of young Edward. They are a series of vignettes as the
ever-positive Bloom moves from one fantastical
anecdotal interlude to the next. As such, the story
doesn't flow as much as it jumps between Edward's
adventures and the reconciliation between Blooms,
father and son.
"Big Wish" has many of the quirky production elements
that are familiar from Burton's previous films. There
are the streets of small town America lined with
perky, pastel houses set in idyllic locales, like in
"Edward Scissorhands," and the circus setting
revisited from "Big Top Peewee." Tim Burton's vision
of his fantasy world is well handled by veteran
production designer and Oscar winner Dennis Gassner.
Costume, too, by Colleen Atwood, lends to the surreal
world that revolves around young Bloom. Philippe
Rousselot's masterful lensing is a thing of beauty.
Tim Burton continues his mostly successful directorial
career with another sound entry. "Big Fish" is not one
of his best but, still, an interesting story of a
father and son finding each other at long last. I give
it a B.
For more Reeling reviews visit reelingreviews.com
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