| William
Bloom has a jealousy problem - with his father Ed - and as a result
has been estranged from him for quite a few years. Seems William has
always been a bit overlooked and overshadowed by his popular pop who
has the gift of blarney and the telling of some rather tall tales -
over and over and over again. It fascinated him as a child, but closed
him off as an adult. Sadly, Ed now lays dying and William’s mother calls
on him to make peace with the “Big Fish.” With Will, now a truth seeking
reporter going after the facts and only the facts, and his very pregnant
wife standing vigil, Ed has one final opportunity to regale his son,
daughter-in-law and unborn grandchild with the wildy wonderful and fanciful
tales of his life while Will hopes that Ed will finally just tell him
the “truth” rather than colorful stories.
It all started when Ed
was a small child. He and some friends visited a one-eyed witch whose
glass eye could foretell one’s death on looking into it. We never get
to see Ed’s vision, but from the look on his face, we know it was something
extraordinary. And so the legends begin. He does battle with a cave-dwelling
monster who eats cattle who’s actually just a gentle giant who’s hungry.
Not content with living in the quiet little town of Ashton, North Carolina,
Ed longs to be a big fish in a big pond, so he hits the road with his
newfound friend (yes, Ed made friends with the “monster”)and along the
way meets up with some rather incredible adventures. How about being
chased by bees and giant spiders that jump? (Word to the wise - hair
spray gets those bees every time. Too bad Ed didn’t have his Aqua Net!)
In the town of Spectre where everyone goes barefoot and shoes adorn
the overhead power lines (the place is a walking advertisement for Scott
lawn products and Miracle Grow), he meets up with a poet turned bank
robber turned Wall Street entrepreneur. Why Ed even joins the circus
as a way to meet the woman he intends to marry! Along the way he even
tells of a “big fish” story about an encounter with catfish as big as
a shark. As time marches on, so does Ed with a stint in the Korean War
that which ends with a daring escape thanks to help of singing conjoined
Korean twins Ping and Jing followed by a rather common job as a travelling
salesman. Can it all possibly be true?
Albert Finney is extraordinary
as the older Ed. With the gift of being able to play an unrepentant
ham, Finney delivers as only Finney can, some over the top oratories
with enough tireless aplomb to make one’s eyes roll. Ewan McGregor as
the younger Ed has that boundless enthusiasm and wide-eyed shiny penney
glow that blossoms with every adventure. McGregor also has a knack at
allowing his character to just “fall into” each quirky tale, letting
each adventure and its inherent characters be the center of attention
as opposed to Ed.
Supporting characters abound
featuring Danny DeVito as the circus owner, Helena Bonham Carter doing
triple duty as the one-eyed witch and both the younger and older Jenny
Bloom. Jessica Lange is a delight as older Ed’s wife, Sandra. With quiet
restraint, you can see the love and admiration she has for her husband,
whether his tales are true or not. Lange has a gift for the genteel
that speaks volumes here. Casting coup of the year could be Alison Lohman
as the younger Sandra. Spitting image of a young Jessica Lange! And
of course, Steve Buscemi, already having his own quirky look that just
screams, “Put me in a Tim Burton film!” fits in perfectly as poet Norther
Winslow.
Adapted by screenwriter
John August from the Daniel Wallace novel, it appears that Burton has
found a writer that matches his own sense of imaginativeness. Written
as individual “fairy tales” of young Edward’s adventures, August has
tailored the stories into nice little vignettes that hopscotch through
the film as Edward tells his tales, giving Burton wide latitude for
his visual energy to take hold.
Capitalizing on Burton’s
imaginative sense is production designer Dennis Gassner who works his
own magic with the town of Spectre but who could have done a bit more
with the circus scenarios. Expecting a full-blown Tim Burtonesque fantastical
sequence, I was a bit let down with the more sedate work in this area.
Adding a lustrous polish is cinematographer Philippe Rousselot who last
worked with Burton on “Planet of the Apes.” And as usual, Colleen Atwood
makes and impressive mark on the costuming.
Visually stimulating. Burtonesque
to the core (albeit a bit tempered given some of Burton’s prior works).
This is a film with heart. From beginning to end. A heartwarming tale
about love and family, a father and a son, and that sometimes it’s very
hard to separate fact from fiction....but then sometimes, it doesn’t
really matter; does it.
Young Edward: Ewan McGregor
Old Edward: Albert Finney Will Bloom: Billy Crudup Sandra Bloom: Jessica
Lange Young Sandra: Alison Lohman Jenny/Witch: Helena Bonham Carter
Norther Winslow: Steve Buscemi Amos: Danny DeVito
Directed by Tim Burton.
Written by John August. Based on the novel by Daniel Wallace. Columbia
Pictures release. Rated PG-13. (125 min.)
|
