Big Fish (2003)

Tim Burton is one of the better American directors around these days. Granted he made the awful Planet of the Apes a few years back, but we’ll forget about that one. Burton has returned with a quality film. Billy Crudup plays a man looking for the truth of his father’s life. The father, played by Albert Finney and Ewan McGregor, has always told his son about his life via tall tales. As Finney is dying Crudup examines just how much of the stories were true, and how much was fantasy.

Burton is an excellent visual storyteller. This film is awesome to look at from the first frame until the last. The hyped up visual style helps the story as we are introduced to more and more bizarre characters. There’s a giant who actually looks like a giant. There’s a pair of twins joined at the waist, which more or less look like a good CGI job. And my favorite, the small town of Specter, where everyone wears white, no one wears shoes and the air smells sweet. The town looks an awful lot the “underground” from the 1970s cult classic A Boy and His Dog. To explain the town would be a waste of time, but it’s the best part of the film.

Some have said that every one of Burton’s films can been seen within Big Fish. I’m not so sure about, especially since so many of Burton’s works have had pre-existing source material, such as Batman and Sleepy Hollow. However, there are a few shots that look as if they were taken directly out of Edward Scissorhands. The film doesn’t exactly touch the surreal as his past works have, but Big Fish holds a certain mystical charm.

The film is funny at times, sad at others, and there is rarely a dull moment. If there were one word to describe the film, it would be “nice.” And that’s not a bad thing. I’m happy to see Burton get back on his feet. His last few outings have been iffy at best and he is a director with enough talent to make a great film every time he goes out. Big Fish is a great family film with something for everyone. Here’s to hoping Burton is back on track.

Grade: B

Dave Bohnert