Rating: 
Summary: Burton crafts a film that's half excellent and half good
Review: Tim Burton is an acquired taste. His flights of fancy and flourishes of eccentric style make him one of the most divisive directors in cinema today. Big Fish, the director's latest, is actually half Burtonian and half family drama. When the images and occurrences are larger than life, the film zips along with plenty of eye candy to sweeten one's taste buds. When the film lurches into the dramatic, the pace flags despite solid acting and a story that's a step or two away from touching. On the whole, because it is so uneven, the two-hour film feels overlong in spite of all the pieces being in place for greatness. Edward Bloom (Albert Finney) is a man who loves to tell tall tales about his life experiences. His energetic delivery and unmitigated exuberance leave his audiences, disbelieving though they may be, uniformly rapt. That is, except for his son William Bloom (Billy Crudup), a straight-laced reporter who feels that he has lived his entire life without ever knowing the truth of his father. Upon hearing about Edward's impending death, after three years of silence between the two, William travels to his father's bedside with his pregnant wife in tow. There, in Edward's final days, William tries to finally break through the fairy tale facade he's always lived with to understand the stranger he calls dad. Though Edward is weak, he can't resist spinning stories to his son's French bride. The film traces Edward's life as a young man this way, featuring Ewan McGregor as the young wanderer. This is probably McGregor's best performance to date, because even though Moulin Rouge is a superior film, this role is more focused on acting and a pure emotional connection with the audience. McGregor succeeds on both counts, creating an extremely likeable and always fascinating character to observe. It is a testament to the quality of his performance that he is never overshadowed by the oddball characters he comes across. And speaking of oddball characters, Burton really shows his stuff when young Edward is traversing Alabama. The impressive array of people he meets includes a giant named Karl, a one-eyed witch (Burton's real-life love Helena Bonham Carter), Japanese Siamese twins, a swarthy old-time carny (Danny DeVito with a wavering Southern accent) and the bare-footed residents of the idyllic town Spectre. This portion of the film includes a haunted forest, a prophetic glass eye and more fantastical fun. Undoubtedly the strongest portion of the film, these flashbacks are both beautiful and energizing. Tim Burton, who reportedly had a rocky relationship with his father, found his a very personal project and cannot be blamed for turning on the sentimental waterworks near the end of the film. However, after having so much fun with Ewan McGregor, the viewer doesn't want to shed a tear with a dying old man and his stuffy son. Our reluctance to accept the film's tonal shift probably explains why Big Fish isn't as moving as the recent Monster and House of Sand and Fog are. The film is pulling in two different directions at once, and invariably, the weaker side ends up being dragged in the dust. Big Fish is certainly worth seeing, and if the personal connection is there for you, it may work as well as it obviously hopes to. For me, the happy-go-lucky filmgoer, I would have traded the hour or so of Finney/Crudup for a half-hour more of Ewan. After all, if you aren't going to a Burton film for magic, why bother going at all? Final Grade: B+
Rating:
Summary: Not Burton's best, but an enjoyable change-of-pace
Review: There are a lot of high expectations out there for Tim Burton's newest film, namely because it's getting more Oscar talk than just about any of his movies combined. It's been called his "masterpiece" by some people, but more often than not, it's getting slammed for being uneven. Well, the film is uneven in parts; I'll give you that. As Edward Bloom (Albert Finney), a slowly dying father and husband, ventures back into his past to tell of the outrageous situations into which he got, sometimes that quirkyness seems to hurt things. A few subplots simply border on being ridiculous, and it becomes easy to understand why Finney's thirty-something son resents him so much for feeding him what he considers a line of crap. But then, reader, there are moments in Big Fish (and many of them, at that) when the sun shines through the clouds and you're caught up in the rapturous experience of watching a good narrative. The movie starts off wonderfully, and reaches its pinnacle when the love of Edward's (played in his early years by Ewan McGregor) life enters the picture in a gorgeous moment during a circus. Fish also has some really intelligent things to say about the nature of truth, the bond between fathers and sons, and the legacy of our lives. The effect of Big Fish upon viewers will be mainly a choice. You won't enjoy the movie if you sit back and agonize over how some of the philosophical notions of Burton's work have been explored much better in other movies; you'll probably roll your eyes at a key scene toward the end that looks like it was lifted out of 8 1/2; and you'll probably know where the whole darn thing is going at points. But you have another option - to sit back and let Burton's own catharsis of the death of his father wash over you in all its flawed, magical glory, and you won't leave dry-eyed. Sure, Big Fish isn't perfect, it is manipulative, and it won't get any Oscars, but it still beats a great deal of 'family' fare out there right now. Look carefully, too, and you'll see Ewan McGregor become a full-blown star. If anything, Big Fish is proof that we'll be seeing more from him in decades to come. Hopefully the same can be said about Fish's eccentric director. Grade: B+
Rating:
Summary: Not All Stories Are Fabrications.
Review: BIG FISH is a film about living a life full of worth. It's about the stories that surround us. Living a life of wonder and fascination should not stop when we leave childhood through the harrowing door of puberty. We should always live our lives with a childlike faith, always curious, always wanting to explore. BIG FISH is also a film that raises some interesting questions. What is real? Where does one separate the fact from the fiction? Or, perhaps the things that seem most fantastical are actually the things most real and true. The movie briefly tells the story of one Edward Bloom, a life-long stroyteller who finds himself on his deathbed suffering from a debilitating disease after living a very full life. Bloom's only child is a newspaper reporter who has grown tired of his father's tall tales. After years of not speaking with his father and staying away from home, he returns home after he learns of his father's impending death. The son comes home to confront his Dad but is forced to rethink his own beliefs about what makes a fact and what is truly real. Ewan McGregor plays the younger version of Bloom and his performance is what holds the film together as it weaves from the past to the present and from fantasy and reality. Also, Danny DeVito makes an impressive turn in an interesting supporting role as a circus ringmaster with a strange disease. The movie was directed by Tim Burton and it's nice to see Burton getting back to movies he enjoys making. Tim Burton is the only director in Hollywood who can effectively tell a story through images without much of a (or even any) screenplay. Overall, BIG FISH is a fun film to watch. It's full of beautiful subtleties. It has a good message and though is fantastical, seems more down-to-Earth than many of Burton's other pictures (e.g. EDWARD SCISSORHANDS). The film is a decent family movie though younger children probably won't enjoy it as much as older ones.
Rating: 
Summary: "It's Impossible to Separate the Fact from the Fiction"
Review: Keep that in mind as you watch "Big Fish," for the fact and the fiction come together in a cohesive whole to paint a picture of the eccentric Edward Bloom in this touching, fanciful story of a father who tells tall tales and the son trying to make sense of them. Considering the films' sweetness, warm nature and uplifting story, is surprised to learn that Tim Burton was on hand to direct. Burton, now in his fourties, is a perpetual Hollywood outsider, often telling stories of sympathetic oddballs and socital outcasts, which come through in films like his "Edward Scissorhands" and even his take on Batman, which paint Bruce Wayne has a lonely, bachelor billionaire saving society while not taking full part in it either. But in "Big Fish," Burton shows his emotional range, reportedly taking the project after the death of his own father. The film opens as Edward Bloom (a terrific Albert Finney and Ewan McGregor) and his son Will (Billy Crudup) are estranged due to Edwards' unbelievable stories about his life, which Will has grown tired of. But, with Edward on his death bed, Will goes to his side, to try and learn the truth to why his father tells these tales. Through various stroytellers and listeners, we learn Edwards' remarkable life story: meeting witches, giants, werewolves, swampy utopias, his romantic hook up with his wife (Allison Loman and Jessica Lange), his fighting in Korea and saving that same Utopia he had visited earlier in his life. This web of stories are expertly woven by, not only Burton, but also screenwriter John August ("Go") who fill the story, not only with idyllic images of Americana and plenty of good-natured humor, but with an emotional core that one cannot help but connect with. And that core is done justice by an excellent acting ensemble, led by the lovable Albert Finney as the aging Bloom an Ewan McGregor and the younger. Their performances perfectly match, weaving a character as fanciful as his stories but also as real as his disease. Look for Finney to take home an Oscar for his work. Billy Crudup is wonderful as well as the doubting Will, who softens throughout the film, leading to a tear-jerker scene in which, by telling his own story, Will shows he understands his father. Juicy turns are on hand all around, as Steve Buscemi plays a poet turned bank robber, Danny De-Vito as a werewolf carnival manager and Helena Bonham Carter as a scret admirer of Edward and his tales. One of the surprise best of the year, "Big Fish" will leave you believing in those tall tales again, and Tim Burton's filmmaking abilities.
Rating:
Summary: Simply Fantastic
Review: Big Fish is one of those movies everyone should see. We can all relate to it somehow and Time Burton has given himself another hit movie. Big Fish is the story of Edward Bloom's life. Young Bloom is played by Ewan McGreggor and old Bloom by Albert Finney. He is on his deathbed and his son Edward who is played by Billy Crudup has come to make his reconciliation with his dad. He's tired of his dad's stories and wants the truth from him. He feels like he doesn't know his dad, and he knows time is runnig out. Ewan McGreggor is awesome. His fans will argue this as his best performance ever and I think it is. He is enchanting in the movie. He does a great job faking the accent and he just takes the role and runs with it. I wish he could get really get academy consideration for his role. It's really that great and an Oscar nomination should go his way. He's just as good as Depp in Pirates and Penn in Mystic River. This could be the best performance of his young carear. Ewan won't disappoint you. I liked Billy Crudup in the movie. His character isn't a real lively one and has a lot of mixed emotions about his father. Crudup plays with the emotions well. He's a good actor and I hope to see more of his work in the future. You also have to love Albert Finney in the movie. His character is loveable and he displays a spark that just makes you smile. He's a loveable old guy and his performacne will and can draw tears. Tim Burton has just made a simply fantastic film. I really wish I could just shake his hand. He's a great director and has always made original and fun films. They've always been a little werid, but it's always made them special. Big Fish is a great film. Take the family to see it. It's an enchanting and fun tale full of stories and memorable characters. Come see one of the most memorable characters you'll ever see a movie. Big Fish is just simply fantastic and is something everybody should see.
Rating: 
Summary: Crippled
Review: -There is absolutely no evolution from the father we see in the numerous flashbacks (I forget his name) to the father reliving his youth through his fantastic fables. In fact, I found it very hard to in any way relate the young, open minded, naive adventurer to the stubborn cancer patient he supposedly grows into. This should be a vital part to this story and it's absence is devestating. -In fact, I disliked the old version of the father quite a bit. Actually, dislike is too tame a word, I despised him. Even on a movie screen, where characters exxagerations are usually their charm, I found his personality irritating and obnoxious. Here he is, dying, and his only son wants to have a heart to heart conversation with the father he never really knew. And what does his father do? He shoves out story after story, each one more unbelievable than the last, and gets angry when his son asks him to cut it out in favor of some honesty. By the end I was kindof hoping he'd hurry up and kick the bucket. -The ending I liked. That is until the voice over came on with the proclomation that the father was in fact the stories he had always loved so much to tell, and that he relived them and thus became immortal. How cheap. How insulting. Anyone reading this who's seen the film and was as moved as I was by the son's attempt to ease his father into death the right way will agree. The symbolism of the shoes thrown up on the string, and the uncatchable fish ending up being the father's wife....the stupid voice over doesn't mesh with any of this and feels tacked on to please the viewers in the audience who are too lazy to think about the plot and come up with their own conclusion. Very dissapointing. These are a few of the blemishes that stopped me from enjoying an otherwise well made film.
Rating:
Summary: Better than the novel
Review: One of those rare occasions when the movie is better than the book it is based on. It is amazing at how different from--but true to the book--this movie is. The screenwriter fills in so many holes that I now see the novel as more of an outline. It happens to work very well. The acting is excellent. Directed, with perfection, by Tim Burton. Has some dark tones, but nice and colorful, too. William wants to know the truth about his father's life. Yet, the elder Bloom prefers to tell stories. What is real may not necessarily be the truth.
Rating:
Summary: Big Fish
Review: I just got back from seeing 'Big Fish'. It was the most spectacular and touching film I have seen. Tim Burton really made something beautiful when he directed it. The film is so entertaining you just fall in love with all of the characters, and the end will leave you in tears. I felt that I really knew Edward, and was sad when his story ended. Ewan McGregor was enchanting in this film. I absolutely adored this film, and I hope that you all will go and see it's charm for yourself.
Rating:
Summary: Lose yourself in Edward's world...
Review: Fantastic movie, one of the best I've seen in quite some time. A wonderful release from reality, if you want to get away from the cold for a while and get caught up in a brilliant fantasy! This is not a movie to be overanalyzed, but rather one you should simply sit back, relax, enjoy and savor. The visuals are stunning, the tales are amusing and heartfelt, and the characters are likable. Definitely deserves some Oscar nods!
Rating:
Summary: good movie
Review: this was a very sweet story of father and son.the stories the father told maybe have been like a fairly tale but this movie touch my heart. the story i liked best was when edward when into that one town and everybody in it was barefooted no one wore shoes that would have been my type of town to live in. the bath tub edward scene with his wife touched me a lot. like i said this is just a sweet story.
| 
