Surreal movie but very touching

Rating: 9/10 (12 December 2004)

I watched this movie with a good friend recently, and I couldn't believe I hadn't heard of it. I've been a big fan of Tim Burton's eccentric films (Ed Wood, Mars Attacks), as well as his atmospheric ones (Sleepy Hollow). This one had the feel and look of a movie that was made 30 years ago, though the whole movie had a surreal and dreamy feel to it. The storyline is simple, with a young man (Billy Crudup) trying to get to know his father (Albert Finney), a man with some wild stories, as he lies on his death bed. Of course, that wouldn't do the movie justice, as the quality of film-making is very Burtonesque, so it's hard to pigeonhole.
The main thing I want to say about this film is that Ewen McCregor is one heck of an actor. He plays the young Ed Bloom, a gifted, smart, fearless, man with a heart of gold, flawlessly. The adventures of this young man are so poignant and well articulated, I can't Burton didn't get more acclaim for this flick. Albert Finney is remarkable in this role and I'm really surprised he didn't noticed for his work. I'd probably give this film a 9 out of 10, as it did leave me a little bit confused at times. However, I was speechless for about the last 30 minutes, as the movie really comes to a head and grips you. I would recommend this movie to people that like touching movies with an extrinsic feel to them.