Burton goes sentimental - and I like it!

Rating: 9/10 (26 March 2004)

Until "Big Fish," I had pretty much written off Tim Burton; I can only watch so many freakish displays of carnival showmanship, after all. But this time, he got me. He actually injected character development and a compelling family conflict into his usual grotesque tableau of weirdness. I am officially a fan again.
Ebert says that this movie is basically just an excuse for special effects, but I would argue that it works beautifully on a fable-like level; true, there is a larger-than-life quality to the proceedings, but surely that's the whole point? Yes, the MacGregor/Finney character is supposed to be somewhat ridiculous, but he also represents Burton's answer to his critics. He proves that tall tales and fanciful images have a legitimate place in storytelling, and can in fact reflect reality in unexpected ways.
That said, the movie did get a tad heavy-handed at the end. I didn't need Billy Crudup (who has a pretty thankless, drippy role for most of the way) to explain the moral. Still, I was hooked for ninety-nine percent of the way, and of course I must recommend the film simply on the grounds that it teams up Danny DeVito and "B" sci-fi legend Deep Roy! Quite delightful, and another strong entry in an unusually good year for films.