Tim Burton finally comes of age. Perfect!

Rating: 10/10 (7 April 2004)

So many times before I've been in the situation, where you're sitting in the cinema, three-quarters of the way through a film you think could be a masterpiece, and hoping deep down the filmmakers don't screw it up in the final reel, only to be hugely disappointed when they do.
Not Big Fish. Not by Tim Burton. Not this time.
This time he's delivered a perfect, timeless, inspirational piece of multi-layered celluloid, full of whimsy, comedy, fantasy, pathos and humanity, that for two hours I had this huge grin on my face and for the final five minutes I cried my eyes out (only the 4th film out of thousands seen to have this effect on me).
Hats off to the entire ensemble cast too for memorable performances, particularly Albert Finney and Ewan McGregor.
Forget Burton's many previous juvenile efforts, this is a mature piece of filmmaking to be enjoyed by audiences of most ages, but especially by anyone who's lived life a bit. Outstanding. 10/10