In the bottom line, anyone who's ever lost a parent would automatically relate to the sentimental and ever so touching nature of Burton's Big Fish

Rating: 10/10 (9 July 2007)

Big Fish is director Tim Burton's most mature film to date, taking his regular fantasy elements and vivid imagination, and planting them in an adult environment, where they can be both visually entertaining and emotional shattering. And yes, the film is that good.
The story revolves around Ed Bloom (Albert Finney), a dying father who receives a surprise visit from his estranges son, Will (Billy Crudrup) while on his death bed. Ed has the tendency of telling tales of his past, most filled up with imaginative figures and mythical places. Will speaks with his father and asks him to retell the story of his life (a major part of the film is told in flashbacks, where the marvelous Ewan McGregor of Star Wars and Trainspotting fame portrays the young Ed). While listening to his father's gripping autobiography, Will tries his best to overcome his overlong cynicism and doubt towards the tales, and try his best to separate fact from fiction  a task he finds particularly hard to accomplish.
In the bottom line, anyone who's ever lost a parent (unfortunately, I lost both) would automatically relate to the sentimental and ever so touching nature of Burton's Big Fish. The film is a moral tale that teaches us the importance of family and nostalgia, and emphasizes the sad truth that sometimes we really get to appreciate and understand what we have when it's too late. When the movie ended, and the credits started to roll, I really wished I would've known my own father better (he passed away when I was 9 years old).
Honestly, why this film didn't race for the big Academy Awards of 2004 (for 2003 releases) is way beyond me, since this is purely one of the more complex and layered dramas of the 2000's.