"Have I ever told you about the time...?

Rating: 7/10 (20 March 2005)

Before the time of television and movies, the passing of knowledge and wisdom depended on story-telling and the magic of the story-teller. And with the storyteller's twist, fact and fiction becomes a foggy mist.
William Blooms (Billy Crudup) is on a search for the ultimate meaning of his father's many tales. He tries to learn the truths of his father in his father's dieing days. When it came to story-telling, Edward Bloom (Albert Finney) knew it best. "Big Fish" begins with Edward Bloom telling tales about his past at dinner parties, around a campfire, and to anyone else that would listen. Everyone seems intrigued by his stories except his son, Will, who wishes his father would just be able to tell him the truth.
Through the film's constant stream of flashbacks, young Edward Bloom (played by Ewan McGregor), goes through countless adventures, unafraid because as a boy he confronted a witch who foretold the exact moment of his death. In one, he befriends a giant and together they hit the road, but Bloom gets sidetracked in an isolated town called Spectre where the streets are paved with grass and all of the residents walk around barefoot. He leaves only to wind up in the circus, shoveling dung and performing dangerous tricks in the attempt to learn the name of the girl he loves.
This film, with its storytelling premise, has a small resemblance to the 1994 film "Forrest Gump" about a mentally challenged man who is put into a variety of situations and real-life events. And while waiting for a bus, he tells his unbelievable tales to on goers. But Big Fish has a different tone that allows for the relationship development and the deeper emotions felt between the two main characters.
Tim Burton engages us with his colorful backdrops and wonderful motif. And since most of the movie is in flashback, we are in a "dreamy" state for quite a while. The overall theme of this film is further enhanced by the usage of camera angles, lighting, and color. This greatly contributes to the sense of magic and creativity of Ed's tales and therefore, helps with the exaggerating of the stories that he tells.
"Big Fish" tells the tale of a son who longs to truly know his father and not just the exaggerated stories that his father tells. And as the foggy mist of fact and fiction clears to reveal nothing, should we, in the end, accept that fog to be truth?