Family

Rating: 10/10 (3 February 2004)

BIG SPOILERS from the start
When telling the story of "Big Fish", it's hard to differentiate between what is considered real and what is considered fake. The one thing which can be certain is that Tim Burton has once again created a masterpiece. Often Burton is raved about, but in my opinion, he has always been best at those sorts of films which are the holiday extravanza sort of film. As a Director I think his best films of the past were "Beetlejuice" and "Edward Scissorhands", and as a Producer I always loved his films "The Nightmare Before Christmas" and "James And The Giant Peach". With the exception of "Beetlejuice" those films all have something in common, as well as being witty and slightly twisted, they moved the soul and touched the audience. "Big Fish" follows this tradition perfectly.
In this movie we are introduced to Mr Edward Bloom. From a young age Edward had a remarkable life, or did he? This as we discover, is the problem. Edward is old and not well. As he lies dying on his death bed, his son William (played well by Billy Crudup, a man I admit to not recognising on the screen before) visits him and demands to know the true Edward. The problem, if you could dare to call it that, is that Edward's entire life is one of tall tales. Whilst Albert Finney as the old Edward recites the tales with his usual majestic naration, we are shown Ewan McGregor as Finney's younger self experiencing these beautiful moments. McGregor is again superb and if it wasn't for his performances in the more recent of the two Star Wars trilogies, he'd probably be up there as one of the greats of recent cinema history (but then, I think we can allow someone at least one or two returns to their childhood in their projects huh?).
Anyway, as the film progresses, we learn more and more about Edward, learning some truths and some lies along the way. All of this resulting in a tear bringing ending which moves us in a way all too rare in recent film experiences.
The one flaw with "Big Fish", and I'm not sure whether it can be counted as a flaw or not, is that it's very difficult to do a review of. I saw this film a couple of days ago now (normally I confess to writing a review as soon as possible after seeing the film) and even now I find it hard to differentiate between what was good and what was bad. The one thing I can say is that the first time we are introduced to the town of Spectre, it is a pretty drawn out tedious affair and I'm glad when Bloom leaves. This scene is necessary however, irrelevant of whether it is entertaining or not. Other than this though, "Big Fish" is practically impossible to criticise. The acting is first class, not just by Finney and McGregor, but also by the amazing supporting cast of Danny Devito, Jessica Lange, Alison Lohman, Helena Bonham-Carter and especially Steve Buschemi. The soundtrack is breathtaking as well, visual effects the usual Burton perfection, and the ending as I've already said is so beautiful and moving, that ultimately any of these problems I might have said, are quickly forgotten as you try to hold back the tears.
In a few years time, once the fuss regarding this film has settled down, I look forward to taking a glance at the imdb Top 250 Films of All Time and seeing this film safely in there. This film is a rare breed and unlike other recent masterpieces (i.e. "Lost In Translation"), it's one everyone will love.