one of the best films of 1994

Rating: 10/10 (8 April 2006)

Here is an example of film-making elements coming wonderfully together, in a package that can entertain the usual moviegoers and give the movie-geek his or her money's worth. That it is also perhaps the most well-rounded of Tim Burton's films, with enough does of comedy, drama, and movie-within-movie stylings, to fit two movies is an added plus. He tells the story of Edward D. Wood Jr (Johnny Depp), who may or may not be the most well-known bad filmmaker ever to exist with enough humanity and care to not make it at all parody, even if there is comedy interspersed. His story is one that is actually quite the same of most filmmakers, who want to make it somehow and have big dreams and lofty visions. Though taking into account Wood's preclivaty of wearing women's clothes (particularly the angora sweaters), hanging out with transvestites and other undesirables, and his best friend is a thought to be dead ex-horror icon (Martin Landau as Bella Lugosi, in a richly deserved Oscar turn) addicted to methadone, the path of his story is rather unconventional to say the least.
But the style of the film is quite ingenious, with rich and cool black and white photography, a finely moving and appropriate score (though not by Danny Elfman), and touting an all around best-in-show cast. Depp especially has a lot of fun playing this man, who may or may not be close to how he was in real life (from what I've read about him it's a fairly close depiction), and his portrayal of Wood is not at all cheating and is, in some scenes, really touching. The ones that stick out for me are the ones with Landau at his house, and filming his one scene from Plan 9 From Outer Space, but the ones with him on his 'sets', filming such drek with the passion and ambition of the greats, is really refreshing to see. Ed Wood is quite the biopic, showcasing Burton in another maturer form outside of films like Pee Wee and Batman, but with the same knack for entertainment. After all, how can you dislike a film with Tor Johnson, Elvira, and Bill Murray desiring a sex-change operation?