Plan 9 misfire

Rating: 6/10 (28 January 2003)

It's not unusual for great artists to have to wait many years after departing this life to achieve fame. But it's less common for such a fate to befall a really inept artist. Wood's enthusiasm far outstripped his abilities as a film-maker but sadly this attempt at telling his story doesn't do Wood the justice he probably doesn't deserve.

The root of the problem is in Depp's portrayal of the central character. Wood comes across as a genial, caring optimist who loves movie-making despite his (in)abilities. Nothing wrong with that although there are some moments in the film when Depp almost verges on the Beetlejuice or Scissorhands characters from his earlier outings. But there must have been more to Wood than an eternal optimism. He loved movies - witness his brief conversation with Orson Welles - thus he must have known how excrutiatingly bad his productions were. There was a story to tell as to how Wood reconciled these opposing characteristics. Yet Depp, presumably at his director's command, gives us only a skin-deep portrayal and the opportunity was lost.
Martin Landau's impressive performance of Bela Lugosi in his last agonising and desparate months overrides Depp but leaves us asking why the director chose to portray Lugosi with such sympathy and depth but leave his main character only at a surface level.
In the end perhaps it doesn't matter too much. Do we really want to know what drove such an inadequate movie professional? Probably not, but if the attempt is made it should be made with some conviction and integrity. Cut, (not) perfect.