Big Fish (2003)

I may be a little bias as I generally don't like Tim Burton movies. His movies tend to be like very sweet food that tastes good at first but the longer it stays in your mouth, the more sickly it tastes.  This may sound harsh, but I find Burton's quirkiness quite irksome at times. His 2003 movie, Big Fish, isn't a bad movie but it isn't great either but it's certainly a fun movie to watch. The plot runs as follows: Will Bloom returns home to care for his dying father, Edward Bloom (Ewan McGregor), who had a penchant for telling unbelievable stories. After he passes away, Will tries to find out if his tales were really true.

The best part of the movie by far is certainly Ewan McGregor. His performance oozes with charm, which fits perfectly with the character he portrays. The issue I had, however, was how much of a caricature his character felt like. Instead of feeling like a dynamic, fleshed-out protagonist, we have what is essentially a perfect man. The only flaw is that he tells too many stories to his son, which is the entire premise of the film. The problem with this flaw is that it's not really a flaw as his son finally understands in the movie's underwhelming ending. Ewan's portrayal of Edward felt entirely different from the man we see at the end of his life. On a side note when Edward raids the Korean camp, why are they speaking in Cantonese? One of my favorite parts of this movie when McGregor attempts to speak Cantonese. As a speaker myself, that shit be funny.

Cinematography wise, the movie is incredibly well shot with some truly fantastic scenes. One scene that stands out is when Edward (McGregor) sees the love of his life at the circus. Time stops and the scene is exceedingly well done. Burton creates a scene that feels grounded while also being obviously fantastical. Big Fish has a truly unique style.

Big Fish is the perfect example of the term 'magic realism', a movement within the art world as well. Essentially, this genre describes a realistic, modern setting that has magical elements. Big Fish is exactly that. Yet the problems I had with this movie aren't the magical elements, I loved those parts, rather the problems reside in the muddled themes and on the nose analogies. I found that the movie really tried to create active participation with its audience yet I found the viewing incredibly passive. From the start, I knew what would happen over the course of this movie. The movie's plot is far too spastic for my liking with its attempts to cover themes such as heaven or the afterlife. I found that the movie lacked any moral complexity. The ending also didn't really do it for me. Its attempt at ambiguity was lacking as the old man in bed did not feel like who McGregor was portraying.

Overall, Big Fish is a decent movie that is worth watching if you're a fan of Burton's work. I can say with certainty that Big Fish is an incredibly fun movie to watch.
- GL

6 / 10

 

 (Above) My favorite shot:

(Below) Runners-up:








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