|
I didn't know anything about this movie when I
went to go see it. All Zack and I knew about it
was that it was a Tim Burton movie and it had Ewan
McGreggor. Both of us think Ewan McGreggor is
cool, and honestly, I don't think I've ever seen a
bad movie with him in it. Shallow Grave was okay,
but it wasn't bad. That's not to say he hasn't
been in a clunker somewhere along the line. I
just haven't seen it. And yes, we both liked Star
Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones. Get over
it. Tim Burton is generally pretty cool, too.
Even if the movie sucks, generally you get decent
eye candy to go along with it.
From the previews and commercials I'd seen, I
thought this was a light hearted fantasy movie.
And at parts it kind of is. But moreover it's a
story about a man trying to understand and get to
know his dying father.
This father, in this young man's opinion, has never
told him a lick of truth in his life. He's thought
everything his father has ever told him was a tall
tale, wrapped up in fabrications to make
everything more interesting and to make himself
look more interesting. His father, Ed Bloom, is
a very charismatic man, and a very good story
teller. His son,William, is a writer, but his son
is very bitter about the way his father never
seems to tell the straight up truth. The
flashbacks that accompany Ed's stories are
amazing, and really pretty fantastical. William
continues throughout the movie to try to get the
truth of his father's past. He goes through old
documents; he even goes and talks to one of the
people from his father's stories. She tells him a
story very much like his father would. Eventually,
William makes peace with the way his father has
lived his life and the way he tells stories, and
it's really quite beautiful. In the end you're
left with a feeling that at least half of Ed's
stories have some truth to them as almost all of
the people in them are real.
It's a beautiful movie. I love the message, and
the acting is superb. Both actors who played Ed
Bloom, Albert Finney and Ewan McGregor, are
phenomenal and very believable. Billy Crudup
(anyone remember Almost Famous?) is excellent as
William and looks and acts completely different
from his character Russell Hammond from Almost
Famous. If I hadn't seen his name in the opening
credits I would have never placed that he was the
same actor. If you haven't seen Big Fish yet, I
highly recommend that you do. It's a fun ride,
and one well worth taking.
|