Review of Big Fish (2003) by Caleb H — 22 Oct 2012

Big Fish is a celebration of life and imagination, not, as it could have been, a movie about death. I've always been more forgiving of Tim Burton's films because of his insane visual style; well, this is the first time since Ed Wood I've felt like the gonzo director is actually trying to tell a story.

And a damn good one at that. Big Fish is the kind of imaginative, sweetly dramatic spectacle that's all the more fun to look at because it emotionally invests us in the story. The film is populated with characters who, despite their fantastical existence, seem like real people, and I absolutely love it for that.

The direction is top-notch, with Burton showing a rare restraint when the film requires him to. Likewise, the cast-led by a wonderful pair of performances from Ewan MacGregor (criminally underrated as an actor, in my opinion) and Albert Finney-is note perfect.

Though the film contains a fair share of dramatic elements, nobody involved seems to dwell on them for longer than necessary-and that's where Big Fish's strength truly lies...investing the viewer in the characters so, when something dramatic finally happens, we feel it without being bludgeoned to death by heavy-handedness.

A lot of drama films fail to connect with me because I feel like the filmmakers are trying too hard, but Big Fish is, aptly, more than just an ordinary movie. I don't say this a lot, but yeah, I absolutely loved this movie.