Review of Ed Wood (1994) by Devon B — 28 Mar 2012

Arguably Tim Burton's best film, it's also his least distinctively "Burton-esqe" (although it is about quite an unusual character who doesn't fit into normal society). The title character, Edward D. Wood Jr. was a transvestite filmmaker in the 1950s whose films (like "Plan 9 From Outer Space") are characterized as some of the worst ever made. Burton's "Ed Wood" (as played by Johnny Depp) is eternally optimistic and upbeat, although there's an impression that not all is okay under the shiny surface. His girlfriend, Dolores (Sarah Jessica Parker), is at first supportive of all his various proclivities, until Wood's semi-autobiographical film script "Glen or Glenda" (a film he wrote, starred in and directed) sends her life into darker areas she'd rather not venture into. Wood finds a true friend when he by chance meets legendary film star Bela Lugosi (Martin Landau in an oscar-winning performance). Lugosi is a sad figure, a washed up junkie whose career is over and whose wife has left him. It's Wood's optimism and wide-eyed wonder at the movie industry that give Lugosi a newfound inspiration to perform again. Wood's cast of loony characters includes psychic "Criswell" (Jeffrey Jones), pseudo hermaphrodite Bunny Breckinridge (the hilarious Bill Murray), wrestler Tor Johnson (George "The Animal" Steele), and tv vampire host Vampira (Lisa Marie).

What I guess is so endearing about Eddie is his complete lack of self-awareness. He invisions himself as another Orson Welles, a multi-talented artist who can write and direct masterworks of great vision and artistry. His oeuvre suffers from a complete lack of critical thinking and the notion that every first take is "perfect". Wood at one point, even boldly declares himself to be only concerned with the big picture, and that no one notices the "little details" (this, after being told some of the tombstones in the graveyard set had toppled over as the carpeting beneath them had shifted). Ed Wood the film treats Ed Wood the man's flaws as endearing traits, and gives his films the kind of respect they never received in his lifetime. This while giving us a wonderfully comedic look into the world of 1950s Hollywood.