BIG FISH (2003)

SHORT REVIEW: Kooky without a cause. I know I’m going to catch flack for this one. As a culture we need to come together and admit something to ourselves: Tim Burton is not a genius. He’s not a brilliant filmmaker and he certainly can’t tell a story. I can’t be the only around here that looks at his body of work and shakes my head. Yes, Burton has his own style. You see a clip from one of his films and you know it’s his work. The guy is good at design I will give him that. But look at the pieces he creates and you’ll see little more than visual design. I’ll retreat enough to give him credit and say he’s made a couple of good films (not great – good.) Beetlejuice and Batman are interesting pieces to be sure but how much of that is due to the work of Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson? Big Fish is another Burton piece wherein we are subjected to an interesting premise that is not fleshed out into a solid story. Like Mars Attacks!, Batman and Ed Wood, this movie shows promise then doesn’t go anywhere. Burton is great with the idea and horrible at the execution (have you seen Sleepy Hollow or Planet of The Apes?) It seems to me that the guy is far too concerned with his clever imagery and forgets that actual characters are supposed to inhabit his work. With unchecked kookiness, Big Fish offers nothing but hollow short stories strung together for no real purpose. Sure, there are some interesting elements and some portions of the film are fun to watch but in the end it si all for nothing. It is like watching fireworks. Once it’s done, it’s done. It is my belief that if a filmmaker is going to ask for two hours of your life, they should be giving you more for your investment. RELATED REVIEWS: Charlie & The Chocolate Factory (2005) Categories: film, movie, review, DVD, Tim Burton, Ewan MacGregor