Without even realising it the last few months have seen me go on a mini Tim Burton binge, strange given that while I admire his vision and gothic sensibility, I really only like Sleepy Hollow, and think he has more disappointing films than rewarding ones.
I didn’t even know Big Fish was one of Burton’s prior to scanning the DVD cover as I waited for the disc to load, and in reality if I didn’t do that (and the credits didn’t give the game away) there would be every chance that I might not have realised. This is because Big Fish is – while quirky – perhaps the most subtle and low key, and therefore most mainstream film in Burton’s filmography.
Big Fish tells the life story of Edward Bloom through the eyes of his son William Bloom (Billy Crudup). Or at least through the long rambling fantastic stories told by Edward to his son. Big stories about his big life – a life which the now adult William firmly believes to be a series of Big Lies.
However after a long estrangement bought about by Edward’s retelling of his favourite Big Fish story for the umpteenth time at his wedding, William gets the word that Dad is sick. The kind of sick that honey and lemon tea isn’t likely to fix…
William and his pregnant wife Josephine go to the family home to be with ailing Dad and Mum Josephine (Jessica Lange). They find Dad rundown and bedridden, but no less able to tell a good tale to anyone who’ll listen.
In a series of long and elaborately executed sequences Big Fish follows younger Edward (Ewan McGregor) through his exuberant youth, the courtship of his wife and a series of unbelievable adventures and developments. There are tales of witches, wartime, exotic Siamese twins and even a giant. Of course William has heard and scoffed at it all before, he just once wants to have a conversation with his Father that is based in reality.
In fact as a film Big Fish moves along just like a long rambling story told by an elderly relative. Sometimes it loses its way for a while, seemingly forgetting exactly what it was on about. Other times it is frankly quite boring and you wonder if it (and the two plus hour running time) is all worthwhile, then as the conclusion nears we finally reach the heart of the matter. And the ending makes it all worthwhile.
Ewan McGregor is impossibly likeable and intrepid as the young Edward, and Finney shows that even a desperately ill man can still light up a room with a quip or a glance. The relationship between Edward and Josephine is timeless and all the more heartrending as the film moves toward the inevitable ending, but it is William’s eventual realisation that while a little bit twee, nonetheless helped the final sequences of the film make you forget some of the plodding moments in the middle.
Despite the larger than life characters and fantastic elements Tim Burton has never been more restrained with his direction. He allows the slower sequences room to breathe and never opts to help the audience by cutting corners in the interest of clarity.
Final Rating – 8 / 10. Big Fish is not a film that I would ordinarily choose to drag out to kill a couple of hours, I still have the misguided opinion that it is too ‘mature’ and ‘responsible’ to provide me with entertainment. But while it is a slow grind at times the film is well worth sticking with, just like the tales told by the supposedly ‘crazy’ relative in the family.
