So it’s called
Big Fish and it’s about a guy named Ed Bloom (Ewan McGregor and
Albert Finney), who tells wild stories about his life to just about
everyone he’s ever come in contact with. No one believes that the tales
he claims to be true are entirely real, and that he really experienced
them throughout the many years he’s lived on earth, but rather choose to
recognize him as a dandy storyteller. And while this may seem to be just
fine, a problem arises as a result of it. Not one person knows the real
Ed, for his whole life seems to just be one giant story. It’s impossible
for anyone to separate the fact from the fiction, and understand the
true man. This becomes especially tormenting for his son, Will, after
he’s grown up. So, we take a trip to the point in time in which Ed is
about to die, and Will has one last chance to learn the truth about his
father. Are Ed’s tales actually real accounts of the events that have
occurred in his lifetime, or just mere pieces of entertainment for his
friends and family to be temporarily amused by?
Now, with an
average director, there’s probably some way that Big Fish
could’ve been told in a fairly “regular” fashion, but this is a Tim
Burton movie. Tim Burton doesn’t do “regular.” In this picture, the
gifted oddball shows us everything from gigantic people to undiscovered
towns comprised of only peaceful folk to, well, big fishes, and there
and back again. In fact, the oddness of this film, the sheer beauty of
watching the wild images being projected onto a big screen, is
fascinating. The audience won’t even be able to take most of it. How the
hell are we supposed to react to such craziness? The bewildering,
but joyous shock that Big Fish provokes is indescribable. This is
a colorful and outlandish, but sympathetically down-to-earth film,
undeniably one to cherish for years to come. It may be filled with
obvious flaws, and is, by no means, a great movie, but I couldn’t care
any less. For a film to be able to stand out amongst all the other films
of its kind, and keep the audience captive, it has to be different.
Big Fish invents an entirely new genre, and because of this, it
certainly doesn’t even need to worry about being different. If that
doesn’t distinguish a trip worth taking, I don’t know what does.
I’m quite
unsure how mainstream moviegoers will respond to Big Fish, even
though I’m definitely not opposed to them seeing it. A better question
is: what does Burton want viewers to get out of his film? I suppose I’m
a bit of a hypocrite, since I don’t even really know myself, and all
I’ve done in this review is praised it. I enjoyed Big Fish simply
because of the wondrous awe I was struck with when viewing it. And even
though I hope this is enough to keep others satisfied, it, sadly, may
not be.
Vampires, meet
the werewolves. Werewolves, meet the vampires. Now, you two, fight.
Fight. Fight.
That’s the
formula that I expected that Underworld would follow, walking
into it. Thankfully, it’s a lot more creative and ingenious than that.
The story is like a Shakespearean throwback plus the jumpy feel of a
video game, a psychologically violent and grim tale of a long-lasting
war between two different types of monsters, chocked full of action. It
may sound silly, but hey, I liked it for what it was.
After a
conventional opening skit, we’re introduced to our heroine, Selene (Kate
Beckinsale), a female death-dealer, helping the vampires in trying to
exterminate the race of lycans, also known as werewolves. The two
different species have actually been battling for 1,000 years, to be
exact. She soon becomes interested in Michael (Scott Speedman), a human
who the lycan and vampire leaders are conspiring to capture. However,
when she develops feelings for him and objects to what the two leaders
are trying to do, she prematurely awakens the ancient vampire head
Viktor (Bill
Nighy). What’s admirable about Underworld is that there’s quite a
bit of plotting involved in its contents. It’s not completely about the
incoherent action, and this is pleasant, to say the least.
The thing that
I find most amazing about it is that the script is actually pretty
solid, even though it does contain some pretty lame dialogue. There’s
true potential here, and for the most part, it’s acted upon. The problem
with Underworld lies in its running length. Clocking in at just
over two hours, it could stand to lose thirty minutes of excess
material, easily.
For Kate
Beckinsale, this role has blown her up. Even though she’s not
particularly profound in the movie, it will land her the successful
career that she deserves.
A sequel and a
prequel to Underworld will be released in 2005. We can only hope
that they will be an improvement on this divertingly fun and
interesting, but overly long and uneasy original. I am excited for their
releases, with some reservations.
