...a magical movie sure to become a classic...
Big Fish (2003)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:203
Fresh:156
Rotten:47
Average Rating:7.2/10
Consensus: A charming father-and-son tale filled with typical Tim Burton flourishes.
Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for a fight scene, some images of nudity and a suggestive reference
Runtime: 2 hrs 5 mins
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release:Dec 10, 2003 Limited
Box Office: $66,257,002
Synopsis: In Tim Burton's family film BIG FISH, a gifted storyteller named Edward Bloom (Albert Finney), who lives in a small town in Alabama, recounts tall tales of his wild worldly adventures. These are... In Tim Burton's family film BIG FISH, a gifted storyteller named Edward Bloom (Albert Finney), who lives in a small town in Alabama, recounts tall tales of his wild worldly adventures. These are shown in flashback with Ewan McGregor playing the young Bloom. Wonderful special effects and vibrant colors that pop off the screen make this Burton film a much sunnier experience than his macabre gems EDWARD SCISSORHANDS and BEETLEJUICE. Yet his signature quirky artistry is unmistakable, and the movie benefits from crisp production values and a loveable, bizarre cast of characters. Told through a series of vignettes, Bloom's stories involve a witch, a giant, a haunted forest, and yes, a big fish. A self-described small-town hero, Bloom explains how he left home at 18 determined to experience anything and everything life could dish out. He worked for the circus, took on daring assignments as a WWII soldier, and rambled across the country as a zany traveling salesman. Utterly unbelievable yet magical and delightful, Bloom's stories just don't translate to his son Will (Billy Crudup) who wants to know his dad's "true" life story. But little by little--through increasingly outlandish tales at which Will cannot resist smirking--the two begin to understand each other, and Bloom weaves his stories into their genealogical fabric. [More]
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Albert Finney, Billy Crudup, Jessica Lange
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Albert Finney, Billy Crudup, Jessica Lange, Alison Lohman, Helena Bonham-Carter, Robert Guillaume, Steve Buscemi, Danny DeVito, Marion Cotillard, Matthew McGrory, Loudon Wainwright
Director: Tim Burton
Director: Tim Burton
Screenwriter: John August
Producer: Richard D. Zanuck, Bruce Cohen, Dan Jinks
Composer: Danny Elfman
Studio: Columbia Pictures
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Reviews for Big Fish
Big Fish is the cinematic equivalent of a big fish story—fun, entertaining, too crazy to be true, and all the more enjoyable for it.
The movie divides its characters into two groups: those who’ve opened themselves to the possibility of the sublime, and those who’ve confined themselves to reality.
This is the masterpiece Tim Burton has been itching and scratching his way toward ever since he introduced us to "Beetlejuice" in the '80s.
A minnow of a movie camouflaged within the gaudy spines and barbels of some exotic species...
The story shows a lot of heart and I found it very absorbing. One of Burton's better movies.
Stocked to the gills with glorious visuals and delightful whimsy, 'Fish' is a reassuring return to form for director Tim Burton...
There was something nagging at me, something that didn't become clear until the final, awful scenes, where Burton and company get to their point.
Director Tim Burton combines his visual wizardry with touching down-home verities [in a movie that] bounces between poignant reality and beguiling fantasy...
For all its occasionally sputtering puffery, Big Fish’s tales are woolly and waggish enough to tickle your fancy for two hours.
Just as Preston Sturges' 1940s classic Sullivan's Travels has stood as a definitive ode to the value of humor, Big Fish may survive as a strong statement on imagination.
Philippe Rousselot's cinematography and Dennis Gassner's production design conspire to create a magical alternative universe in which the mundane and the marvelous happily coexist.
Sentimental, even a bit treacly, but it's also appealing and full of warmth. And it's probably [Burton's] best film.
Finney's a superb storyteller, dominating the film as he lies immobile, and McGregor has precisely the right blend of cockiness, enthusiasm, zeal and charm.
A well-meaning, visually boisterous film that tries so hard you can practically hear it huffing and puffing.
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