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Movies / On DVD / Ed Wood
Ed Wood

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Ed Wood (1994)

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Reviews Counted: 55

Fresh: 50

Rotten:5

Average Rating: 7.9/10

Consensus: Tim Burton and Johnny Depp team up to fete the life and work of cult hero Ed Wood, with typically strange and wonderful results.

Runtime: 2 hrs 7 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: A stranger-than-fiction true story of the early career of Edward D. Wood, Jr., the undisputed "worst movie director of all time," Tim Burton's ED WOOD is nevertheless a delightful, zany, and... A stranger-than-fiction true story of the early career of Edward D. Wood, Jr., the undisputed "worst movie director of all time," Tim Burton's ED WOOD is nevertheless a delightful, zany, and ultimately moving film. Wood was the auteur behind GLEN OR GLENDA? (1953) and PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE (1959), and it is during the making of these two no-budget flicks that Wood is profiled. His friendship with the aging, drug-addicted, former film star Bela Lugosi--who he cast in his movies--is one of the most poignant characters ever portrayed on film. Wood had an infectious enthusiasm which inspired his cohorts, including transsexual wannabe Bunny (Bill Murray), the psychic Criswell (Jeffrey Jones), and behemoth wrestler Tor Johnson (George "The Animal" Steele). To a large extent, ED WOOD celebrates bad filmmaking raised to the level of a fine art form. With his fetishistic style of dressing in for pumps, narrow skirts and angora sweaters, Ed Wood was as much of an outsider as his actors. Perhaps the final irony is that ED WOOD may be one of the best films of all time about one of the worst filmmakers of all time. [More]

Starring: Johnny Depp, Martin Landau, Sarah Jessica Parker, Bill Murray

Starring: Johnny Depp, Martin Landau, Sarah Jessica Parker, Bill Murray, Patricia Arquette, Jeffrey Jones, G.D. Spradlin, Vincent D'Onofrio, Mike Starr, Max Casella, Lisa Marie, Juliet Landau, Clive Rosengren, Ned Bellamy, Danny Dayton, Bill Cusack, Biff Yeager, Joseph R. Gannascoli, Melora Walters, Conrad Brooks

Director: Tim Burton

Director: Tim Burton
Producer: Denise Di Novi, Tim Burton

[See More Credits]

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Release:

Oct 19, 2004

[DVD Details]
 
 
  • Ed Wood
  • From Tim Burton, acclaimed director of BIG FISH, EDWARD SCISSORHANDS, and BATMAN, and the producer of THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS, comes the hilarious, true-life story of the wackiest filmmaker in Hollywood history, Ed Wood! Johnny Depp (PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: THE CURSE OF THE BLACK PEARL, CHOCOLAT, EDWARD SCISSORHANDS) stars as the high-spirited movieman who refuses to let unfinished scenes, terrible reviews, and hostile studio executives derail his big-screen dreams. With an oddball collection of showbiz misfits, Ed takes the art of bad moviemaking to an all-time low! The all-star cast features Bill Murray (LOST IN TRANSLATION, THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS), Sarah Jessica Parker (TV's SEX AND THE CITY), Patricia Arquette (STIGMATA, LITTLE NICKY), and an Academy Award(R)-winning performance by Martin Landau (Best Supporting Actor, 1994) as Bela Lugosi. Hailed by critics everywhere, this laugh-packed comedy hit is sure to entertain everyone!
  • Source: Buena Vista Home Entertainment.
  •  
     
     
     

    Reviews for Ed Wood

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    1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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    Typically, Burton's storytelling is sometimes erratic, but his emphasis on humanizing marginal characters -- a project that seems central to his artistic agenda -- is as strong as ever.

    Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
    10/05/08
    TV Guide's Movie Guide

    Beguiling rather than thrilling, oddly charming instead of transporting, meaning that Disney will have its work cut out for it with what is at heart a cult movie and a film buff's dream.

    Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
    10/05/08
    Todd McCarthy
    Variety
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    The film's greatest achievement is to avoid the easy, patronizing laughs and instead see the near heroic qualities of a patently untalented artist.

    Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
    10/05/08
    Channel 4 Film

    It's refreshing to see Burton in a relatively upbeat mood, but he picked the wrong story to give an optimistic spin.

    Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
    07/30/07
    Rob Gonsalves
    eFilmCritic.com

    I loved the acting, Johnny Depp and Landau are awesome, the B&W look is perfect and the story is kind of cute, but where is the genius in this flick? Am I missing something?

    Full Review Source: JoBlo's Movie Emporium | comment Comment
    07/07/06
    JoBlo
    JoBlo's Movie Emporium

    [Tim Burton's] own jazz-hands dance to the spirit of movie-making.

    Full Review Source: DVDJournal.com | comment Comment
    04/05/06
    Mark Bourne
    DVDJournal.com

    It certainly succeeds as a funny, touching tribute to tenacity, energy, ambition and friendship.

    Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
    01/26/06
    Geoff Andrew
    Time Out

    Droll and witty, Burton's tribute evokes the career of Hollywood's "worst" director by making a most stylishly polished production

    Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com | comment Comment
    06/27/05
    Emanuel Levy
    EmanuelLevy.Com

    If you love movies, you've got a little Ed Wood inside you.

    Full Review Source: Film Freak Central | comment Comment
    11/30/04
    Walter Chaw
    Film Freak Central

    Tim Burton, fidèle à son talent et à sa réputation, transforme un scénario déjà bien concocté en un film des plus divertissants

    Full Review Source: Panorama | comment Comment
    11/25/04
    Louis-Jérôme Cloutier
    Panorama

    A gentle valentine that celebrates the creative spirit, no matter how misguided that particular spirit happens to be.

    Full Review Source: Creative Loafing | comment Comment
    11/09/04
    Matt Brunson
    Creative Loafing

    This delightful film focuses on the more telling years when Edward D. Wood did what he did to become who he is...

    Full Review Source: Blunt Review | comment Comment
    10/30/04
    Emily Blunt
    Blunt Review

    [It] remains the greatest movie about the pleasures and hardships of independent filmmaking.

    Full Review Source: Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia) | comment Comment
    10/26/04
    Mark Palermo
    Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

    Depp's magnificent performance, plus Burton's love of his subject make for a wonderful film. Landau is magnificent as Bela Lugosi. A great film that celebrates the little filmmakers who dreamed big.

    comment Comment
    09/21/04
    Bob Bloom
    Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN)

    "Strangely compelling and inspiring..."

    Full Review Source: eCinemaCenter.com | comment Comment
    07/19/04
    Gabe Leibowitz
    eCinemaCenter.com

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    03/22/04
    Frank Swietek
    One Guy's Opinion

    Landau's Lugosi is an alternately amusing and heartbreaking character who is given one last taste of life while in orbit around Wood's infectious mania

    Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
    03/02/04
    Brian Mckay
    eFilmCritic.com

    Hilarious and enormously entertaining.

    Full Review Source: Mr. Brown's Movies | comment Comment
    01/13/04
    Michael Dequina
    Mr. Brown's Movies

    True or not, the film is brilliant in every capacity %u2013 rich, warm and outrageously funny.

    Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment Comment
    08/13/03
    Ken Hanke
    Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

    No review available.

    comment Comment
    06/04/03
    Philip Martin
    Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
     
     
    1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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    Latest News for Ed Wood

    August 17, 2006: Burton & Depp Together for the 6th Time: Sweeney Todd
    When Tim Burton and Johnny Depp get together, pretty wild movies tend to happen. Frankly I think all five of their previous collaborations have been darn fine films, and here's... More...

    June 13, 2006: Burton Moves to "Sweeney Todd" and Bumps "Ripley," Believe It or Not
    If you were eagerly anticipating the Tim Burton/Jim Carrey collaboration called "Ripley's Believe It or Not!," then you might have an extra year or two to wait,... More...

    March 09, 2006: Cusack Checks In to King's "1408"
    Popular actor John Cusack has signed on to star in the movie adaptation of Stephen King's short story "1408," says Variety. The story, which is available on King's... More...

    January 09, 2006: Burton & Depp Together Again for "Sweeney"?
    Andrew Hartman of MovieMusicals.net looks to have snagged quite the impressive scoop ... provided it turns out to be accurate, of course. Word is that insane filmmaker Tim... More...

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