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Movies / On DVD / Ed Wood
Ed Wood

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Ed Wood (1994)

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Reviews Counted:11

Fresh:8

Rotten:3

Average Rating:6.9/10

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 - 11 (sorted by date)
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    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
    Todd McCarthy
    Variety
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Mr. Depp isn't best known as a comic actor, but he gives a witty and captivating performance, bringing wonderful buoyancy to this crazy role.

    Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
    05/20/03
    Janet Maslin
    Janet Maslin
    New York Times
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Outrageously disjointed and just as outrageously entertaining, the picture stands as a successful outsider's tribute to a failed kindred spirit.

    Full Review Source: Rolling Stone | comment Comment
    05/12/01
    Peter Travers
    Peter Travers
    Rolling Stone
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Burton has evoked the surface of Ed Wood’s life, but in a story about a man who loves angora and frilly panties, he has barely unbuttoned Wood's uniform.

    Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
    01/01/00
    Desson Thomson
    Desson Thomson
    Washington Post
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    An entertaining, oddly affectionate look at the cross-dressing grade-Z moviemaker.

    Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
    01/01/00
    Edward Guthmann
    Edward Guthmann
    San Francisco Chronicle
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Making a movie about the life of Ed Wood certainly qualifies as an impossible dream, but Burton has pulled it off with wit, imagination and something amazingly close to grace.

    Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
    01/01/00
    Hal Hinson
    Hal Hinson
    Washington Post
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Given the finished film, one also has to wonder if Ed Wood was interesting enough to base a two- hour movie on.

    Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment 2 Comments
    01/01/00
    James Berardinelli
    James Berardinelli
    ReelViews
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    In his finest, funniest, most poignant film to date, Tim Burton plays cinematic alchemist, turning drive-in schlock into movie gold.

    comment Comment
    01/01/00
    John Hartl
    John Hartl
    Film.com
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    [An] oddly affectionate bio-pic.

    comment Comment
    01/01/00
    Lucy Mohl
    Lucy Mohl
    Film.com
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    This Ed Wood is dead wood.

    Full Review Source: TIME Magazine | comment 3 Comments
    01/01/00
    Richard Corliss
    Richard Corliss
    TIME Magazine
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    The movie's black and white photography convincingly recaptures the look and feel of 1950s sleaze, including some of the least convincing special effects in movie history.

    Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
    01/01/00
    Roger Ebert
    Roger Ebert
    Chicago Sun-Times
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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...

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