Big Fish (2003)

Veteran's Day just passed and as I do on every Veteran's Day, I think a lot about my father and how he fought in Vietnam. Of course that leads me to think of how different he and I are and that leads me to think about Big Fish. Then that leads me to think about Yellowcard (for a good reason!). They have a song on their Lights And Sounds album called "How I Go" and it's inspired by this movie! Anyway Big Fish, (for anyone unfamiliar with this film) was directed by Tim Burton (which kind of shocked me). It's a movie essentially about the relationship between a father and a son. The story focuses on Edward Bloom (played by Albert Finney and Ewan McGregor), a man who takes pleasure in telling stories about things that have happened to him. A lot of these stories tend to be really abstract in nature and completely devoid of any logic or realism which is in fact the beauty of his stories. Although the stories are a major part of the film, the actual plot revolves around Edward's son William (Billy Crudup) and his coming to terms with the relationship he has with his father. Specifically, he wishes to fully understand his father and his desire to tell such exaggerated tales about his life. As the audience, you experience William's frustration with his father, while at the same time, seeing just how imaginative and beautiful the stories Edward tells. In Big Fish, a father and a son who don't really understand each other finally become close. 

The stories themselves are what make this movie stand out to me. For a Tim Burton movie, this movie is actually anything but dark. Its colorful, imaginative, beautiful and surreal. I have two favorite umm, let's call 'em "story moments" in this movie. One of them is where Edward recalls the day he proposed to his wife. He filled a field with her favorite flowers. I'm not sure why but the way that field looked with all those daffodils, it just...I dunno, it made something warm up inside of me. The other "story moment" I loved was when Edward was driving a car and suddenly was underwater. The water looked so beautiful and serene. I really felt like I was with Edward as he went through that experience.


It's kind of funny to me when I think about how long it took me to actually watch this movie. I've had it for many years now. Hell, I'd go so far as to say I've had it since 2003 and didn't actually watch it until 2011. I'm not quite sure why I kept putting it off. But I'm glad I did. This movie will warm your soul and make you want to actually get close to your father. I related to it right away because like William, I sometimes feel like I don't know my father at all. Thanks to this movie, I find myself making more of an effort to know him better. The funny thing is that although my father and I are nearly total opposites in some ways, I've learned that he and I are much more similar than I had previously thought. If seeing this movie once made me want to do this, then I think it's safe to say that it's an amazing film.

OH I nearly forgot to talk about the actors. Ewan McGregor is in this as the younger Edward Bloom. I found his performance to be quite entertaining. He knows how to get into his character and really play him well. Now that isn't to say that no one else did a good job because believe me, all the acting was superb. But Ewan's just stands out to me. He has such an energy in this movie. I'll end this review by summing it all up. Big Fish is an imaginative, unique, kindhearted, and beautiful movie. There really is nothing else like it around, even 8 years later. Plus as an added bonus it's probably the only movie I can think of with Danny DeVito's butt (Oh did I not mention he's in this movie too?? Well now you know!). So I would think that should give you an incentive to watch it if you haven't already. Well that's all I can think of for Big Fish. I hope my review was entertaining or helpful and I wish you a great day!