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Movies / On DVD / Big Fish
Big Fish

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Big Fish (2003)

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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 [See Full Rating] for a fight scene, some images of nudity and a suggestive reference

Runtime: 2 hrs 5 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:23-01-2004

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

[See More Credits]

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Reviews for Big Fish

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81 - 100 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 >> >|
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Big Fish is simply a magical catch.

Full Review Source: Sun Newspapers of Cleveland | comment Comment
01/09/04
Gerry Shamray
Gerry Shamray
Sun Newspapers of Cleveland

A well-meaning, visually boisterous film that tries so hard you can practically hear it huffing and puffing.

Full Review Source: Fresno Bee | comment Comment
01/09/04
Donald Munro
Donald Munro
Fresno Bee

The annoying question becomes, 'Why isn't this working better?'

Full Review Source: Salt Lake Tribune | comment Comment
01/09/04
Sean Means
Sean Means
Salt Lake Tribune

Few filmmakers know more about exaggeration than Tim Burton.

Full Review Source: Lawrence Journal-World | comment Comment
01/09/04
Jon Niccum
Jon Niccum
Lawrence Journal-World

A perfect marriage of story and director, Tim Burton has achieved maturity as a filmmaker while keeping his ability to tell a larger-than-life story.

Full Review Source: Des Moines Register | comment Comment
01/09/04
Jeffrey Bruner
Jeffrey Bruner
Des Moines Register

The stories are gloriously soaked in Americana and, as always in Burton films, are visually lush and immaculately detailed.

Full Review Source: Arizona Daily Star | comment Comment
01/09/04
Phil Villarreal
Phil Villarreal
Arizona Daily Star
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: PopMatters | comment Comment
01/09/04
Jesse Hassenger
Jesse Hassenger
PopMatters

[I]t is a movie so desperate for your approval that it’s less like a fish than a yapping puppy that keeps soiling the rug.

Full Review Source: Worcester Telegram & Gazette | comment Comment
01/09/04
Daniel M. Kimmel
Daniel M. Kimmel
Worcester Telegram & Gazette

Celebrates the whimsical spirit and imagination of a man whose only mode of relating to other people seems to be as props in the mythic narrative of his life.

Full Review Source: Decent Films Guide | comment Comment
01/09/04
Steven D. Greydanus
Steven D. Greydanus
Decent Films Guide

You probably have to be stubborn and pragmatic to resist the film's quixotic appeals, but I'm in Crudup's camp. Better to imagine a giant than to meet one.

Full Review Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | comment Comment
01/08/04
Duane Dudek
Duane Dudek
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

A compelling look at the relationships between fathers and sons, and the child coming to terms with the parent's mortality.

Full Review Source: CNN.com | comment Comment
01/08/04
Paul Clinton (CNN.com)
Paul Clinton (CNN.com)
CNN.com
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Un film fort sympathique mais un peu inégal.

Full Review Source: EnPrimeur.ca | comment Comment
01/08/04
Nicolas Lacroix
Nicolas Lacroix
EnPrimeur.ca

Big Fish moves you in inexplicable, joyful ways. It’s a beauty of a whopper.

Full Review Source: Metro Weekly (Washington, DC) | comment Comment
01/08/04
Randy Shulman
Randy Shulman
Metro Weekly (Washington, DC)

A splendid reminder that Burton is quite possibly the most talented American filmmaker working today.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment Comment
01/07/04
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

For all its surface eccentricities, this turns out to be one of Burton's most conventional works.

Full Review Source: Creative Loafing | comment Comment
01/07/04
Matt Brunson
Matt Brunson
Creative Loafing

Big Fish is a three-ring circus of sometimes outlandish situations and characters, yet Burton makes it all seem so plausible . . . that some part of you aches to accept.

Full Review Source: Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN) | comment Comment
01/07/04
Bob Bloom
Bob Bloom
Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN)

The tale it tells may be the tallest to hit screens in some time but there's no shortage of human truth in it.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
01/06/04
Rick Kisonak
Rick Kisonak
Film Threat

Tim Burton's Big Adventure into resolving his family conflicts and defending his filmmaking. A director's statement has never been so entertaining.

Full Review Source: Film Snobs | comment Comment
01/06/04
Jimmy O
Jimmy O
Film Snobs

[T]he film you feel [Burton’s] been leading up to all this time, both more and less metaphoric [than] his standard ‘agony of the outsider’ theme...

Full Review Source: Flick Filosopher | comment Comment
01/05/04
MaryAnn Johanson
MaryAnn Johanson
Flick Filosopher

Unfailingly charming and flat-out interesting: You keep watching not just because of the many likable characters, but because you're dying to know what will happen next.

Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com | comment Comment
01/03/04
Eric D. Snider
Eric D. Snider
EricDSnider.com
 
 
81 - 100 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 >> >|
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Latest News for Big Fish

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