Big Fish

2003 Drama

Tim Burton directs the fantasy drama Big Fish, based on the book Big Fish: A Novel of Mythic Proportions by Southern writer/illustrator Daniel Wallace. Billy Crudup plays William Bloom, a young man who never really knew his dying father, Edward (Albert Finney) outside of the tall tales he told about growing up, making his way, and meeting his mother (played as a young woman by Alison Lohman and in older age by Jessica Lange). During Edward's last days, William and his wife Josephine (Marion Cotillard) hold bedside vigil as the old man recollects elaborate memories of his youth (in which he is played by Ewan McGregor). Still doubting the the legends and folklore, William makes a journey to meet a mysterious woman (Helena Bonham Carter) from whom Edward had bought property. Steve Buscemi and Danny De Vito also star.

Director: Tim Burton

Starring: Ewan McGregor,Albert Finney, Billy Crudup, Jessica Lange, Alison Lohman

Reviews

  • Director Tim Burton finally hooks the one that got away: a script that challenges and deepens his visionary talent.

    Peter Travers - Rolling Stone

    29 November 2012

  • Has enough tasty bait to satisfy an array of moviegoers: Burton fans, Albert Finney fans, fans of tall tales well spun by experts and fans of movies that don't look like any other.

    Mike Clark - USA Today

    29 November 2012

  • The movie is a gently overstuffed cinematic piñata, crammed with tall tales -- with giants and circuses and fairy-tale woods, plus a huge squirmy catfish, all served up with a literal matter-of-fact fancy that is very pleasing.

    Owen Gleiberman - Entertainment Weekly

    29 November 2012

  • There's delight to be had from watching Burton conjure up one fantastical Edward-inspired scenario after another.

    Manohla Dargis - Los Angeles Times

    29 November 2012

  • Big Fish of course is a great-looking film, with a fantastical visual style that could be called Felliniesque if Burton had not by now earned the right to the adjective Burtonesque.

    Roger Ebert - The Chicago Sun-Times

    29 November 2012

Awards

  • Best Music, Original Score

    Academy Awards (2004)

     
  • Best Actor

    Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films (2004)

     
  • Best Foreign Film, Not in the Spanish Language (Mejor Película Extranjera en Idioma no Español)

    Argentinean Film Critics Association Awards (2005)

     
  • Best Achievement in Special Visual Effects

    BAFTA Awards (2004)

     
  • Best Composer

    Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards (2004)