Review of Ed Wood (1994)

This biopic on "the worst director of all time" Ed Wood Jnr is utterly brilliant from start to finish. From its exhilarating beginning, helped by Howard Shore's brilliant score and Jeffrey Jones's delightful turn as Criswell, it completely gripped me. For me it isn't only one of Burton's better movies, but also one of the better movies of 1994. Tim Burton's works are admittedly strange and offbeat, and while people mayn't like that, I do. And that is why I loved this film, it was funny, it was touching, it was strange(well sort of) and it was offbeat. It is gorgeously shot, with black and white photography that is really a marvel to the eyes, and Burton lovingly directs. The script is funny and poignant, and the restoration of Wood's productions are astonishing. It was even nice to see Plan 9 From Outer Space, I know that critics cite it as the worst movie ever made, but there are other people who consider it as a "so bad it's good" movie, the way I have heard people talk about the film, whether they love or hate it, is quite fascinating. And the performances are brilliant; Johnny Depp is amazing as Ed Wood, portraying him as an optimist and an "anguished cross-dresser", and Martin Landau is absolutely superb as Bela Lugosi. Sarah Jessica Parker and Patricia Arquette are alluring and convincing as Delores and Kathy, and as Bunny Bill Murray does well even if Bunny could've been developed a little more. Overall, gripping, funny, touching and brilliant. 10/10 Bethany Cox