Monday 4 October 2010

Ed Wood review





We sat down to watch our weekly film with Alan on a Tuesday, not too sure what to expect but what manifested infront of us was the wonderful world of a man named Ed Wood.

Directed by the slightly insane, yet amazing creative genius Tim Burton, this film embarks on the ups and downs of Ed Woods career in film. The first thing I noticed about this film was it was entirely in black and white, a contrast to the film used in Ed's period of cinema. It also suggests the lack of interest in trying to make money off of the man, being somewhat more of a tribute to Ed Wood. I guess Tim Burton has somewhat of an admiration for Ed's strange behaviour and film making, due to his own stylistic choices.

I see this man far too much and hear his name far too much... Johnny Depp. That being said, however, he does a brilliant job at playing the somewhat quirky roles that Burton offers him. I wont deny it, hes a very talented actor. Somehow catching glimpses of Depps usual mannerisms, yet amazingly becoming lost into the character. He is a man of many faces!

It's quite a humorous film, as Ed's inabilities to do his job properly are put on display. It comes to us that Ed was a movie maker of budget, always being careful with how much he spent on a film and using every resource he could. With Martin Landau playing the late Bela Lugosi splashing around in a dirty river wrestling a prop in the form of an Octopus we see Ed's failures come to life. It's kind of awkward to know that you're laughing at him and not with him.

I feel sorry for Ed, as he seems to cling onto his Gold, Bela Lugosi (Dracula 1931). The amount of times Ed would proudly announce Bela's name in this film is enough to drive you insane if you notice he's doing it. Then your reminded of just how much this man meant to Ed, how he was an inspiration and a key to his much wanted success.

Ed Wood may not be remembered in the way he would've liked but he definitely made an impression on the history of film making. This light hearted look on his life shows how he is his own success in being bad at his art, however the fighting spirit he shows in this film makes him beloved by many around the world. In a sense, Ed Wood always tried to achieve a masterpiece, or a great film. If this film has anything to go by, what he didn't realise was, he was writing it all along.

Chris

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