Big Fish: Big Hit

MUST-SEE: This is another film I put off seeing. Thankfully, a series of recent recommendations encouraged me to watch it this past weekend. It was fabulous. Talk about eye-candy: this film was a canvas of bright colors, illustrious texture, and people in all shapes and sizes. A traditional fantasy-film, this movie brought to mind clips of Alice in Wonderland, Gulliver's Travels, and the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Great acting done by MacGregor, Bonham-Carter, Lohman, Finney, and Lange. This film made me laugh, think, and cry. It's a mystery, a fantasy, and a family-values film all-in-one. It clinches the epitomes of each genre, and meshes them so accordingly, it deserves a category all its own. The film's trickling momentum reflects the slow realization the son comes to about the man his father was claiming to be. Although at times predictable, the unwinding is so entertaining, and touching, that although you may have expected what happens, you are delighted in seeing it enacted. For those who have seen the film, you'll agree that this mood is an intentional act of the director and writer. As the final scene is expected by our narrator, when told, as a detailed story, enriched with elements of fantasy and nostalgia, it evokes feelings that no expectation could have prepared us for. It tantalizes the eyes, comforts the heart, and pleases the mind to such an extent, I can honestly say I have never seen anything like it, and hope it holds its uniqueness in a place where an appreciation for fantasy and imagination can reign.