Big Eyes (2014)
In the late 1950s and early '60s, artist Walter Keane achieves unbelievable fame and success with portraits of saucer-eyed waifs. However, no one realizes that his wife, Margaret, is the real painter behind the brush. Although Margaret is horrified to learn that Walter is passing off her work as his own, she is too meek to protest too loudly. It isn't until the Keanes' marriage comes to an end and a lawsuit follows that the truth finally comes to light.
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The film is based on an incredible true story of Margaret Keane (Amy Adams) the creator of the Big Eyes painting phenomenon. For a decade her domineering husband Walter (Christoph Waltz) took credit for the paintings as he also had the gift of gab and can sell them. They market the paintings, posters, post cards etc. Eventually Margaret can no longer live with the lie, as this ends in a comical court room scene.In addition to being a story of the painting, it is one of the male dominated society and over coming the obedience idea in the name of honesty. This is a subdued Amy Adams and not the sexpot we saw in "American Hustle." The acting was good, but I felt the film was just short of an Oscar nod.Guide: F-bomb. No sex or nudity.
I have to say right off the top that I am no aficionado of art. I say that to make the point that there's nothing about the basic subject of the movie that leaped out at me. It was my wife who watched this and told me that because she had enjoyed it so much I had to watch it. And after checking it out I decided that since it starred Amy Adams (whom I adore!) I would watch it. And I will say that it's an interesting movie - a biopic about Margaret Keane and her efforts to gain credit for her artwork. Mind you, a lot of that was lost on me. I am so unfamiliar with the art world that I had never heard of Margaret Keane or Walter Keane or big-eyed waifs. That was all brand new to me - and, I suppose in that sense, that made the movie worthwhile (although not particularly engrossing) because I did learn something from it.Margaret Keane's life was difficult. She seems to have been a woman who lacked self-confidence. The movie opens with her leaving what must have been a troubled marriage (although nothing much is really said about it) with her young daughter in tow. There's a little bit about her attempts to make it as a single mom (in the 1950's, when that would have been very much out of the ordinary) but for the most part this deals with her relationship with Walter Keane. They meet and fall in love very quickly. Walter had been painting (maybe?) Parisian street scenes while Margaret had concentrated on her big-eyed children. They quickly fell in love and married and Walter began both showing Margaret's work - and claiming credit for it. "Keane" artwork became both popular and profitable as it started to be spun off onto posters and postcards, etc. etc., but even as the deception gave Walter and Margaret a very comfortable life, the tension between the two increased. Basically, the movie depicts Margaret's increasing resentment of Walter taking credit for her work, and Walter becoming ever more controlling and even dangerous. The movie culminates in their eventual divorce and a court trial which established her as the artist. I found this interesting as a study of Margaret's life and personality and her growing self-confidence, and it was very satisfying to see her finally revealed as the artist. The background reading I've done since suggests this portrayal (while taking a few liberties) is largely accurate. Amy Adams did a fine job in the role. Christoph Waltz was solid as Walter - sometimes fun-loving, sometimes hostile and frightening, sometimes even violent. Personally, I appreciated the look at the snobbery of the world of art critics, who are largely represented by Terence Stamp's portrayal of New York Times art critic John Canaday - who hated the big eyes. But frankly if people liked the big-eyes then who was Canaday (or any other art critic) to speak so contemptuously about them? The movie was directed by Tim Burton. There's not a lot of his classic, quirky Burton-esque style on display here - although the opening scene, which was a picture of the street Margaret lived on with her first husband, did strike me as the sort of street scene you'd find in perhaps "Edward Scissorhands."I found this movie enjoyable and interesting - but because of my lack of interest in the art world I had no strong connection with any of the characters. Had I been interested in art I would probably have rated it much higher than the 6/10 that I gave it.
A drama about the awakening of painter Margaret Keane, her phenomenal success in the 1950s, and the subsequent legal difficulties she had with her husband, who claimed credit for her works in the 1960s. As much as i love Tim Burton and his movies such as Batman, Batman Returns, Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands and many other great films but unfortunately this is one of his worst films it has zero substance and it's simply not that great nothing happens for the entire film and it was neither dramatic or funny it was just weird. I get it that Burton wanted to stay away for a bit from the whole Gothic, Dark and Moody things he usually does but he could have choose a much better film to make and the saddest part is that as far as actors go the film has many great of them such as Amy Adams, Danny Huston, Krysten Ritter, Christoph Waltz and Terence Stamp and yet it ends up being a disappointing film that wanted to be something different but ended up being boring and just uninteresting.
Tim Burton's work usually sparks a divisive feeling amongst fans, but it's not often I feel so torn about one of his films. On one hand it's an extraordinary story which I'm glad was told on the big screen, but I don't know that Burton was the right man for the job.Margaret Keane is truly one of the most treasured artists of the last century. Her work with the 'Big Eyes' paintings are immensely popular, but it wasn't always her who took the credit. Her husband, Walter Keane, played by Christoph Waltz, claimed to be the artist behind the big eyes for a decade. This secret damaged Margaret's relationship with her daughter and her friends, and it's the basis for Burton's colorful film.The problem is that this film is trying to literally and metaphorically paint too many pictures. The tone is all over the place. It's a biographical film by nature, a comedy or musical according the golden globes, and even a horror film in one stupendously ridiculous scene. Okay, the last two are a far reach for several reasons, but Burton never really manages to nail down exactly how he wishes to tell the story. And that's unfortunate, because it's a fascinating one.With that said, Amy Adams is one of the few bright spots here. Not like that's surprisingly, considering she's been nominated for an Oscar 5 times, but it's worth mentioning. As she has done so many times, balancing strength and vulnerability is one of her finest attributes as an actress, and that's on display here. She's just so dang likable.Perhaps, that's also because Waltz is so far out of place here. It honestly feels like Burton asked him to bring his brilliant portrayal of Hans Landa into a PG-13 biographical drama. I don't know Walter Keane in real life, but I do know when an actor is acting in a completely different movie than the rest of his fellow actors. Whether it was Burton or Waltz's fault, the performance wasn't anything to ride home about.It's unfortunate just how awkward and tonally inconsistent Big Eyes feels, Margaret Keane and her work deserves a better film than this. I'm a huge fan of Burton's work, but this just wasn't the right project for him.+Amy Adams-Tonally all over the place-Waltz is out of control-Does disservice to an incredible story4.8/10