Big Eyes Review

RYAN: Big Eyes – It’s Tim Burton and Amy Adams.  That’s kind of all you need to know.

CAROLINE: (laughs) And two-time Oscar winner Christoph Waltz… you may have heard of him.

RYAN: Ha. Yes.  It’s a dream team, isn’t it?  I liked this movie.  It’s really a different vibe for Burton.  It’s not a fantasy film like much of his work.  But there is a very present Burton aesthetic; lots of candy colors and pale skin.

CAROLINE: He really does have his trademarks.

RYAN: And Danny Elfman reteams with him for the score which also brings a whimsicality to it.  But the story is all drama and true life at that.  This is the story of the Keanes, Walter and Margaret, husband and wife, con artist and real artist.  She’s had a style all her own, the big eye prints.  But she was a passive personality and he totally took all the credit for her work.  He stole the credit until she finally took her mojo back.

CAROLINE: It’s really an unusual story.  Their relationship and marriage was really whack.

RYAN: It’s a very different kind of manipulation, control, abuse.  It really was a horribly emotionally abusive marriage.  I think that’s mainly what this is about.  And it has a great ending.

CAROLINE: How are the performances?

RYAN: Amy is terrific.  I love her so much and this is another great role for her.  They’re both nominated for the Golden Globe for this film.  She deserves the nomination.

CAROLINE: And he doesn’t?

RYAN: No.  I mean, look, I like him very much.  He’s a fantastic actor.  He’s Austrian and Walter Keane was American.  He doesn’t do a flawless Amer’accent and that bothered me the whole time.  He’s won the Oscar twice.  Could they not get him a dialect coach?  And if they did, what went wrong?  He doesn’t sound American in this film.

CAROLINE: That is unacceptable.

RYAN: But Amy is so good.  She plays that whole “emotions boiling just under the surface of the skin thing” to perfection.  Christoph is always playing an evil guy.  He is great at playing the villain, the sleaze ball, we have to give him that.  But because of that, it was hard for me to view him as romantic earlier on in the film, before you realize what a hack he is.

CAROLINE: I must admit, I’m intrigued by this.  We interviewed Amy together once and she is just adorable.

RYAN: She has such expressive eyes. Tim took full advantage of that and for this title, obviously, it’s a thing.  Margaret’s story many not be as heroic as other biopics opening now, but it does she does grow and harness her voice and that’s inspiring.  It’s a good movie.

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