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| Edward Bloom |
I
particularly enjoyed the juxtaposition between the sunny Edward Bloom and the
somewhat darker character inhabiting Big
Fish. The commonalities that the characters Edward Bloom ran into was that
they were all rather misunderstood. Most people run away in disgust or ignorant
fear; however, Bloom is not afraid (after all he knows how he is going to die)
and takes the time to get to know the darker creatures. For example, the young
boys run from the scary looking witch but Bloom stays and talks to her. Another
example would be the giant who seems frightening at first but is simply a kind
and misunderstood creature. Edward Bloom is such a sunny character because of
his wide-eyed optimism towards life and people. He says during the werewolf
scene that, “most things that you consider evil or wicked are simply lonely”
(1:06:45). This understanding for outcasts and those who are misunderstood
merges any creature with Bloom despite any personality differences. Edward
himself likes them because they are so much greater than life, like him. He
also has a compassionate heart that enjoys helping those in need. Bloom
displays this by helping the giant find a home and saving Spectre free of
charge.
However, a good heart is not enough
to link together Bloom with such dark creatures. Another important factor is
Edward Bloom’s grander-than-life personality. One would expect no ordinary
creature in his fantasies. This personality matches directly with Burton’s
real-life father who Burton has said was, “a real fairy-tale character.”
Although Bloom is an average man, he was a great fairy-tale character through
his fantasies and in his mind’s eye. I think that Burton took on Big Fish as a sort of homage to his
father. Burton always loves tying in his personal life and emotions into his
work, which I think can clearly be seen by the final mutual understanding
between father and son. Perhaps Burton wished that he had the opportunity to
reach this mutual understanding with his own father before he passed. Burton’s
love for his father combined with his admiration for the strange and unusual, like
Edward Bloom’s fantasies, can be seen through his work in the heart-wrenching
film Big Fish.
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| Tim Burton Quote on Big Fish |
Burton usually likes to depict inner struggle that rises from the light and shadow that coexists within a single character, such as Batman, Catwoman, Edward, Penguin and so on. Big Fish is very different and interesting as we see less of such duality, with each of the characters being less self-conflicting and more biased to the either side of “personality spectrum”. Most of the characters don’t go through any major inner conflicts, as Big Fish is focused on depicting how the sunny personality of Edward Bloom positively affects shady characters such as the Giant and Jennifer Hill. However, Burton’s message is just as strong as that of other movies’. While generally happy and delightful, the story still is about outsiders, and Burton is stating the simple fact that all outsiders need is a little care and understanding, which is the grand underlying message behind a lot of Burton’s works.
ReplyDeleteJae Yun Choi
Leanne,
DeleteYou mentioned that Edward is not afraid to interact with the grotesque characters because he knows that, in the worst of circumstances, they are not going to kill him. I forgot to mention this in my blog, but I think it is a very important aspect of Edward’s approach to the characters he encounters on the road. However, as you also said, Edward has a compassionate heart and is aware that these scary looking characters are outsiders who are often misunderstood by others. Therefore he deals with them by trying to understand their life situation, and by relating his own life to them. The grotesque characters feel comfortable with Edward because he lets them in, and allows them to be open and share their intimacy; consequently, creating a friendship. This ability to communicate with the “different” ones is part of Edward’s sunny character, which can harmoniously interact with any kind of person. Furthermore, you mentioned something else about these connections: “Edward himself likes them [the grotesque characters] because they are so much greater than life, like him.” I think the “grandness” of Edward and of the “darker” characters is essential to the friendships they create. It is because these characters are so rare and intricate that their perspective in life is completely different from that of ordinary persons. This makes them so interesting and “bigger than life,” and relatable to Edward who is a free spirited guy not bounded to earth.