Tim Burton is the distinctive director of heavily art-directed films like Edward Scissorhands, Alice in Wonderland, and Sweeney Todd, but sometimes (Mars Attacks!, Corpse Bride) his kinetic/frenetic style can overwhelm substance. However, here he’s collaborated again with the writing team (Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski) responsible for Ed Wood, one of his best films. Both of them are about real people whose careers began in the 1950s, though Margaret Keane (Amy Adams), unlike Wood, is one of Burton’s most conventional lead characters. Only her paintings, and her story, were unconventional.
A divorcée struggling to make a living in beatnik-era San Francisco, Margaret met Walter Keane (Christoph Waltz), also an aspiring artist, and within a few years her paintings, most featuring children with oversized eyes, were widely seen and bringing in thousands of dollars. Only everyone thought that Walter painted them. His eventual unmasking is both funny and cathartic, making a satisfying ending that happens to also be a true story.
IMDb link
viewed 1/7/15 7:30 pm at Ritz 5 and posted 1/8/15
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