Tim Burton
Ed Wood

It is love for the seventh art, Tim Burton's love, and this is evident in many of his works. The great visual impact that his films possess stems from the attempt to recreate those worlds present in the director's mind; visibly "fake", extremely fantastical and dark, and often populated by nightmares, but they fascinate and captivate more than any modern fantasy scenario. Tim Burton is first and foremost a storyteller; from his first feature film, "Pee-Wee's Big Adventure", it was clear he had stories to tell; peculiar, whimsical, original ones, and more, but it was his way of telling them that sparked interest in Hollywood. And one can say they were not wrong because Timothy William Burton regularly enlightens us with always visionary modern fairy tales, and excluding the last two works, directly birthed from his genius mind.

We are in '94, Warner had already taken the "Batman" project away from him after the first two episodes because they were considered too dark and scary for the younger audience (they should make their minds up), so the good old Tim directs a film, if one can say "independent", and detached from Hollywood standards, but perhaps it represents him best. It is about the adaptation of the biography of Edward D. Wood Jr. (who??) considered the worst director in history (because Michael Bay wasn't born yet). From the premise, it doesn't seem like the classic Burton and indeed: are you familiar with the surreal and somewhat gothic atmospheres of his previous films?

Forget them, here it starts with an unexpected black and white that takes us directly to the 50s with an excellent reconstruction of Hollywood of that era, populated by shady and strange characters, the lights and shadows hark back to those years, to those hopes of glory and success. Nevertheless, right from the opening credits, in honor of B-movies, you can tell whose film we are about to see. Burton shows us the story through the dreaming eyes of that misunderstood "genius" Ed Wood, played by his favorite actor Johnny Depp, who delivers a noteworthy performance. Burton retraces the most important phases of the unfortunate director's life, from the struggles of his most "famous" films ("Glen Or Glenda", "Bride Of The Monster", and "Plan 9 From Outer Space") to his equally troubled romantic relationships, his vices (like dressing as a woman), but above all, the sincere friendship between Edward and the horror star Bela Lugosi (magnificently portrayed by Martin Landau deservedly awarded with an Oscar). The identification with the protagonist is total; you almost suffer for his failures because the poor guy may not be talented, but he puts his heart and all possible passion into what he does. Lugosi's character is equally important, and like poor Ed, he inspires a certain tenderness because he is a star now faded, enslaved by drugs, and living in a dingy small house, alone and forgotten by the world. The friendship between the two is founded on mutual respect (it is said that Tim Burton drew inspiration from the esteem he had for Vincent Price, another "immortal" horror star), a sincere friendship that is at the base of the film. The goal of turning a failure like Mr. Wood into a myth was successful, but Burton went against the tide; he did not aim (as many would have) to pointlessly celebrate a talentless man, but made of him a poet, and perhaps if it weren't for Burton's film, many (myself included) wouldn't even know the mythical Edward Wood. The one who, even when luck was against him in the most unlikely ways, kept making films, without wasting a single take, creating films on a shoestring budget that will drive B-movie (in this case Z) and accidental comedy fans crazy (memorable the octopus scene), the one who even got baptized to receive funds from the church, the one who bet on Bela Lugosi, already on the decline, the one who always believed in cinema even when fans disappointed by his films attacked him. Ed Wood thus appears to us as a man without talent but rich in values, perhaps a dreamer out of time, with eyes always shining with wonder, like a child. A dreamer like Burton who with this "Ed Wood" makes a film about cinema, the real one, and its ability to make people dream, to move, and to evoke emotions.

But Ed Wood is not only an act of love towards cinema, the real one, Ed Wood is cinema and also... poetry.