Morrell - Imagination and Life Purpose in Big Fish

Like many of Tim Burton's films Big Fish sheds light on the strange, dark, and even grotesque while maintaining some sort of innocence or fantastical aspect. What sets Big Fish apart from his other work, however, is the fact that it also serves as an intimate biographical reflection of Burton's own life. In dealing with the recent passing of his father and anticipation of a baby on the way with partner Helena Bonham Carter, it is evident that these occurrences in Burton's life are also evidently present within the film.

Interestingly enough, the main character in Big Fish is not the introvert as has been the case in Burton's other works such as Edward Scissorhands, Sleepy Hollow, and Ed Wood. Edward Bloom is truly a larger than life character. As seen in the film, he begins to grow at such a fast pace during church one day that his shoes rip and buttons begin to pop off of his shirt. The following scene shows him hooked up to an eccentric machine  to supposedly regulate his exponential body growth. What Burton is really saying in this scene is that Edward has so much great potential within him that cannot be contained in his small, conforming town. What's more than his potential, however, is his sense of imagination that can so easily turn a dim situation into a brighter one which explains why he is so drawn to these strange characters in the film like the circus werewolf, the giant, the strange poet, and the Siamese twins. Edward sees these people for who they are and beyond to enrich his own perspective of the world as well as others'.

When Edward saves his town from the giant by simply going and talking to him like a real person instead of a beast that the rest of the town portrayed him as, it truly epitomizes why outcasts are drawn to Edward. Another example of this appears in the scene where Edward is attacked by Amos Calloway in his wolf form. Rather than fighting the beast, he simply throws a stick and the wolf runs to catch it. This demonstrates Edward's simple, optimistic view of the life that exists all around him. He appreciates the eccentric, strange, and offbeat, very similar to Ed Wood's own appreciation for these qualities in people.