Search - Ed Wood (Special Edition) on DVD

William W. (wdavidw) from TYLER, TX
Reviewed on 8/1/2010...

Ed Wood in recent years has gained notoriety as the worse director of all time, and to tell you the truth his films were pretty bad. This film does a good job of portraying the 50's era, and Ed Wood as a guy with high ideals and ambition, but totally misguided in how to execute them. (Granted he generally had a shoe string budget to work with.) Once you've seen this bio pic, you might want to savor some of Wood's original films just out of sheer curiousity. Check out Glen or Glenda, a story about the trials of a transvestite or the uh, classic? Plan 9 From Outer Space.

4 of 4 member(s) found this review helpful.

Vanessa V. (sevenspiders)
Reviewed on 1/28/2010...

"Ed Wood" is Tim Burton's love letter to the man no one loved. Johnny Depp as camp horror director Edward D. Wood Jr. is an underdog who lived and died an underdog, a cock-eyed optimist who was never fazed by his own failure, carrying on with blithe good humor. In that way, "Ed Wood" is a tremendously inspirational story for anyone who's ever had something fall through.

And not just an inspirational story, but a highly entertaining one. Ed Wood's Hollywood career was awash with colorful characters among them Criswell, Tor the Wrestler, Vampira and foremost- Ed Wood's muse: Bela Lugosi. Burton depicts Wood and his motley crew in the same heightened-shadows cinematic style of the old Universal horror films, making this biopic more visually interesting than most.

Ed Wood's films may be nigh unwatchable (I sat through sixty-odd minutes of Plan 9 From Outer Space just to say I had) but "Ed Wood" is charming, fresh, nostalic and honest.

5 of 5 member(s) found this review helpful.

One of the Best Films You've Probably Never Seen

Gary F. Taylor | Biloxi, MS USA | 06/08/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Ed Wood (1924-1978) is generally regarded as the single worst film maker to emerge from Hollywood. This is not really true, for there were and are aplenty worse. But one thing has always set Wood above the pack, and that was his own unshakable faith in his talent. Unfortunately, the faith was misplaced and the talent was nonexistent--and although this Tim Burton film takes a slew of liberties with the facts of Wood's life and career, it does a remarkable job of capturing them as Wood likely saw them through the filter of his own outrageous ego.The film has two tremendous assets: the performers and its visual style. Johnny Depp leads the cast in the title role, and it is a virtuoso performance, for he entices us to like a man whose self-blindness would normally lead an audience to reject him out of hand; the performance is incredibly witty, wildly over the top, and yet it contains just enough pathos to allow us to relate to Wood on a human level. But the real stunner in the cast is Martin Landau, who picked up a Best Supporting Academy Award for his performance as Bela Lugosi, a legendary actor who was very much a forgotten star (not to mention morphine addict) by the time Wood befriended him in the early 1950s.As with Wood himself, the film plays fast and loose with the facts of Lugosi's life, but it nonetheless captures something very essential about both Lugosi and the Hollywood that destroyed him, something very elemental that transcends the weird comedy of the piece. And Landau gives the performance of his career; you truly believe that this is Lugosi before you, a strange but appealing mixture of faltering humanity and arrogance desperate for an audience now lost to him. Other memorable performances include Bill Murray as the inept and very la-dee-dah actor Bunny Breckinridge; Jeffrey Jones as The Amazing Criswell, popular "psychic" and occasional Wood actor; Lisa Marie as television's "Vampira;" and Sarah Jessica Parker as Wood's fast wife and occasional actress Dolores Fuller. Indeed, there isn't a false note in the entire cast right down to the bit players and extras.In terms of visual style, Tim Burton nails the very look of an Ed Wood film in glittering black and white--but working with a budget that Wood never dreamed of he merges it with a series of classic Hollywood idioms that lift the style out of Wood's unfortunately flat style and into the realm of high art. In both look and direction, I strongly feel that this is Burton's single finest film to date.If the film has a flaw, it is that at times it recreates the flatness of an Ed Wood film a bit too precisely over too long a period--and the result can feel slightly dragged. And it is also a film that will register most clearly with those who have actually seen the films on which the movie focuses, so it may not appeal to the uninitiated. But for those who have the right eye, it is a remarkable film--and a film that desperately needs the DVD release that has been so repeatedly postponed. Wickedly funny, unexpectedly touching, extremely memorable... and strongly recommended.GFT, Amazon Reviewer"

My 200th Review!!!!

Barry | 11/24/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Well folks, I thought long and hard on what film to mark my 200th review. I thought of this one. One of my all time favorite movies. Hopefully, it will be yours as well. Director Tim Burton really outdoes himself with this brilliant film about the worst filmmaker ever. Johnny Depp plays Ed Wood, a man so in love with Hollywood and filmmaking, that he doesn't see that he has no talent for it. But, in his own mind, he thought he was really making great cinematic art. He was a cross dresser who was not gay. He had a history of wearing pink angora sweaters. He would even sometimes wear them to work!. Ed Wood's films have become famous because of their horribly incompetent filmmaking. Bad actors, cheap sets and effects, and so on. But Good old Ed, god bless his heart, thought he was making 'Gone With The Wind' every time. Martin Landau is on hand delivering a jaw droppingly brilliant performance of old horror star Bela Lugosi. His performance is incredible. One of the best performances I've ever seen. He deserved ten Oscars instead of one. Bill Murray gives one of his best performances ever as Bunny Breckinridge, an actor of Ed's looking to having a sex change. Patricia Arquette and Sarah Jessica Parker play the women in Ed's life. Landau's own daughter, Juliet Landau, has a part. Burton's girlfriend Lisa Marie plays Vampira. The film was shot in glorious black and white, and it was a brilliant move on Burton's part. It really adds to the feel of the time and the movies Ed made. Depp is great. He is definitley one of the best actors of our generation. His interpretation of Wood is upbeat and hilarious. Even in the bad times, he still shows Ed having a sunny outlook. This is one great film that did not get great box office returns. What a travesty. Some people just don't understand things. I'm telling you right now : this is a great movie to be treasured. A genuine film classic."

A Loving Tribute to Ineptitude

Ariel Escasa | the Philippines | 11/13/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Why make a movie about the man universally regarded as the worst filmmaker of all time?Well, simply because the word "worst" does not even adequately describe Ed Wood. He was the absolute, undisputable worst, unrivalled in his mindless disregard for decent production values, coherent storytelling, credible scriptwriting, and competent acting. If he were just "the worst," he would be no more than a mere footnote in cinematic history. But by single-handedly redefining the standards of ineptitude, Wood achieved that rare status of lovable loser. I mean, really, you have to admire someone who approaches his craft with so much grit and determination and so little talent. It takes an A-grade cast to bring to life this story of Z-grade moviemaking. And we have one. Johnny Depp delivers a performance of fire in the title role, giving us a lot of insight into the character that Ed Wood was. Martin Landau (in an Oscar-winning performance) doesn't just portray Bela Lugosi. By golly, he becomes Lugosi, almost convincing us that the horror movie legend was resurrected for this project. Sarah Jessica Parker, Jeffrey Jones, Bill Murray, George "The Animal" Steele, and Lisa Marie comprise the ensemble cast that portrays a motley crew of rank amateurs. Think about it, these people had to re-enact the shooting of Wood's movies, looking serious but coming out funny, and doing all that with a straight face.Try that, folks.Appreciate too, the film's most memorable line. At the premiere night of Plan 9 From Outer Space, Wood declares with unqualified conviction: "This is it. This is the one I'll be remembered for."Whether you're a fan of bad movies or not, you simply have to see Ed Wood. It's not often that a film comes along that makes you like a man who so admirably succeeded at being a failure."