Ed Wood
1994
*****
Director: Tim Burton
Cast: Johnny Depp, Martin Landau, Sarah Jessica Parker, Bill Murray, Jeffrey Jones, G.D. Spradlin, Vincent D'Onofrio, Lisa Marie, Patricia Arquette
An absolutely charming and consistently funny black and white comedy about Ed Wood, the most misunderstood director in the history of cinema. Johnny Depp is delightfully exuberant in the title role, but he's upstaged by Martin Landau, whose Oscar winning performance as Bela Lugosi is simultaneously hilarious and heartbreaking. The script by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, which is based on Rudolph Grey's book Nightmare of Ecstacy, laughs with rather than at Ed Wood. Tim Burton's finest film obviously looks great, as well.
