Review: Big Eyes a Tim Burton story of an art that refuses to imitate life

REVIEW: With Big Eyes, the oddly tragi-comic life story of kitsch artist Margaret Keane is perfect cinematic fodder for famously eccentric director Tim Burton.

Big Eyes (M)

Director: Tim Burton (Dark Shadows)

Starring: Amy Adams, Christoph Waltz, Krysten Ritter, Jason Schwartzman, Terence Stamp.

Rating :**1/2

The biggest part of the picture kept out of frame

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The art of Margaret Keane could never be accused of imitating life.

Her signature style — morosely cloying portraits of small children about to weep with eyes triple their usual size — became a kitsch sensation in the 1960s.

Keane’s paintings, posters and many merchandising spin-offs became a multi-million dollar business, grossing more than her nearest pop-art rival Andy Warhol in his prime.

The oddly fascinating life story of Margaret Keane is equally unworldly, and the famously eccentric director Tim Burton is just the right person to be telling it.

The film commences with Margaret (subtly, yet strongly played by Amy Adams) fleeing her first marriage, and rushing headlong into a second.

Commercial sensation ... Amy Adams as artist Margaret Keane, whose husband took credit for her work.

New husband Walter (another winning display from the great Christoph Waltz) is a real estate salesman who prefers to be known as a professional artist of some repute.

While Margaret can sense something is a little off about Walter, she does appreciate the relentless encouragement he offers while she pursues her own career as a painter.

So when Walter begins hawking her unusual portraits around town, Margaret is all too happy to be making a sale or two.

However, unbeknown to Margaret, her “big eyes” output is rapidly becoming a commercial sensation.

Marriage from hell ... Amy Adams and Christoph Waltz in Big Eyes.

While she can see the money flooding in, Margaret does not realise until too late that the shamelessly self-promoting Walter has been passing himself off as the artist responsible for these unique works.

To make matters even worse, Walter has spun such a complex web of lies that a naive Margaret believes she has option but to play along with the fraud.

Soon enough Margaret becomes a prisoner in her own home studio, mass-producing her macabre masterpieces around the clock to meet an ever-increasing demand.

The bizarre dysfunction afoot in the Keanes’ marriage brings the best out of Burton as a filmmaker, who has proven in the past with Ed Wood that he knows how to make sense of a true story that defies all conventional belief.

*** for more reviews, news and updates, follow Leigh Paatsch on Twitter at @leighpaatsch and on Instagram at leighpaatsch ***

Originally published as Review: Big Eyes a Tim Burton story of an art that refuses to imitate life