No Spoilers Until The End (And they aren't even really spoilers, just a bit more in depth discussion about a couple characters)

I have to say, at first I was pretty skeptical about seeing this movie. It seemed like it would be pretty wishy-washy and not be much of a story at all. However, my brother insisted that my dad and I see it with him, so we did.

It isn't often that I actually stand by a movie as being really good, but this was one of the few that I will. It was one of the best movies I've seen in a long time.

The movie starts out as a struggle between a son and his father, whom the son does not know, because the father has only ever told his son tall tales about his life history. The whole plot of the movie is the son's quest to find out who his father really is.

I often rap on movies for having crummy plots and some might say that Big Fish has some problems problems in that area. My brother said that he was bored during the beginning of the movie. Maybe I've gained a tolerance for long presentations after sitting through so much class in college, but I wasn't really phased. I can see where my brother was coming from, though.

I actually think that the plot structure was fine. There are two plots really. The first is the son trying to discover his dad, and the second is the narrative of the dad's life as the son knows it. I stayed interested by wanting to know what was true, what wasn't , and how things might get resolved.

"They say that when you meet the love of your life time stops-- and that's true."

One review I saw essentially called Big Fish a blemish on Tim Burton's record, but I definitely disagree. If anything, I would describe the movie as a maturing Tim Burton. The use of imagery was excellent. It was artistic, fun, and meaningful all at the same time. Don't expect an Edward Scissorhands or a Nightmare Before Christmas. Expect something new and exciting.

"Most men, they'll tell you stories straight true. It won't be complicated, but it won't be interesting either."

In essence, the movie was great. I definitely want to see it again to clear up one point (see below) and because it's a great movie.

Warning, Somewhat Of A Spoiler Below

OK. The only thing I don't understand about the movie is the connection between Jennie and the witch. If I've got this straight, Ed Bloom meets the witch at a young age. Then, when he grows up Jennie lives in the old witch's house, except they are both played by Helena Bonham Carter.

So- is the witch Jennie's mom? Are they separate? There was a line in the movie about it, but I don't remember exactly what it was. PLEASE post a comment if you know because I'm stumped.