2014   The Weinstein Company

Rated:  PG-13

Length:  1 hr  46min

True Story ~ Drama

Directed by: Tim Burton

Starring:  Amy Adams, Christoph Waltz, Danny Huston and Terence Stamp.

Big Eyes, big Lies…..She created it….. He sold it….. And everyone bought it.

Big Eyes tells the true life story of Margaret and Walter Keane as seen through the eyes of Reporter Dick Nolan(Danny Huston). The film begins with Dick Nolan narrating, “It’s the strangest goddamn story I ever covered. It started the day that Margaret Ulbrich walked out on her suffocating husband and went to San Francisco, long before it became the fashionable thing to do. Back then, women didn’t leave. Not without a job or prospects. All she had was her daughter and her paintings with the big-eyes in the back seat.”

Margaret Ulbrich(Amy Adams) is drawing portraits at an art fair and meets artist Walter Keane(Christoph Waltz). Recently separated a romance quickly blossoms between the two. And when Margaret’s ex-husband threatens to take away her daughter with court action Walter quickly proposes and she becomes Mrs. Margaret Keane.

Walter starts selling her big-eyed portraits alongside his Paris street scene paintings. Soon her big-eyed portraits start selling and gain popularity. Walter jumps on the opportunity for all it’s worth and for two years keeps Margret at home painting while he is out promoting and selling the paintings as his own. When she finds out she is obviously upset at the scam he has placed her in. But under his domineering ways and fear of retribution, she plays along continuously painting the big-eyed portraits.

As time goes by Walter gets more abusive and the lie gets deeper. She gets more and more frustrated until she finally leaves with her daughter. Eventually she gets the courage to expose the scam and Walter’s big lie. “I am Margaret Keane and I painted the Big Eyes Paintings, every single one. Walter is a fraud.” They end up in court and finally after much hoopla the judge proclaims, “Enough is enough. The only way to determine which one of you painted those pictures is to place an easel and supplies in front of both of you and see which one can paint the Big Eyes paintings. Walter complains of an old shoulder injury while Margaret paints another of her Big Eyes paintings. The judge promptly rules in Margaret’s favor and she wins a 17 million dollar lawsuit against Walter.

I love true story movies and Amy Adams is one of my favorites. I am always surprised at how badly we as a species treat each other with little to no regard for another’s well being. How Walter manipulated Margaret into a prison sentence of painting her own portraits, locked up in a secret room while claiming all the credit as an artist, was despicable. In the end she came out on top and exposed the lie Walter had forced her to live. I love it when the underdog wins!

Margaret Keane has a cameo in the movie about the 13:39 second mark, sitting on the bench behind Amy Adams as they are painting by the lake in the park.

Excellent job by Tim Burton, Amy Adams and Christoph Waltz in bringing this crazy incredibly true story to life on the big screen. Well Done.

Highly  recommended.

Two Thumbs up!