Margaret leaves her husband and moves to San Francisco with her daughter, where she meets and marries artist Walter Keane. When Margaret's stylised paintings of (mostly) children with enormous eyes start to find a market (unlike Walter's Parisian street scenes), Walter markets them under his own name on the grounds that no-one is interested in paintings by women. Margaret finally leaves the controlling Walter, but ends up fighting him in court to establish the true artistic authorship of the Big Eyes/Waif paintings.Tim Burton directs Amy Adams and Christoph Waltz in this dramatization of a true story. It is a period piece, set mostly in late 50s/early 60s San Francisco, and is rather odd in terms of mood. Waltz plays Keane in a kind of constant manic good humour, in a slightly over the top comedic way. Adams, on the other hand, downplays the put-upon Margaret. The contrast between Keane who, despite the fact that we can always see him as a conman, is likeable and engaging, and his relationship with Margaret, which is essentially abusive, makes the film feel somewhat uneasy. I was very unsure about how I felt about the film at the end.The period feel is captured well and, as one would expect with Burton, it is bright, colourful and eyecatching. I was delighted to recognise the location where I watched a street scene being filmed, even though that scene wasn't in the film.

I recently watched Ed Wood which is a biopic Tim Burton did 20 years prior to this. It's almost astounding how different they are. In Big Eyes the characters are charmless, the story is bland and even the overall look of the movie has no discernible qualities.Amy Adams and Christoph Waltz are fine but they certainly don't elevate any of this decidedly mediocre material. Everyone appears to be coasting through this movie. The director, the cinematographer and the supporting cast are doing no more than getting the job done.I think it did a good job of portraying that style of art becoming popular and the overall cheapening of what she was creating. But it never wants to present her as a real artist. It more treats it like a parlour trick.It's difficult to map the exact movie where Tim Burton became mediocre but this one is a great example of why I don't usually don't make a point to watch his films anymore. They don't feel like his movies anymore right down to the stories and the set design.Re-watch Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood or even Sleepy Hollow before you consider bothering with this.

I've said time and again that Tim Burton's dark quirkiness can be quite grating. But never has he made a movie so sorely missing it than Big Eyes. If you've seen any kind of biopic, you've already seen Big Eyes. Anyone could've made this film. If you didn't tell me who directed it, I would've never guessed Tim Burton. A wonderfully twisted world is waiting to be explored from Margaret Keane's haunting paintings, but that world is never discovered. Amy Adams is always a striking cinematic figure, but Burton doesn't allow her to bring that much life or personality into Margaret Keane. Christoph Waltz is Walter Keane and unfortunately this is his least convincing role. Hard to believe and even harder to watch, Waltz chews up the scenery, but brings no nuance to Walter Keane, other than being manic and insecure. He has captured the silver screen as a cold-blooded Nazi and a cunning bounty hunter, but playing an everyday schnook proves to be too oppressive for Waltz. I wasn't moved or engaged. The opportunity for a feminist revenge tale is hinted at early on, but the film gives up on it halfway through.

As I am about to express my artistic review creation (or there, lack of) of the movie "Big Eyes", I must inform you that this "Big Eyes" review has plenty of cornea puns; I mean corny puns. See what I mean! OK, this Tim Burton directed movie is based on the incredible true story of painter Margaret Keane, who in the 60's painted popular paintings of sad children with big eyes. However, the eyeroller here is that her emotionally abusive husband Walter Keane was taking credit for the paintings, and no one was aware that is was Margaret who was the true artist. I am glad that Burton hid his grandiose castles and imaginary worlds this time around, and decided to go back to the passionate authentic human element as he did with "Ed Wood". So yea, nice job Tim. Moreover, we get a solid screenplay from legendary movie scripters Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski. Amy Adams' big performance as Margaret was something for your eyes to see, and Christoph Waltz' work as Water was no fake work. We also get some good supporting work from Danny Huston, Terence Stamp, Jason Schwartzman, and Krysten Ritter. So therefore, I think you should give some Keane awareness to "Big Eyes". **** Good