There's an old saying that begs movie audiences never to give away the end of the movie and as a huge classic film buff, I consider my life like a movie. Plot twists occur on a regular basis, minor characters are suddenly major, and major characters turn minor. But if somebody claimed that they knew the end of my story, I'd refuse to listen. Unlike the leading character in "Big Fish", I just don't want to know, otherwise the best stories yet to come might not happen.
For three characters, knowing their fates (which isn't necessarily death) alters their behaviors, and one finds potential happiness, another a curse, and the third, possibly the ultimate end. An unattractive girl (Betty Field) learns the truth about what real beauty is; a middle aged man (Edward G. Robinson) discovers that he will kill someone; the third (George Raft) dreams of the lady who will scream at his apparent death, falling off of a trapeze wire. All three stories are part of Robert Benchley's study into the darker side of human existence, and the moods of the three stories makes this part Gothic melodrama, part love story, part horror and completely spiritual.
The ensemble cast is stuffed with the best of Hollywood. For Betty Field, there's Robert Cummings, so transfixed by her kind words to him that he ignores the fact that the lips on her realistic looking mask doesn't move. Thomas Mitchell gives Eddie Robinson his fateful spell, while Dame May Witty, Anna Lee and C. Aubrey Smith are important people he fears he may kill. For Charles Boyer, he has the visions of Barbara Stanwyck who turns up on a cruise, adding to his nightmares and bringing a surprise romance.
Three short stories, all tightly told and luxuriously produced, directed with artistic flair by Julien Duvivier who knows a thing or two about artistic flair. There's something appealing in each entry, and the cast makes each little detail in their character stand out because of the abbrevity of their screen time. I can't pick a standout performance, but the middle segment with Robinson is by far the spookiest and thus my favorite.
For three characters, knowing their fates (which isn't necessarily death) alters their behaviors, and one finds potential happiness, another a curse, and the third, possibly the ultimate end. An unattractive girl (Betty Field) learns the truth about what real beauty is; a middle aged man (Edward G. Robinson) discovers that he will kill someone; the third (George Raft) dreams of the lady who will scream at his apparent death, falling off of a trapeze wire. All three stories are part of Robert Benchley's study into the darker side of human existence, and the moods of the three stories makes this part Gothic melodrama, part love story, part horror and completely spiritual.
The ensemble cast is stuffed with the best of Hollywood. For Betty Field, there's Robert Cummings, so transfixed by her kind words to him that he ignores the fact that the lips on her realistic looking mask doesn't move. Thomas Mitchell gives Eddie Robinson his fateful spell, while Dame May Witty, Anna Lee and C. Aubrey Smith are important people he fears he may kill. For Charles Boyer, he has the visions of Barbara Stanwyck who turns up on a cruise, adding to his nightmares and bringing a surprise romance.
Three short stories, all tightly told and luxuriously produced, directed with artistic flair by Julien Duvivier who knows a thing or two about artistic flair. There's something appealing in each entry, and the cast makes each little detail in their character stand out because of the abbrevity of their screen time. I can't pick a standout performance, but the middle segment with Robinson is by far the spookiest and thus my favorite.