Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Johnny Depp | ... | Ed Wood | |
Martin Landau | ... | Bela Lugosi | |
Sarah Jessica Parker | ... | Dolores Fuller | |
Patricia Arquette | ... | Kathy O'Hara | |
Jeffrey Jones | ... | Criswell | |
G.D. Spradlin | ... | Reverend Lemon | |
Vincent D'Onofrio | ... | Orson Welles | |
Bill Murray | ... | Bunny Breckinridge | |
Mike Starr | ... | Georgie Weiss | |
Max Casella | ... | Paul Marco | |
Brent Hinkley | ... | Conrad Brooks | |
Lisa Marie | ... | Vampira | |
George 'The Animal' Steele | ... | Tor Johnson | |
Juliet Landau | ... | Loretta King | |
Clive Rosengren | ... | Ed Reynolds |
Because of his eccentric habits and bafflingly strange films, director Edward D. Wood Jr. is a Hollywood outcast. Nevertheless, with the help of the formerly famous Bela Lugosi and a devoted cast and crew of show-business misfits who believe in Ed's off-kilter vision, the filmmaker is able to bring his oversize dreams to cinematic life. Despite a lack of critical or commercial success, Ed and his friends manage to create an oddly endearing series of extremely low-budget films. Written by Jwelch5742
It's appropriate that Tim Burton would direct this and even more appropriate that Johnny Depp would play the lead character as this story profiles an unusual subject: the worst director of films, perhaps, in Hollywood history....and one of its strangest characters.
As interesting as the story is, I found the black-and-white photography to be the best aspect of the film, but that's no surprise since Burton usually excels in making great visual films. Depp was hilarious as "Ed Wood." The eternal optimistic attitude and silly smile on his face in this film always makes me laugh and actually is inspiring in parts. You can't help but like poor Ed.
The most dramatic figure is Bela Lugosi, played memorably by Martin Landau, who deservedly won many awards for this performance. What a tragic figure.
To no surprise, there is a cheap shot against Baptists, who are made to look like meddling fools, something Hollywood loves to portray when it comes to any Christian character. Other than that, it's a fascinating film and portrait of a weirdo that only real-life weirdo Johnny Depp could do justice!