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			       ED WOOD
		      A review by Professor Neon
			  September 24, 1994

Starring: Johnny Depp, Martin Landau, Sarah Jessica Parker, 
	  Patricia Arquette, Lisa Marie, Jeffrey Jones, G.D. Spradlin, 
	  Vincent D'Onofrio, Bill Murray
	   
Directed by: Tim Burton

Produced by: Denise Di Novi, Tim Burton

Written by: Scott Alexander & Larry Karaszewski

Touchstone Pictures/Buena Vista (1994)

MPAA Rated: R

Professor Neon's rating (0-10, 5=average, 10=best): 8

Total run time: 125 minutes

Opens: LA/NY: September 28, 1994
       Nationally: October 7, 1994

------------------------------------------------------------------------

I can make this very simple.  Are you a fan of "cult" movies?  Do you
appreciate the brilliant awfulness of "Plan 9 From Outer Space," "Bride of
the Monster," "Glen or Glenda?" and other Ed Wood produced marvels?  If so,
you *must* see "Ed Wood," no doubt about it.  If you're not a fan of these
sorts of films, you'll probably find yourself confused by some of what
you'll view, but go see "Ed Wood" anyway--it'll be an, uh, "educational"
experience.

Without a doubt, "Ed Wood" must be the most unusual film to ever be released
under a Disney (Touchstone/Buena Vista) banner.  The story of real life
transvestite film producer/director/writer Edward D. Wood, Jr., the creator
of the incredibly poor quality but now immensely popular films mentioned
above, would seem an unlikely topic for any of the mainstream studios.  The
key is producer/director Tim Burton ("Beetlejuice," "Edward Scissorhands,"
"The Nightmare Before Christmas") who has a contractual relationship with the
studio.  It seems very unlikely that "Ed Wood" was viewed by Burton as a
film destined for large-scale, first-run commercial success.  Rather, it's
clearly a labor of love--Burton's tribute to a man who, while perhaps not
very talented when it came to filmmaking, certainly tried to follow his
dream.

"Ed Wood" is unusual in today's crop of films from the very first frame--
it's shot entirely in black and white, which I personally found to be an
excellent choice in helping to create and maintain the aura of Ed's stomping
grounds of 1950's Hollywood.  The production is somewhat "camp" in attitude,
but that seems most entirely appropriate to the subject at hand. 

Johnny Depp's ("Edward Scissorhands") portrayal of Ed Wood is a bit
tongue-in-cheek, but based on what is known about the real Ed may well be
pretty close to the mark.  But the standout performance of the film is
without a doubt Martin Landau's aged, destitute, and drug-addicted Bela
Lugosi.  It's an absolutely brilliant portrayal from both physical
appearance and acting standpoints--I kept forgetting that I wasn't watching
the real Lugosi.  It'll be interesting to see if Landau receives the
recognition he deserves for this work.

Landau's convincing makeup was created by Rick Baker (of "An American
Werewolf in London" fame).  Baker also transformed wrestler George "The
Animal" Steele into Swedish wrestler/actor Tor Johnson (one of Ed Wood's
regular stable of actors) for the film.  Lisa Marie makes for a fine Vampira
(the legendary 50's Los Angeles TV "horror hostess" who also worked with
Ed).  I had the pleasure of interviewing the actual Vampira recently (her
real name, by the way, is Maila Nurmi) and I hope the elevation of the
Vampira character back into the public spotlight will help her receive some
of the positive recognition she really deserves.

The cast of "Ed Wood" is quite large, and other notable performances are
many.  The two women who enter Ed's life are played aptly by Sarah Jessica
Parker and Patricia Arquette.  Bill Murray as transvestite Bunny Breckinridge
(the imperial leader in "Plan 9") might seem an odd choice, but it works.
Jeffrey Jones as "futurist" Criswell is also fine.  Cameo appearances by
Conrad Brooks and Gregory Walcott, who were actors in the original "Plan 9,"
bring a bit of the old film forward.

Students of the lives of Ed Wood and Bela Lugosi will no doubt notice some
situational discrepancies.  But I can't help but view these as simply
reasonable and minor creative license.  What's really important is that the
overall sense of events and particularly of relationships rings uncannily
true.  I felt that I had gained some true understanding of a man who was
driven to make films regardless of the lack of money and time.  And while
his talent may have been limited, his friendship and work with nearly
forgotten Bela Lugosi show that his heart was in the right place.  Certainly
the much talked about aspects of his life such as his transvestitism (which
viewed from 1994 seems like just a minor idiosyncrasy) fade into
insignificance against the overall picture of his life that emerges.

"Plan 9 From Outer Space" (the originally planned title: "Grave Robbers From
Outer Space") was a flop when released in 1959.  Over the years a cult
following has elevated it to almost legendary status.  Ed Wood never lived
to see the "rise from the dead" of his work and his resulting celebrity
status.  After "Plan 9" most of his films were cheap "sexploitation" features
of various sorts, and he died at age 53 in 1978, alone and nearly penniless
in a tiny Hollywood apartment.  "Ed Wood" the film ends on a positive
note, however, taking us to the opening of the "Plan 9" premiere when Ed's
hopes were at their highest and the future looked bright.  This seems like
the way we really should remember him.

Tim Burton has done a service by making this movie and preserving for
posterity a positive view of a man who has been frequently misunderstood by
casual observers.  I really enjoyed this film.  I think Ed would have, too.

[ Professor Neon ]
 neon@vortex.com

Professor Neon's rating for "Ed Wood"
(0-10, 5=average, 10=best): 8

---------------------------------------------

--- What is "Professor Neon's TV and Movie Mania"? ---

"Professor Neon's TV and Movie Mania" is a unique radio show which features
a look at the broad universe ranging from classic to current television,
films, and videos, with a special emphasis on (but not limited to) the
unusual, odd, silly, strange, bizarre, cult, surreal, and weird.

Often featured on "Professor Neon's TV & Movie Mania" are special 
interviews and in-studio guests.  For live versions of the show, most of 
these guests are available to take listener calls.  Drawing on the 
vast pool of TV and film personalities (on both sides of the camera) 
of yesterday to today in the Los Angeles area, the enigmatic 
Professor Neon has featured programs focusing on topics ranging
from "Plan 9 From Outer Space" (with in-studio guest "Vampira" who 
starred in the classic cult film), to "Mr.  Science Fiction" 
Forrest J. Ackerman ("the grand old man" of Horror and Sci-Fi,
publisher of "Famous Monsters" magazine); to shows focused on topics
from "The Twilight Zone", to "The Three Stooges".

Unique audio clips from old films and trailers, bumpers, and other audio
features permeate the shows, providing an entertaining program for the
baby-boomers who grew up glued to their televisions and movie screens.

Live (call-in) and prerecorded versions of this show (ranging from 30
minutes to 2 hours) for U.S. and international broadcast/syndication use are
available, as are shorter segments of any length customized for specific
markets and situations.  Special Internet versions of the show are
also made available for listeners via various Internet server locations.

For more information regarding both broadcast and Internet versions
of the show and related information:

By FTP: 
	Site: "ftp.vortex.com"
	File: /usr/ftp/tv-film-video/neon-radio.Z

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