Ed Wood was different. He was unique. His vision was his own
and Tim Burton understood that. The actors selected for the Ed Wood film
resembled Ed Wood’s own group of actors very well. In Gothic Fantasy, we learn
that Tim Burton has always been a fan of Ed Wood’s film, and as a true fan of
many things myself, I know what it is like to watch your fascination go down
the drain because of choices made by an ignorant or uninterested director.
Burton did what any fan would do and stuck to the truth as best he possibly could.
Ed Wood’s films were as unique as himself. Those poorly shot
scenes are viewed as great works of art in the eyes of fans. If those fans were
to view Burton’s biopic and see those scenes had been drastically for the entertainment
of the audience, there would be a fit to throw. Burton’s job as a fan and a
director were to make this biography as believable as possible. His job was to
make us think that we were watching Ed Wood live his life, not to be entertained
by his life story.
The scenes from Plan 9 from Outer Space were shot perfectly
by Burton. It was as if Burton had literally taken the scenes directly from the
original film. This had to be very pleasing to the eyes of fans and it had to
have made them think they were actually watching Ed Wood direct this movie.
This is why. Burton did not change or fabricate the work of
Wood. He preserved it. It was Ed Wood’s work, not his. A painter would not
paint the Mona Lisa with alterations and try to sell it to dedicated fans of Leonardo
Da Vinci passing it off as parallel to the original. He has altered the
originality that the fans fell in love with. Sure the extras are nice, but it
is not the same thing. Tim Burton would be out of his mind to alter the art of
Edward Wood Jr. and sell it to old fans and oncoming fans as a parallel work.
