Tim Burton has been noticeably absent from theaters, taking a break since unleashing the double feature of Dark Shadows and Frankenweenie in 2012 (though the latter was a work of stop-motion animation that had been in development for some time). He’ll return to theaters later this year with the anticipated Big Eyes, and we’re getting our first look at the cast in action this morning.
USA Today has the exclusive images of Amy Adams and Christoph Waltz from Tim Burton’s Big Eyes, a biopic of artist Margaret Keane. Adams will play Keane, who rose to stardom in the 1950s for the paintings she created with big-eyed characters. (You can see, in the images below, how these visuals had an obvious effect on Burton’s own aesthetic.) But honoring an artistic pioneer is only half of a movie. Enter Christoph Waltz, who’ll play Keane’s husband, Walter. As the story progresses, Walter begins getting credit for portraits Margaret actually painted. Their conflict occupied the court systems, with the two actually engaging in "paint offs" to see who actually had artistic talent. "Margaret really believed that as a woman, people would not buy her art," Adams told the paper. "[Walter] convinced her the life they were able to lead was because the artist was a man, who could sell more art at a higher price than a woman."
I hope Burton finds a way to include these competitions in Big Eyes. Here is a shot of Waltz in character from today’s Big Eyes article.
As for the paintings of Margaret Keane, can’t you see how they played a part in the maturation of Tim Burton as a filmmaker? I totally can envision Winona Ryder playing this young waif:
Or Elle Fanning starring as this little muse:
With images from Big Eyes hitting the Web, that usually means that a trailer is on its way. Perhaps we’ll see actual footage from Tim Burton’s next movie by the end of the week? The movie is due in theaters on Christmas day, which might suggest that Burton has an Oscar contender on his hands. With this cast, that’s understandable. Stay tuned for a trailer, which I expect to drop soon.
