As the film turns 30, Hasitha Fernando looks at the story behind Tim Burton’s Ed Wood…
Every now and then, we come across filmmakers whose efforts are so utterly devoid of any artistic or creative merit that they are simply called the “the worst movie directors of all time”. In present day Hollywood directors such as Uwe Boll, Tommy Wiseau and James Nguyen would certainly fit that moniker but back in the 1950s there was one filmmaker who inherited that infamous title and that was Edward Davis Wood Jr. In 1994 a biographical drama based on his life story was developed by Tim Burton with Johnny Depp in the titular role. This is that story.
The writers conceived the idea when they were university students
Writers Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski attended the USC School of Cinematic Arts when they came up with the idea for a biopic of controversial movie director Ed Wood. Known for their campy tone, unrefined special effects, eccentric casts and other manners of weirdness, the filmmaker efforts were largely forgotten until he was posthumously bestowed the Golden Turkey Award for Worst Director of All Time in 1980, which reignited interest in his body of work. At one point Alexander pondered making a documentary about the enigmatic auteur because according to Karaszewski was certain that “there would be no one on the planet Earth who would make this movie or want to make this movie, because these aren’t the sort of movies that are made.”
Frustrated with the gigs the pair were receiving, they scribbled a 10-page treatment for a potential Ed Wood film and pitched the idea to Heathers director Michael Lehman, with whom they attended USC film school. Lehmann presented the duo’s treatment to producer Denise Di Novi who worked with him on Heathers. Di Novi was convinced that the material could benefit from the creative inputs of Tim Burton, whom he had collaborated with on multiple projects, and thus a deal was struck – with Lehmann directing, and Burton and Di Novi producing.
Tim Burton was drawn to the unique project from the get-go
As time progressed, however, it became apparent that Burton was becoming more and more drawn to the unique story crafted by Alexander and Karaszewski. Burton began reading Nightmare of Ecstasy: The Life and Art of Edward D. Wood by Rudolf Grey and even scrutinized some of Ed Wood’s personal letters to get inside the enigmatic auteur’s mind and he was amazed by how the controversial filmmaker viewed the production process of his efforts “writing about his films as if he was making Citizen Kane, you know, whereas other people perceived them as, like, the worst movies ever.”
Despite being a fan of Wood’s works, Burton’s deep-dive exploration only reinforced his admiration towards the director and his body of work. In addition, the relationship between Wood and Lugosi in the script strangely mirrored the close association Burton had with own idol and colleague, Vincent Price. Due to all of the aforementioned factors Burton’s interest in his next project for Columbia Pictures, a gothic horror affair titled Mary Reilly, considerably waned. His interest further diminished when the studio showed interest in Julia Roberts over Winona Ryder for the lead role. And thus Tim Burton ended up taking over the directorial reigns from Lehmann who went on to receive an executive producer credit for his contribution.
Creative differences between the studio nearly scuttled the project
Prior to Tim Burton taking over as director, Ed Wood was in development at Columbia Pictures. But after Burton took over he decided to make the biographical drama as a black-and-white feature and this change in creative direction didn’t sit well with the studio head Mark Canton. Canton proposed that if for the changes suggested by Burton to take place Colombia Pictures should be given a first-look deal. However, wanting full creative autonomy Burton disagreed to Canton’s terms and so a month before production commencement Colombia Pictures put Ed Wood into turnaround. Luckily, the potential of the project attracted multiple studios including Warner Bros., Paramount Pictures and 20th Century Fox who wanted to option the rights for the movie but Burton accepted the offer put forth by Walt Disney Studios, who were willing to give the filmmaker the creative freedom he needed for a not-so-risky production budget of $18 million.
Tim Burton was not paid a cent for his work on Ed Wood
Tim Burton’s commitment to Ed Wood was unparalleled. So much so, the acclaimed filmmaker even declined to being paid for his contribution to the movie. Even by that point in time, Burton was a director who commanded a major clout in Hollywood for delivering box-office hits like Beetlejuice, Batman and Batman Returns. The enigmatic auteur made a name for himself by amalgamating gothic elements to his stylistically distinct efforts. As of writing Burton has garnered nominations in the form of two Academy Awards, a Golden Globe Award and three BAFTA Awards and was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Venice International Film Festival in 2007.
Johnny Depp was going through a bad spell when he signed on for the movie
Starting his career in the small screen Johnny Depp rose to prominence as a teenage heartthrob on the police procedural television drama 21 Jump Street. Whilst reaping the rewards of his new found success Depp made his feature debut in the horror classic A Nightmare on Elm Street and appeared in Oliver Stone’s Platoon. The young actor quickly became one of Hollywood’s rising talents with such efforts as Cry-Baby, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, Benny and Joon, and Donnie Brasco which saw him explore more serious, character-driven affairs. The actor also frequently collaborated with director Tim Burton on many projects embracing the auteur’s quirky creative sensibilities in movies like Edward Scissorhands, Sleepy Hollow, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Sweeney Todd.
Ed Wood was the second Burton-Depp collaboration and at the time the actor was going through a pretty bad time due to issues in his personal and professional life. Depp’s breakup with Winona Ryder took a major toll on him and to make matters worse he was experiencing a deep dissatisfaction towards the film industry in general. So, when Burton approached Depp to play the titular role the performer jumped at the opportunity and accepted the part as he knew it would be a great palette cleanser for his creative doldrums.
Martin Landau prepared extensively in order to play Bela Lugosi
Hungarian-American actor Bela Lugosi will forever be remembered as old Hollywood’s classic version of Dracula. His commanding presence and booming voice coupled with a gothic heavy wardrobe made Lugosi’s iteration of the villain one of the most iconic and unforgettable. In the film, Lugosi was brought to life by the inimitable Martin Landau who wait to great lengths to accurately portray the legendary actor. In order to capture Lugosi’s mannerisms and tics Landau watched over 35 of Lugosi’s movies and purchased Hungarian language tapes to master the language along with its unique accents. Peter Medak, a filmmaker of Hungarian origin who had directed Landau in the TV show Space: 1999, praised him for his spot-on accent. Landau also avoided over-the-top theatricality and any overt scenery chewing in order to make his performance more grounded despite being buried beneath layers of makeup and prosthetics.
Danny Elfman declined the offer to write music for Ed Wood
To say that Tim Burton and Danny Elfman has had a fruitful relationship would be something of an understatement. Starting out as lead singer and chief song writer of Oingo Boingo, an 80s new wave band, Elfman made his successful transition to composing scores for feature films with Pee-wee’s Big Adventure on the invitation of Burton and Paul Reubens who were fans of his band. From that moment hence there was no stopping Elfman and his reputation was further cemented through the now iconic, darkly operatic score for 1989’s Batman which was helmed by Burton. But following the rather stressful experience the musician had on the set of Batman Returns, Elfman declined the offer to score Ed Wood. As a result, Burton turned to the talented Howard Shore to craft the music he required for the flick.
The film received some criticism for historical inaccuracies
Although certain creative liberties were taken during the making of the film, Tim Burton tried to keep things as accurately as possible. However, there were a few who took offence with the changes made by Burton & co. and one of them was Bela Lugosi’s son who found fault with how his father was portrayed in the film saying the real-life Lugosi would never utter expletives, own dogs or sleep in coffins. Sarah Jessica Parker’s portrayal of Dolores Fuller, Ed’s girlfriend, also received criticism by the real individual her self who thought that her role in Ed’s life was somewhat trivialized and downplayed.
Box-office failure, rave reviews & awards wins
Made on a production budget of $18 million Ed Wood went on to make only $13.8 million during the entirety of its theatrical run which made it a box-office dud but in spite of this hiccup the effort became a major hit with film critics and on the review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes it holds an approval rating of 92% based on 73 reviews and possesses an average rating of 8/10.
The acclaimed film critic Roger Ebert showered high-praise on Ed Wood commenting, “What Burton has made is a film which celebrates Wood more than it mocks him, and which celebrates, too, the zany spirit of the 1950s exploitation films, in which a great title, a has-been star, and a lurid ad campaign were enough to get bookings for some of the oddest films ever made.” Both Ebert and Gene Siskel gave their seal of approval by giving Ed Wood “Two Thumbs Up” on their show Siskel and Ebert. Peter Travers of Rolling Stone also weighed in praising Burton’s creative decision of not making the movie a parody or satire of Wood’s life. “Ed Wood is Burton’s most personal and provocative movie to date,” he wrote. “Outrageously disjointed and just as outrageously entertaining, the picture stands as a successful outsider’s tribute to a failed kindred spirit.”
Come awards season Ed Wood was blessed with numerous accolades including two Academy Awards, two BAFTAs and three Golden Globe Awards. Martin Landau’s scene stealing performance as Bela Lugosi ended up winning Best Supporting Actor at both the Oscars as well as the Globes and special effects artist Rick Baker also walked away with a golden nudie for Best Makeup. With the passage of time audiences have come to embrace Ed Wood as one Tim Burton and Johnny Depp’s finest efforts which tastefully explored the complex life of an eccentric creative and a misunderstood individual who simply wanted to entertain audiences.
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Hasitha Fernando is a part-time medical practitioner and full-time cinephile. Follow him on Twitter via @DoctorCinephile for regular updates on the world of entertainment.
