Big Eyes is a 2014 American biographical comedy-drama film directed by Tim Burton, written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski and starring Amy Adams and Christoph Waltz. The film is about the life of American artist Margaret Keane—famous for painting and drawing portraits of people with big eyes. It follows the story of Margaret and her husband, Walter Keane, who took credit for Margaret’s phenomenally successful and popular paintings in the 1950s and 1960s. It follows the lawsuit and trial between Margaret and Walter, after Margaret reveals she is the true artist behind the paintings.
Plot
In 1958, Margaret Ulbrich leaves her husband and takes her young daughter Jane to North Beach, San Francisco. Supporting her daughter alone, Margaret gets a job painting illustrations at a furniture factory. While creating portraits at an outdoor art show, Margaret meets Walter Keane, who is selling his Parisian street scene paintings. Soon, Walter proposes to her and they marry.
Walter goes to a popular jazz club (the hungry i) and tries to convince the club’s owner, Enrico Banducci, to purchase the couple’s paintings. He only agrees to rent out the walls to Walter. A drunk woman is touched by one of Margaret’s paintings and buys it. Walter fights with Banducci and ends up on the front page of the local newspaper. When Walter goes to the club again it is packed with curious people. Dick Nolan, a celebrity gossip columnist (who serves as the film’s narrator), wants to know more about Walter’s art, but is only interested in Margaret’s paintings. Afterward, Walter shows Margaret all the money they have made from the sales. He tells her they are a great team: she can stay at home painting and he will sell her works.
Walter opens up his own Keane gallery, promoting the art as his own work, and sells reproductions. Margaret, however, is upset about Walter taking credit for her art, and feels guilty about lying to Jane about who is the real artist. Margaret decides to paint in a different style with elongated features and small eyes, so that she can honestly tell people she is also a painter.
Margaret and Walter move into a mansion. While going through a crate Margaret finds a stack of paintings of Parisian street scenes, but they are all signed by S. CENIC. She realizes Walter paints over the name of the original artist and claims the paintings as his own. When Margaret confronts Walter, he says he always wanted to be an artist, but never had the talent.
Walter learns of the New York World’s Fair and demands Margaret paint something to put on display; she refuses and Walter threatens to have her killed. Jane discovers her mother working on the World’s Fair painting Tomorrow Forever. Jane tells her mother she always knew that she was the real artist.
At a party, Walter is angered after reading John Canaday’s scathing review of the Tomorrow Forever exhibit and confronts Canaday. Back at home, Walter starts drunkenly throwing lit matches at Margaret and Jane. They run into the studio and lock the door, but Walter nearly sets the house on fire. Margaret runs away with Jane.
One year later, Margaret and Jane have settled in Honolulu, Hawaii. Walter will not agree to a divorce unless Margaret signs over the rights to every painting, and produces 100 more. Margaret agrees and continues sending paintings to California. Margaret is visited by two Jehovah’s Witnesses who convince her that honesty is important. The next time Walter receives the paintings, they are signed “MDH Keane”. On a Hawaiian radio show, Margaret reveals she is the real artist behind the paintings attributed to Walter, making national news. Nolan publishes Walter’s claims that Margaret has “gone nuts”. Margaret sues both Walter and the newspapers that printed his version of the story for libel and slander.
At the trial, reporters swarm the courthouse in Honolulu. The judge immediately rules that Margaret’s statements in the press have contributed to the public idea that Walter has painted the paintings, and as such dismisses the libel lawsuit against the newspapers. Since the libel suit only concerned the newspaper and its lawyers, Walter is left to defend himself against slander, even cross-examining himself as a “witness”. The judge directs both Margaret and Walter to create a painting in one hour to prove who is the real artist. Margaret paints steadily, but Walter is hesitant, claiming his arm hurts too much to hold a paintbrush. Margaret completes her painting and wins the lawsuit. Outside the courthouse, Margaret says she doesn’t care about money and just wants credit for her paintings. A fan asks her to sign a copy of Tomorrow’s Masters and she does, finally autographing her own work.
The end credits then state that Margaret later retired in life and opened an art gallery, while Walter continued with his claim that he was the true artist but never produced anything to back this, and eventually died bitter and penniless.
Cast
Amy Adams as Margaret Keane
Christoph Waltz as Walter Keane
Danny Huston as Dick Nolan
Jon Polito as Enrico Banducci
Krysten Ritter as DeeAnn
James Saito as the judge
Jason Schwartzman as Ruben
Terence Stamp as John Canaday
Madeleine Arthur as Jane
Delaney Raye as a young Jane
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