After years of letting her charismatic husband take credit for her paintings, artist Margaret Keane decides to speak out in this Golden Globe winning biopic from Tim Burton. The film is a noticeable change of pace for Burton with the lead performances outshining the sets, camera-work, mood and atmosphere, but this is not necessarily a bad thing as the performances are superb. Amy Adams is well cast as the all-too-vulnerable Margaret Keane, torn between helping her husband perpetuate the lie (lest bad publicity affect sales) and wanting recognition for her own art. Christoph Waltz is also superb as her charming husband who always seems to have a card up his sleeve. Some have called his performance over-the-top, and with his manic running back forth in the courtroom scenes, it is easy to see why, but Waltz renders his character more human than just that; he is lost in the delusion just as much as Adams is consumed by it. The film nevertheless only scratches the surface of what was going on between the two real life Keanes. There is a suggestion that Margaret stayed quiet believing that it would be best for her daughter. There is also a suggestion that her husband was a necessary catalyst since she would have never had the courage to promote her work on her own. These only ever remain suggestions though with the film never quite getting at the symbiotic nature of their relationship and why she stayed silent for so long. Whatever the case, the film is encapsulating for the most part, which is always a plus with a biopic like this where the outcome is well known.
