7. Big Fish (2004)
You'll either love it or hate it, but
Big Fish is an ambitious and touching entry in the Burton canon, and one which - thank God - places him in fairly new territory (without Johnny Depp, but still paired with Helena Bonham Carter). But there's far less wackiness here and much more emotional value, making
Big Fish a relatively obsure Tim Burton movie, if only in the sense that its priorities seem like different business. A father and son story - though one which still feels Tim Burton-esque (in this case, that's a compliment) -
Big Fish manages to be uplifting, heartwarming and funny in equal measure. A sort of
Wizard of Oz/Grimm Fairytale rolled into one, it is not without its inherent Burton flaws (and the film is not without its major detractors), though as a movie which chooses to explore the tricky line between fantasy and reality, Burton certainly pulls the whole thing off marvellously.