History Film / EdWood

* SoBadItsGood[=/=][[DarthWiki/SoBadItsHorrible Horrible]]: In-universe reactions to Ed Wood's work boil down to these two.

This film is also notable for its depiction of the friendship between Wood and fading horror star Creator/BelaLugosi, memorably played by Creator/MartinLandau. Landau would go on to win the [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAwardForBestActorInASupportingRole Oscar for Best Supporting Actor]] for his performance.

* AssociatedComposer: Averted. This is one of only three Creator/TimBurton films that Creator/DannyElfman did not score, the other being ''Film/SweeneyToddTheDemonBarberOfFleetStreet''. Music/HowardShore used music from Wood's films, especially ''Glen or Glenda'' (which provides Wood's {{Leitmotif}}). [[note]]Elfman was going through a minor CreatorBreakdown at the time, as he was attempting to juggle his exploding film scoring career while still fronting Music/OingoBoingo. He left the band shortly thereafter to score films full-time and immediately reunited with Burton for ''Film/MarsAttacks''. Sweeney Todd is self-explanatory as it came with its own score.[[/note]]

^* ExactWords: When Ed tells Loretta King about his new movie project, she remarks that $ 60 000 to produce it "seems very reasonable". Because she then asks him if she can play the female lead, Ed thinks they have an unspoken agreement that she can, and will, pay for the entire production. He is wrong.

* ArtisticLicenseHistory: And this is something Bela Lugosi's family took umbrage with. Despite how Martin Landau portrays him, Bela Lugosi was [=NOT=] prone to fits of swearing, especially in front of women.

* [[invoked]]MoneyDearBoy[=/=]AwesomeDearBoy: Bela Lugosi's motivation for starring in Ed Wood's flicks goes from earning a quick buck to rediscovering the sheer joy of acting.

** Sinatra ''also'' sent Lugosi money in hospital so he could finish his recovery treatment. In the movie, Lugosi is forced to leave the hospital early because his insurance didn't cover the treatment.

* FatIdiot: Although the real-life Tor Johnson may not have been similar to the lumbering mooks he played in Wood's movies, this film portrays him as particularly dimwitted. (In fact, Johnson was already an accomplished bit actor, and had lost his Swedish accent long ago).

This film is also notable for its depiction of the friendship between Wood and fading horror star Creator/BelaLugosi, memorably played by Creator/MartinLandau. Landau would go on to bag a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance.

The film was written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski and was the first of their three "Anti-Great Man" movies, followed by ''Film/ThePeopleVsLarryFlynt'' and ''Film/ManOnTheMoon'' (about Creator/AndyKaufman).

Compare ''{{FIlm/The Disaster Artist}}'', a similarly comedic biopic about a [[Creator/TommyWiseau similarly inept director.]]

* HistoricalInJoke [=/=] GeniusBonus: Welles complaining about having to cast Creator/CharltonHeston as a Mexican is a reference to ''Film/TouchOfEvil'', though its kind of anachronistic since Welles never had issues with the casting (none of the Mexican characters are played by Mexicans) and he was not a film-maker who went for MethodActing detail anyway.

-->'''Ed:''' Look Lugosi's dead, and Vampira wanted to do the part mute. Someone had to have the lines!