Mike Clark of "USA Today" commented that he was most fascinated by the casting choices. "Equally delightful is the Alison Lohman character's evolution into an older woman (Jessica Lange). It's a metamorphosis to equal any in screen history." Internet reviewer James Berardinelli found the fairy tale approach reminiscent of "The Princess Bride" (1987) and the films of Terry Gilliam. ""Big Fish" is a clever, smart fantasy that targets the child inside every adult," Berardinelli said, "without insulting the intelligence of either." Roger Ebert, in a mixed review, wrote "there is no denying that Will has a point: The old man is a blowhard. There is a point at which his stories stop working as entertainment and segue into sadism." Richard Corliss of "Time" magazine was disappointed, finding the father-son reconciliation storyline to be over-dramatically cliché. "You recall "The Boy Who Cried Wolf"? Edward Bloom is the man who cried fish." "Big Fish" was #85 on Slant Magazine's best films of the 2000s.