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Hatchy joins the team with our first cinema release review
Fri, 9 December 2005
by: Hatchy
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Corpse Bride is the latest film in what has been a busy year for director Tim Burton. Devoid of flesh and blood actors and filmed completely with stop motion photography using puppets, this is Burton's second major release in the format since 1993's The Nightmare Before Christmas.
Inspired by an old Russian folk tale the story centres around the main character Victor, voiced by Burton-regular Johnny Depp. Victor is about to be wedded in an arranged marriage planned by his socialite wealth aspiring parents to a girl by the name of Victoria. Victoria hails from an old money aristocratic family, now penniless, and her parents are keen to cash in on her fiancés new money.
After many unsuccessful attempts at practising his vows for the priest (voiced by Christopher Lee) Victor retreats to the woods outside of town. After finally rehearsing the vows correctly in an old graveyard he accidentally slips the ring on a tree root and up from the grave springs Emily the Corpse Bride voiced by Helena Bonham-Carter. Ranging from the characters of the underworld to those inhabiting the world of the living, the story weaves a bizarre love triangle between Victor, Victoria, Emily and their adventures.
Some characters, such as the maggot living in Emily's head and Snaps the skeletal dog, add to the nice if not macabre charm. The film also plays wickedly on many contrasts. The world of the living is resplendent in Victorian era London gloominess, filled with morbid depressive characters that appear more dead than alive. In contrast the Underworld is full of colour, music and dancing inhabited by corpses in various states of decomposition. This film reeks of Burton's trade-mark dark and twisted comedy sensibilities and will be adored by his loyal fans.
The best character by far was Emily. She had the most depth and as the viewer you felt a real empathy towards her. You could identify with her plight, the basic human emotion of wanting to find true love, and the issues of seeing past the physical, or corporeal in this sense. Emily, although deceased, was the most human and alive of them all.
On the musical front there are less numbers than 1993's Nightmare and may be due to the fact that the musical numbers in Corpse Bride have had a lot more work put into them. The 1930's Jazz era song and dance routine performed by the skeleton Bonejangles and his socket alternating eyeball is the stand-out. Danny Elfman (another Burton regular) did the score for the film and, it has to be said, has done an excellent job.
With a PG rating running to 71 minutes, it's safe for younger viewers to watch and the gags and humour will keep older viewers interested as well. The film can be quite witty and puns on the dialogue and the subject matter are cleverly woven into the script, featuring heavily throughout the film. Movie buffs will pick a reference to Carrie at one point and may also notice the tree from Burtons own Sleepy Hollow for a brief moment in the film as well. There are no obvious film references as blatant as 2001 a Space Odyssey in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory so you have to be more observant.
I did find it a let down that the story behind the film is actually quite predictable. It didn't help that I had accurately guessed the ending after a quarter of the way through the film from what I perceived was an all too obvious clue either. Those hoping for a more Burton-esque twist to the ending will be disappointed.
Stop-motion photography has come a long way in 12 years. Despite the constant technology advances in animation during this same time (which has brought the two formats a lot closer than ever before in look and feel) it still has a charm and realism about it that can't be matched by CGI. The lighting effects, movements and atmosphere created by it are still freshly unique and original, as a genre it can certainly now count Corpse Bride as one of its hallmarks.
So, in summary, despite its simple and predictable plot Corpse Bride is a very enjoyable film that is well served by its charming characters and twisted fairytale underpinnings. Great viewing for young and old audiences alike, it is a worthy one to pay money for to see at the cinema on the big screen.
by: Hatchy
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More articles by Hatchy
Funny, witty and a little twisted it may well be regarded as one of Burton's better films. | |
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