I don't think there's a filmmaker working today with a more easily distinguishable repertoire of movies than Tim Burton. One could argue this point-I'm sure David Fincher and Wes Anderson would be popular counterexamples-but I certainly can't think of another director besides Burton whose distinctive influence can often be felt before the opening credits.
Whether it's through his frequent collaboration with many of the same people (composer Danny Elfman, Johnny Depp and wife Helena Bonham Carter are usually involved somehow), the sweeping, Gothic grandeur of his sets, or his ever-present tone of dark whimsy, Burton's singular vision has repeatedly and indelibly etched itself into contemporary pop culture.
However, if you take a look at Burton's filmography, only five of his movies (\Beetlejuice,"" ""Edward Scissorhands,"" ""The Nightmare Before Christmas,"" ""Mars Attacks!"" and ""Corpse Bride"") aren't based, in one way or another, on someone else's material. Most of Burton's films are his spin on an established story or franchise, whether it's Batman or Ichibod Crane, rather than a self-contained film sprung directly from his mind.
That's not to say that his original work is superior to his other films (of those listed above, I'd only place ""Edward Scissorhands"" in Burton's top three best movies), but it is only in these films where Burton's imagination is truly given free reign. I would argue that ""The Nightmare Before Christmas"" and ""Corpse Bride,"" Burton's acclaimed forays into stop-motion animation, are the director's least compromised, most creatively liberated films.
""Corpse Bride"" is, in many ways, the ultimate Tim Burton film. It's got nearly all of the trademarks of a Burton film, from the casting to the ubiquitous Elfman music throughout. Although all of Burton's movies have the quality of a cheerfully morbid fairy tale, ""Corpse Bride"" literally is one. Featuring singing and dancing skeletons, a well-worn arranged love versus true love storyline and the most charming, effeminate maggot ever to grace the silver screen, ""Corpse Bride"" is a delightful fable chock full of clever, macabre touches.
""Corpse Bride"" is breezy and fun-it never wears out its welcome. But, besides its painstakingly created design and look and talented cast, there's nothing staggeringly remarkable about ""Corpse Bride."" Like ""Nightmare Before Christmas"" (which is actually directed by stop-motion maestro Henry Selick), ""Corpse Bride"" is a slight and minor achievement-they're both short, thrilling technical exercises, but not much more than that. They do not have the depth and scope of ""Edward Scissorhands"" or ""Sleepy Hollow,"" nor the sweet emotional pull of ""Big Fish,"" but they are notable for being products of nearly absolute creative freedom.
It has been said that the idea for ""Nightmare Before Christmas"" came to Burton in a daydream while he was working for a run-of-the-mill Disney film in the early '80s. Since ""Corpse Bride"" has been in development for over a decade, I would infer that Burton dreamt it up during the making of ""Mars Attacks!""-which is arguably his worst non-remake. It seems appropriate that Burton would most strongly crave an unconfined creative atmosphere exactly when he's trapped into making a bullshit movie for the studios. If that pattern is indeed correct, I'd love to see what kind of ideas he cooked up on the sets of ""Planet of the Apes"" and ""Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.""
Joe Pudas is a junior majoring in communication arts and journalism.
