Blog Prompt for Sleepy Hollow After reading the Washington Irving short story and watching the film, discuss the elements of the story that Burton incorporates into the film and analyze how he changes and develops them. Is he just using the title and characters to enhance a horror story, or is he doing something more with Irving's story? Tim Burton incorporates some of the characters traits, but I believe he changes a lot of their characteristics. Inchabod for instance is a ladies man in the movie, but in the story he is an awkward and shy guy. Also his job is different, the ending of the story is also different. In the story inchabod leaves after his first encounter with the headless horseman, but in theocie inchabod stays and figures out the mystery. The biggest change of all in the movie is the fact that inchabod is a attractive to women and he is smooth and gentle with them. It plays a huge role in the movie, because his love interest is a suspect later in the movie and his feelings are in the way of that. The significance of the pumpkin is displayed early on in the film.
Brom throws a pumpkin at Ichabod's head on the bridge.
Ichabod is as easily spooked in the movie as he is the story.
The headless horseman was a German mercenary in both versions.
Tim Burton's movie is much more eerie than the story.
Ichabod is brought to Sleepy Hollow to investigate murders.
The headless horseman was REAL.
The horeseman's killing list was determined by who Katrina's stepmother held a grudge against.
While Brom DOES throw a pumpkin at Ichabod's head it is only a prank, and Ichabod is not run off by it. Ichabod Crane was portrayed as comical looking in the original 'Sleepy Hollow'.
Johnny Depp, who plays Ichabod in Tim Burton's version is anything but.
Ichabod does not die nor disappear in the movie.
The differences are that Tim Burton's version of 'Sleepy Hollow is much more dark than the book, which is supposed to be humorous. The story has a sense of looming dread whereas in the movie, the horror starts from the very beginning.
Adrienne prevost
Great blog! I agree that Ichabod's appearance is a major difference in both stories but I also think that Ichabod's belief in superstition is too. In the film he isn't much of a believer until he meets Katrina, and sees the headless horseman for himself. The headless horseman in Washington Irving isn't like the one in the film because Burton switches it up a bit. The headless horseman is more a spirit that comes into town in the film but in the story it was more of a joke in the end. -Ximena Garcia-Ruiz
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