Shubert-"I promise [I'll come back]. Someday. When I'm really supposed to."

At first when I signed up for The World of Tim Burton I imagined a class where we solely watched Tim Burton’s movies and wrote papers on them. However, now that I’ve actually been able to take the class I see that it has been so much more than that. Not only did I get to learn about Tim Burton and his movies on what I have felt is a personal level, but I have also learned about film-making, analyzing films, writing, mise en scene, society, and even a little bit about myself.

 

            Firstly, before I came to this class I was not a Tim Burton junkie. I definitely liked his movies and had seen some of them, but it was not until I took this class that I was able to truly appreciate the movies properly and all Tim Burton had to offer me. I myself am an artist, though I like to act, sing, and dance, not make films, and seeing the process through which Burton has developed into his own genre has changed my view on my life. Burton puts so much of himself into his movies, which makes them, even as a viewer, so much more personal than most movies on the big screen today. Through Tim Burton I have learned to never stop being your own person as an artist and to never let someone change you just to make a buck.

            Furthermore, the fact that Tim Burton’s movies actually teach viewers about society and the world in general was startling to discover as I had only ever regarded his films as entertainment. Also, that the scenes are so exact as to convey specific themes and information about characters, as we have seen by doing mise en scene, baffles me. It had never occurred to me that they put that much thought into each and very scene but I find it very interesting and possibly something I would like to study more in the future.

            Another interesting Tim Burton fact that I had not quite thought about in detail before this is the fact that he works with the same people for almost all of his movies and that he created a sort of artistic family through this. I also thought it was very neat that this was often reflected in his movies such as in Batman Returns with the Penguin’s circus family. However, by far my favorite Tim Burton reflection in a movie was in Big Fish. Not only was this my favorite movie because it was so touching and made me think about reality versus fantasy in a way I had never considered, but also because, as I discovered in one of the class lectures, Tim Burton embodied both of the characters in his own way. I would have never even thought about that movie in such a complex and analytical way had it not been for that very lecture and the whole course in general.

            Overall, although this course flew by very quickly and was a lot of fun, I have learned some very valuable information that I can take with me into my next three and a half years at college and beyond. "The biggest fish in the river gets that way by never being caught." 

            

Shubert- Sweeney Todd

        Throughout the course of Sweeney Todd, we see Todd transforming into a revenge-seeking homicidal maniac. At first he does not intend on killing the hundreds that he ends up killing but only the judge. However as the movie progresses, with Mrs. Lovett as a guide, Todd becomes a murderer who is promoting cannibalism to the unsuspecting masses of London. The whole idea of cannibalism is toyed with by Burton in this film.

         At first Mrs. Lovett only wants Sweeney Todd to kill his customers because meat is expensive and she wants fresh meat that tastes good and is cheap…or free. This whole idea transforms, however, in the scene where she proposes the idea of cannibalism to Todd. He sees it not just as a way to make money but, as human nature. “Man eating man.” He takes the idea of cannibalism and creates a socio-political solution from it. The poor are usually the ones to serve and feed the upper class but now with the Todd’s idea of cannibalism it is the upper class who will serve the lower class…literally.

         We see this idea formed in London where the growth and urbanization at the time was creating two very distinct classes of man-“the one staying put in his proper place and the one with his foot in the other one's face." The whole idea of London at the time was that the city itself was devouring people in all senses. They were losing their individuality, their belongings, and sometimes even their lives. This idea of London’s urbanization plays a big part in Sweeney Todd especially when talking about cannibalism.

         The growth of London also had a lot to do with capitalism. Sweeney Todd and Mrs. Lovett represent the retailers and all of the unknowing customers are the consumers. This idea brings cannibalism into a more grotesque light because the consumers do not seem to care where the meat has come from as long as it tastes good. This is seen not only in London but also in today’s time in America. Many of the fast food’s meats are not even meat but the consumers do not care as long as the food tastes good and is cheap. Sweeney Todd therefore speaks to many people on a personal level even if they do not realize it at first. It is not just about literal cannibalism but what the idea of cannibalism represents.

Shubert-Big Fish

        

         Tim Burton’s movie, Big Fish, is a mostly sunny movie, headed by the character of Edward Bloom. However, throughout the movie, there are many darker settings and characters that give the film a grotesque undertone. Burton is able to balance these two polar opposites in the film with the character of Edward Bloom. Because Edward is not afraid of the darker characters and can see past their darkness, he likes them and they in turn like him. He also likes people and places that are exciting and not exactly normal. These darker and grotesque people represent that in his mind.

         One particular scene that shows the merging of Edward Bloom’s bright characteristics and another character’s darker grotesque characteristics is the scene where Edward and his friends go to see the witch. In this scene Edward is goaded into going into the witch’s house and bringing back her glass eye. At this request he is not afraid and walks proudly and bravely up to the door where he speaks to the witch. The witch is dark, mysterious, and scary-looking but Edward is not afraid to talk to her. One might say that he even befriends her throughout the scene. She can tell that he is not afraid of her and she likes that about him. He likes that she is outside of the realm of the normal.

         Another scene that shows Edward’s bright and sunny personality coming together with a darker personality is the scene where he meets the ferocious dog that turns out to be the ringleader of the circus, Amos Calloway. At first Edward is trampled and attacked by the dog but he is not scared of the dog. In fact, when Mr. Soggybottom pulls out the gun Edward says no because he does not want to kill the dog. He is more afraid for the dog’s life than his. Then, when he takes a stick and throws it the dog acts just like a dog: he goes and fetches the stick. Edward says that he realized that the dog was just lonely and wanted someone to play with. Edward saw past the dog’s dark and grotesque exterior to see that he was just a lonely soul. For this reason, Amos likes him. Edward likes Amos because he is a fairytale character.

         The scene with the werewolf is interesting because it relates to Burton’s own life. When Burton’s dad had to wear dentures because he had only his canine teeth left, he would take out the dentures and howl just like a werewolf to scare the neighborhood children. Burton even called his father “a real fairytale character.” This shows that just like Edward, Burton, as we have come to know, is interested in the outlandish and grotesque.

Shubert-Duality in Planet of the Apes

        In Tim Burton’s Planet of the Apes, many dualities and conflicts are explored. These themes help to develop character through conflict. The duality of bellicosity, hostile temperament, versus passivity, submissive temperament, especially helps to develop character throughout the film.

          One scene in which the duality of bellicosity and passivity is shown to develop character through conflict is the scene in which the apes are eating dinner at the Senator’s house. In this scene Thade and some of the other apes exhibit a more bellicose attitude. This is shown when Thade grunts and growls at one of the serving humans and deliberately knocks over Davidson. The serving humans, however, exhibit a more passive attitude. When they are growled at and treated disrespectfully they merely take it and move on. This partially has to do with the fact that they are scared but it also helps to develop their character as well as Davidson’s. Because Davidson is not passive like the other humans, the other apes, and the audience, can tell that he is different and because of this they fear him. This also helps to develop the apes’ character because the audience can see that they are only hostile towards the humans because they are afraid of them and afraid that they might revolt against them.

          Another scene that particularly shows the aforesaid duality well is the scene with Ari, Helena Bonham Carter, and Limbo, Paul Giamatti. In this scene Ari comes into Limbo’s “business” and creates a raucous while demanding rights for the humans. In this scene we see that there is duality even amongst the apes and that not all of the apes are the same. Although Ari is the one who is demonstrating the bellicose attitude in this scene, her hostility is for a good cause. She is fighting fire with fire. Thade and the other apes are hostile toward the humans and she, therefore is hostile towards them. In this scene, the audience can see Limbo’s passive nature. Although he is an ape, he does whatever he is told and does not fight. He disagrees with Ari but he does not really fight with her or display any real anger or bellicosity. This use of conflict by Burton develops both Ari and Limbo’s characters.

         Overall, Tim Burton uses different dualities, namely bellicosity versus passivity, to enhance his character development and further develop the characters in the movie. This not only shows the duality between the humans and apes, but also the duality that occurs within the ape community. This development of duality helps to show that there are some apes, like Ari, who are willing to become bellicose for the rights of humans. However, it also shows that there are some, in fact most of them, that will continue to act passively. This goes the same for the humans.

Shubert-Sleepy Hollow vs. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

         Tim Burton’s version of Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow takes many liberties. There are many differences between the movie by Burton and the story by Irving but Burton does incorporate many of Irving’s story’s elements. Firstly, the main character is very different in Burton’s version. Ichabod Crane is described in Irving’s short story to be lanky and unattractive. He is also described as being very superstitious and a schoolteacher. However, Burton changes this in his movie. He cast Johnny Depp as Ichabod and he is not by any means lanky and unattractive. Burton’s Crane is the opposite of superstitious; he is a skeptic and when he is finally coerced into believing in the magic and ghosts, he is very brave. Depp’s Ichabod is not a schoolteacher but a detective. However, Burton does keep the element of Ichabod’s romance with Katrina Van Tassle--though this is not quite the main plot of the movie like it is in the story.

         Furthermore, the ending of the story and movie are very different. While Burton incorporates Irving’s ending into his movie, Burton’s actual ending is much different and much more final. Irving ends his story with Ichabod being chased of by the Headless Horseman and never being seen again. Burton does have Ichabod being chased by the Horseman several times but his Ichabod does not disappear. Irving’s ending is very open-ended and it seems as though the Horseman may never have existed but was merely a ghost tale that Brom used to his advantage to drive Ichabod out of town so that Katrina would not marry him. However, in Burton’s movie the Headless Horseman is very real, well he is a ghost but he is a real character. Burton does, however, show a scene in which Brom dresses up as the Headless Horseman to scare Ichabod but he is not driven away like in Irving’s story. He even incorporates the Headless Horseman throwing the pumpkin at Ichabod into the movie.

         Just like Burton’s Mars Attacks! pays homage to Ed Wood’s Plan 9, it almost seems as though Sleepy Hollow is paying homage to Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Burton changes a lot of the elements of the short story for his movie but still manages to incorporate many in. Burton uses Irving’s characters and plot to not only enhance a horror story, but also to pay homage to Washington Irving and the story it is based on.