There was a time when the idea of a new Tim Burton movie, one that may or may not feature Johnny Depp and/or Helena Bonham Carter, was something that I would have looked forward to. These days, not so much. There have been far too many disappointments from the man, and far too many of his movies are bland, weak narratives based off old concepts that were never his to begin with. Get him on something that actually came from his mind, and it may be worth a look. Otherwise, it’s a lot of weird imagery that isn’t really helping to make a particularly memorable story.
But he still has some good stuff on his IMDB listing that I haven’t seen, so let’s give Corpse Bride a look.
Young Victor (Depp), from a newly wealthy family, is about to get married. He has never met his fiancee Victoria (Emily Watson). She’s from a more aristocratic family that is, currently, broke. Both parents arranged the marriage. Victoria’s parents (Joanna Lumley and Albert Finney) are only interested in the fortune that Victor would bring into the family and the appearance of propriety. Victor’s parents (Tracey Ullman and Paul Whitehouse) are only interested in improving their social position. Neither pair cares much about the happiness of the young couple, though fortunately, both Victor and Victoria seem to like each other when they meet before the rehearsal dinner (even though that’s improper as far as Victoria’s mother is concerned).
However, perhaps because of the fact the pastor was an intimidating, demanding man voiced by Christopher Lee, during the rehearsal, Victor continually screws up his lines and actions, until he runs off to practice his lines in the local forest. During that moment, he puts his wedding ring and asks what he assumes is a tree root to marry him. It isn’t. It’s a corpse of a young woman who died just after her wedding night. Her name is Emily, and she’s voiced by the other Burton mainstay here Helena Bonham Carter. It seems that Emily has decided to accept Victor’s marriage proposal, and that means he has to return to the underworld with her. Emily is a sweet girl all things being equal. She just wants to marry a man whom she assumes loves her. Why else would he propose? Can Victor, a cowardly man in the best of times, find some courage and figure all this out before he has to stay in the world of the dead forever?
Corpse Bride is, of course, an animated film from the same studio that did the animation for the Burton-produced Nightmare Before Christmas, and the design aesthetic is obvious. This afterlife probably wouldn’t look too out of place as a suburb to Jack Skellington’s Halloweentown. It’s also a much more colorful and lively place then the gray land of the living where the only real color seems to come from a blue butterfly Victor releases in the opening minutes of the movie. The living are stuffy, dull, and emotionally repressed for the most part. The dead are welcoming, sing fun songs, and have some color to them. No wonder Victor thinks about staying there.
But really, this one is basically a fairy tale plot which makes sense since the whole thing is based on Russian folk tale Burton learned while he was working on finishing up the production of Nightmare Before Christmas, and it shows. Good wins out, evil is punished, and Victor learns how to be a better person. Sure, it may be a bit gloomier than most animated fairy tales, but it’s a fun kind of gloomy, well-executed with stunning stop motion animation. This is a Tim Burton movie worth watching.
Basically, it’s the opposite of pretty much everything he’s put out over, let’s say, the last five years.
Grade: A-
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