by Devil_Rising » 10 Sep 2011 21:23
I like Burton. I guess it's kind of a love/hate relationship, really.
As in, for the most part, I've at least REALLY liked, if not loved, a good portion of his own, original works. On the other hand, I've pretty much hated all of his adaptations, with little exception. I guess a basic rundown of his films for me:
Pee-Wee's Big Adventure - Love it. It's classic. I actually never realized til later that it came BEFORE the show.
Beetlejuice - Love it also. Great actors, good story, very weird and memorable film.
Batman - In a world PRE-Christopher Nolan Batman, I would have said this was the best Batman film ever made, simply by virtue of the fact that it WAS the best, before Batman Begins and The Dark Knight came along. Now? I look back at it, and I just think the fact that he openly admits he is not a comic fan shines through...because in a lot of ways, it just really doesn't match the Batman comics. From the way Keaton portrays Bruce Wayne, to some of the things Batman does (wrecklessly, basically killing badguys, something he never does), the black Harvey Dent, the backstory with Joker killing the Wayne's, etc. It's not a bad movie. It's just that as a Batman movie goes, now that I've seen Nolan's work, it's not that GOOD either. Still worth watching. Just not as good.
Edward Scissorhands - Decent Film. Used to like it much more as a teenager. It still holds up, but I personally wouldn't call it one of his BEST works.
Batman Returns - Honestly worse than the first one. I used to think the opposite as a kid. But again, going back and seeing it now, it doesn't hold up. It's MORE "Tim Burton" and even LESS "Batman" than the first film. The Penguin, while Danny DeVito does a fantastic job with what he's given, is just totally wrong, the way they portray Catwoman is kind of stupid (though GREAT compared to the Berry film), more careless Batman killing, and just more....Burton-esque nonsense that works great in HIS creations, but not in someone else's. Again, not a BAD film, but really not that great either.
The Nightmare Before Christmas - I honestly don't even totally consider this a Tim Burton film, except that he did have so much to do with it, creatively. Henry Selick is a great stop-motion film animator/director, and I've liked all his work. In a way I consider this more "his" film, but Burton's fingerprints are still there. And regardless, it IS one of my favorite films of all time. Pure classic.
Ed Wood - THIS, is a fantastic and very underrated (and probably unknown) film. It's about the infamous director of Plan 9 From Outer Space, among other films, and the way Burton treats it, the way Depp portrays him as such an earnest, if not talented filmmaker, it's really cool, especially if you're a film buff. Very entertaining movie nonetheless, and I'd say, one of Burton's best works.
Mars Attacks - Again, his weird ideas WORK, when it's his own stuff. It's totally a love letter to classic sci-fi films, which I love, because I'm a big fan of those old movies. So it works really well. Besides, it has a great cast.
Sleepy Hollow - I was totally psyched for this film before it's release, because I've always loved the story, and I dug someone doing a serious take on it. However, the finished product was, to me.....I don't know. Just not what I wanted from Sleepy Hollow I suppose. Depp was good, as usual, the cinematography, sets, visuals in general were really well done. I suppose the one thing that I really don't like about this film, was the extra background story that he came up with for it. I totally expected him to have to fill in some blanks, do his own take or whatever, that's fine. I guess I just didn't much care for his take, is all. The whole witch thing, the background for the Horsemen and how he was being controlled the whole time, etc. It just wasn't my cup of tea.
Planet of the Apes - Not a fan at all. I love the original film, and it's one of those things that "it didn't need to be remade". As in shouldn't have been. His take on it, again, I just didn't care for.
Big Fish - This movie came out of nowhere and surprised me. I had no desire to see it, expected it to not be very good, then saw it at a friends' house eventually, and what do you know? It was actually pretty good. And again, it works, because his cooky ideas WORK in his own, original stuff.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - This movie never had a chance with me. I grew up with the books, and LOVED (still love) the Gene Wilder film from the 70s. It was classic, HE was iconic as the character. I got dragged by a friend to see this in the theater, otherwise I wouldn't have bothered. There was pretty much nothing I liked about it. I thought Depp was a terrible choice as Wonka, and the whole backstory of his dad being a dentist and THAT'S why he became a candyman....was stupid. Part of Wonka's charm was that he was an enigma. Just in general, the out of place music in the film, etc. etc.....like I said, this movie never had a chance with me. For good reasons. I wish I'd never seen it.
And I have not bothered seeing any of his more recent films. Alice in Wonderland most especially, for the same reasons I wouldn't have originally bothered seeing Wonka. So like I said, it's a love hate relationship. He's made movies that I honestly love, like Beetlejuice, Nightmare, and Ed Wood. And then he's made some adaptations that I absolutely HATE, like Apes, Charlie, and just by proxy, Alice.
But all in all, he IS a very good director, and I like his work in general. I just wish he'd stay away from adaptations.
then definitely add Batman to that list. I like Batman Returns, just not nearly as much... Still can't believe he put is name on Forever, though... 
