Movie Column: Tim Burton's Recurring Nightmare

(andPOP) - Corpse Bride came out in wide release this weekend, and if there were ever a movie worth devoting an entire column to, it would be this one.

Directed by Tim Burton, and starring the voices of Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter, Corpse Bride is a stop motion animated morbid romantic comedy, about a man who gets caught between two brides, one of whom happens to be dead.

When I first saw the trailer for Corpse Bride, I was aghast. Not because it looked terribly scary or bad, but because such a movie has already been made.

Back in 1993, The Nightmare Before Christmas was released; also stop motion animation, also about ghosts, ghouls, and skeletons, and Burton was also closely involved with that project. The most significant difference between the two movies is that Burton did not actually direct Nightmare.

Despite the fact that he produced it, and despite the fact that on the movie box the title is ?Tim Burton?s Nightmare Before Christmas,? Burton didn?t actually direct it.

Many mainstream reviewers initially panned Nightmare; it was based on a children?s book by Burton, but it was seen as too dark for children, and too juvenile for anyone else.
Nevertheless, over time it gained a strong following for it?s incredible images and musical numbers. Today there?s everything from Nightmare Before Christmas purses to Nightmare Before Christmas cigarette cases.

It?s reached the realm of cult classic, and many fans list it as their favourite Burton movie ? except that he didn?t actually direct it.

In fairness, he was a producer on the project and apparently very hands-on in the filmmaking process. The movie reeks of his visual style, and most people, myself included, would consider it a Burton film.

However, the very fact that he made Corpse Bride tells me that he wasn?t completely satisfied.

Somewhere deep down, Burton must have been kicking himself for not actually going the whole hog and directing Nightmare, and the fact that it became so popular just added insult to injury.

So Burton called up his old cronies: Johnny Depp who has been in five Burton films, Helena Bonham Carter who?s been in four, and Danny Elfman who has composed the music for a whopping nine Burton projects.

With the Burton A Team assembled, and with Mike Johnson (a stop motion animation expert who worked on James and the Giant Peach, which Burton produced,) signed on as co-director, things were ready to get underway.

Finally, Burton could have his stop motion masterpiece, and this time he would be the director.

So after all of that, the big question is: ?Is Corpse Bride any good??

Yes.

Corpse Bride is technically proficient in almost every way, it is engaging to the audience and it is visually stunning.

The musical numbers are fun and frequent, there are endless morbid puns that you can?t help but laugh at, and did I mention that it?s visually stunning?
There are some flaws.

Depp is underutilized as an actor; the characters are largely undeveloped; and the plot often seems nonexistent.
That being said, let me be perfectly clear: there is absolutely nothing wrong with Corpse Bride, it is a wonderful movie, and it is totally worth the trip to the theatre and the $10 ticket.

But it?s not the Nightmare Before Christmas.

Nightmare had that unbelievable shot where Jack Skellington is standing on that scrolling hill, silhouetted by the moon. That shot, and a couple of other equally iconic ones from Nightmare are what really cemented its status as a timeless classic.

Corpse Bride is great, but it?s not timeless, and it?s not iconic.

What makes matters worse is that since Nightmare has already been around for ten years, Corpse Bride doesn?t seem original or fresh.

Sorry Tim, but I don?t think you?ll ever be able to take back the fact that you weren?t listed as director on Nightmare Before Christmas.

I?m sure there are people out there who will accuse me of doing something terrible by comparing Corpse Bride and Nightmare at all.

They may have a valid point.

They?re separate movies, and considered individually, they?re both superb.

But if I didn?t compare them, I?d have nothing to write about.