Sleepy Hollow

Sleepy Hollow

Tim Burton is one of those directors I really want to like, but to me his ideas always fall a bit short. I go into his movies wanting to love them, but come away pulling at chin hairs trying to figure out just what it was about the movie I didn't like.

"Sleepy Hollow" is one of those that I saw the photos of in Fangoria and got very excited. The only thing holding back pure excitement for me was the whole Tim Burton thing. He never seems to take his material seriously. There is always that underlying "I am an artist, but I LOVE Bugs Bunny and Tex Avery, so here is my tribute to that" type of thing going on. I'm sure most of you understand in your own way what I am trying to say. We all have the same feelings about his work, we all just have different reactions to it.

I went to the theatres that night, and fell in love with this movie. I finally got to love one of his movies, and that made me very happy! I must say though, he had help from a great cast. Plus that damned eye for detail and scenery he has finally paid off.

The story is about police constable Ichabod Crane (Johnny Depp in yet another brilliant piece of work) being sent to the town of Sleepy Hollow to investigate a string of decapitations. There he meets Katrina Van Tassel (the stunning Christina Ricci), the daughter of the main guy in town. From there we are introduced to the rest of the town and we are lead through a string of events and lead down many paths, never really finding out just what the heck is going on until the end.

The movie does work in the classic style horror film way that everybody has mentioned. Oddly enough though, I still have yet to hear anybody mention (not even Burton mentions it in his docmentary) that the ending is a HUGE tip of the hat to Hammer and Universal with the burning windmill. Just how many of these films had this? Instead for some reason in the documentary they make it sound as if this is a new idea. But that is a minor complaint. More of an observation really.

The look of the DVD is beautiful. The sound just as beautiful. The whole package is stunning. In the time since getting it, it has become a mainstay in my player. I got four other movies at the same time, and yet none of them have recieved the play that this one has been awarded. Heck, none of the others have Christina Ricci looking this amazing though, so that may have something to do with it.

The extras are great also. I have heard a few complaints about Burtons commentary not being all that great. My thought is that I think we are getting greedy with this sort of thing. How easy can it be to sit and try to explain your movie and keep the discussion non-stop. At some point the person is bound to get a bit wrapped up in the movie. Or for that matter, there has to be a time when there just isn't anything to say.

All of the behind the scenes stuff is great. I just wish there was more of Christopher Lee. The same stories get mentioned a few times, but the whole thing is great

So that is it. All in all this is a very good movie presented in a beautiful way. The picture is perfect and the script pretty solid. If you enjoyed the movie in the theaters, you will love this treatment and it should make its way into your collection. If you have yet to see it, feel safe in a rental. The only reason why I don't say to just run out and buy this is that it is a Tim Burton film. His stuff is never for everyone.

This little film gets a **** rating from me. That is all of the extras and movie combined.


 
Directed by Tim Burton
Released by Paramount
Running time - approx 105 mins
Region 1 - Rated R
Ratio - Widescreen 1.85:1 (Anamorphic)
Audio - Dolby Digital 5.1 - English & French
Subtitles - English
Extras : Commentary With Director Tim Burton
"Behind The Legend" Featurette
Cast & Crew Interviews
2 Theatrical Trailers
Cast Biographies
Photo Gallery
Review by Carl R Isonhart
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