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Sleepy Hollow

Sleepy Hollow

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Dark Fairy Tale
Review: This is Burton at his best. A dark atmospheric tale: stunning visuals combining with a masterful soundtrack from Danny Elfman.

Who has been decapitating dignatories in the village of Sleepy Hollow? The authorities send in Ichabod Crane, a leading edge (well for the 19th Century) forensic expert and nuisance. The character is wonderfully played by Johnny Depp: a twitchy and effete character initialy out of his depth but later to find steely resolve.

As you would expect layer upon layer of intrigue and mystery is played out by some great characters. Michael Gambon, Miranda Richardson, Christopher Walken, Ian McDiarmid, Cristina Ricci, Michael Gough amongst others bring this bleak tale a quirky humour and darkness that is absolute Burton.

For being a tale about a headless horsemen decapitating his way through a village most of it is surprisingly goreless (imagine what Peckinpah or Woo would do) although there are many scenes not for the faint hearted - particularly towards the end.

This is rocking good fun and although the DVD does not really contain much else, the movie's plus points make it a good buy.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A really good horror flick by Tim Burton
Review: I liked this movie because I like Tim Burton a lot, and that may make the difference between did you like it or did you not like it? Johnny Depp and Christina Ricci did a really good job, and Christopher Walken (I think that's his name) also did a really good job playing the Headless Horseman. (with his head on, of course. When he didn't have his head it was all a stunt man.) Besides for the gruesome decapitations, it was all in all pretty good. (but then, gross killings are Burton's style.) Added to the fantastc soundtrack by Elfman it made a stupendously good film. I would recommend this movie to anyone who hasn't seen it. And if you can, see it on DVD. It's got special features on it that aren't on VHS.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Ugh
Review: Never mind that this movie only borrows the names and some story elements from Irving's book and ignores the story. That's fine, if Burton could come up with a good story to replace it with. Burton fails epicly, creating a nightmare that is so unbelievablly conventional you'd swear it was directed by commitee. Worse still, Burton manages to get nothing out of his talented cast: Depp fidgits his way through the film, Ricci is utterly forgetable, and Walken--a man who is almost by his very nature terrifying to watch--manages to be completely unfrightning, screaming like a fool in scenes that would be comical if they weren't pathetic.

"Sleepy Hollow" is at the heart of it all the most expensive B-movie ever made. Burton, substitutes decapitations for chills having someone graphically and unrealisticly beheaded everytime he wants to frighten his audience, but the cheap plastic heads that litter the ground in this film only remind the viewer that this is hollywood not the town of Sleepy Hollow.

And Burton's much praised visuals are merely dark. Never are they actually moving or fightening. Burton seems convinced that if he washes the color out of all his scenes this will automaticly create atmosphere.

Burton, sleep walks though his role as director and jeopardizes his reputation as an inovative film maker. One moment when I just threw up my hands was when a (supossedly) emotion and tense scene between Depp and Ricci draws to a close and she leeps on her horse to ride away. Before she takes off, her horse rears up and nays a la Silver. It was that moment I realized this film wasn't just bad it was nothing more than a endless string of movie cliches, many of which weren't all that inovative the first time we saw them.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Could have been worse
Review: Okay, I went to see it. I like Johnny Depp. I like Tim Burton. I wanted to finally figure out who Casper Van Dien is. And, though he's uncredited (at least, until the end credits, that I noticed), I love Christopher Walken. So why was I so underwhelmed with this movie?

Point 1: What made the Blair Witch Project so effective? 1. Lack of musical score. 2. Lack of musical score. 3. Lack of musical score. Is it me, or is Danny Elfman starting to repeat himself these days? I could have sworn I'd heard a number of parts of this soundtrack in other Burton flicks. (Point for the devil's advocate-- this may be par for the course in Hollywood; if the previews are anything like the film, you can expect The Green Mile to have the same soundtrack as The Shawshank Redemption.) Pieces of it are just plain overblown. Not the whole thing; there are times, as always, when Elfman's music is creepily effective, but more often than not it gets loud, melodramatic, and annoying.

Point 2: I have a thing against any movie that requires someone to stand up, pace, and explain the whole thing at the end. The idea of a good mystery is that enough clues are given you so that you can figure it out for yourself, if you have the quickness of wit and aren't being distracted by a theater full of crying children (which I was). And make no mistake, the clues are there to be found. However, no context is given them. At the end, when the clues are pieced together so you figure all this out, the clues are flashed back on the screen. But in every case save one, you see more in the flashbacks than you did in the actual scenes. Not good, not good at all.

Point 3, and I'll admit this is a personal preference: Christina Ricci doesn't sound right with an affected new-world-British accent. Period.

Point 4, and it's even more naggy-stupid-personal: they found the single ugliest child in the human race to play Ichabod as a kid. Holy cow. He's out of one of those nineteenth-century portraits where the kids' heads are five times too large for their bodies and no one ever smiles. Now we know why-- they all had teeth that look like his. Ugh.

Sure, there's good stuff to be said. Walken, Walken, Walken, Johnny Depp, a fine cameo by Christopher Lee (with two minutes of screen time, one wonders why he's in the opening credits), Van Dien, and for that matter most of the villagers; the gore factor is done with an eye to humor, and many of the film's laughs come at its bloodiest moments; Burton's sense of the fantastic and silly is as perfectly-honed as always. I just wish it had come off as a better mystery.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A Classic Tale Brought to the screen by a Talented Director
Review: Everyone who has at least been through middle school knows of the legend of sleepy hollow. And this film version, brought to the screen by the very talented Tim Burton, brings Sleepy Hollow to life the way it should be. Although somewhat gory at times, which you have to expect if "heads are going to roll", the gore is not glorified. Johnny Depp and the very talented Christina Ricci play the lead roles and quite convincingly also. One of those few movies that actually take the original classic story and bring it to life without tarnishing it. GRADE: A-

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Creepy As Hell!
Review: I'm not really into horror movies, but I couldn't resist this movie while it sat there on the rental shelf.

While on the way home, I figured this movie was going to be a rather cheesey, keep-the-gore-to-a-minimum and don't try to scare the kiddies type movie.

I've never been more wrong. It's rated "R" for a reason, and that reason is some of the creepiest and most chilling story telling ever to hit your TV.

If you got kids, don't let them watch this. There's no sense everybody in the household having troubled sleep.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Perfect telling of a great tale - and stunning DVD transfer!
Review: Tim Burton doesn't waste a single frame - every moment advances the storytelling. Compares favorably to "Bram Stoker's Dracula" in that both artfully blend gothic horror with a certain lightness of mood and humor that keep the viewer absorbed at all times. Design, cinematography, effects, audio - a feast! Plus, the very rich DVD transfer "shows off" what this format can do. "Making of" documentary greatly enhances enjoyment. Absolutely loved.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: There is a town upstate , two days north of the Hudson River
Review: called "Sleepy Hollow". Have You Heard of it? If not ,then get going. This was Burton's big chance to show off his creativity . Elfman scored up the scene with his loud notes. Depp was perfect for the role with his boyish look , but Christina did't fit so well. This movie is great for anybody who isn't well with horror movies , but is fond of funny and maybe a little scary. See this movie!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excellent visuals & cinematography, and a good story to boot
Review: All I'll say about the movie is that is was entertaining, scary, good, what makes this movie excellent is the techniques Burton used. The movie is almost in black & white. This makes the splashes of color in the movie that much more powerful and visually stunning. If not just to get the movie for the story, get it for the cinematography.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Sleepy Hollow certainly won't make you drowsy...
Review: In this wonderful new film adaption of the classic story, Tim Burton continues his eerie but tasteful career in the strange. Sleepy Hollow continues his tradition of creepy, slightly offbeat movies full of suspense and fear.

The story in this movie itself flows along at a nice pace, never slowing down too much, and includes many twists along the way. The mood set by the movie is dark and moody, but it never becomes too moody to enjoy. Johnny Depp, who plays Ichabod Crane, does a great job playing his part- his character is professional, though often ends up looking funny (including the many times he gets blood spurted in his face). Christina Ricci does a good job playing a common townsgirl who is also slightly suspicious seeming.

One of the things that makes this movie so appealing is the new special effects that add to this already strong movie. They enhance the visual experience, making this a good scary (but not too scary) movie to see.


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