I don't understand the technology that went into making Tim Burton's "Corpse Bride," although it's certainly not for lack of trying. I spent nearly two hours poring over the film's phonebook-size press kit in a vain attempt to comprehend the complicated technology behind this film. This wasn't much help, since the press kit to "Corpse Bride" is denser and more complex than a nuclear physics text. In the plainest, most easily understood terms, the movie is basically one of those old stop-motion movies with souped-up puppets covered in silicone skin, not unlike what Meg Ryan has been wearing for the past five years. So basically, in conclusion, the movie is one very elaborate puppet show. There, I just saved you two hours of research.
Okay, so now that we understand the technology behind the movie, the question is this: is "Corpse Bride" any good? Well, maybe. I think it depends entirely on the person—if you are a movie techie who is bashing his head against the wall over me using the word "puppets" in relation to this movie, you will enjoy this movie. If you're one of the innumerable teenage girls and lonely, middle-aged men who make up the Johnny Depp and Tim Burton fan clubs (respectively), you're going to enjoy this movie. If you don't fall into one of these groups, the movie is a waste of time.
I do not particularly care for Tim Burton's movies, with the exception of "Ed Wood," "Big Fish" and his underrated remake of "Planet of the Apes." For me, he's always been a little too much hat and not nearly enough cattle. His movies are always big on whimsical visuals and short on plot and subtext. Like Terry Gilliam, he makes very pretty movies that are totally uninvolving. I also have a fundamental problem identifying with his characters; Burton cut his teeth on movies about fragile, lonely outsiders. As somebody who prides himself on being callous and the consummate insider, I have trouble with his melancholy message of despair. For a while I'm able to go along and pretend I understand what the hell it is, but there always comes a point when I bump against the fabled Ray Gustini Wall of Ignorance which absolutely prohibits me from moving forward (The Ray Gustini Wall of Ignorance also pops up whenever I try to throw a curveball or listen to a girl talk about "The O.C.").
It is because I do not care for Tim Burton movies that "Corpse Bride" does not work for me. "Corpse Bride" may be the ultimate Tim Burton movie, except it lacks the heart and warmth he brought to "Ed Wood" and "Big Fish." Instead, it pays homage to Burton's overly stylized production design and love of all things weird and macabre. It takes the worst elements of Burton's films (namely the overbearing Danny Elfman score and garish purple, gray and black color scheme) and wallows in them. This is sure to delight the director's hardcore fans, but it alienates everybody else. It's going to take a real diehard fan to enjoy this movie.
The story, about a young squire (voiced by a barely audible Johnny Depp) who inadvertently marries the titular dead body (Helena Bonham Carter, aka Mrs. Tim Burton), is just an excuse for Tim Burton to make a loving tribute to his favorite director: Tim Burton. The plot is so thin that it can barely support the 75-minute running time. It took three screenwriters (including the usually reliable John August) to pad things out. Since the concept is so wan it cannot fundamentally support a feature length film, we are treated to some remarkably underwhelming songs written by Danny Elfman in an attempt to stretch things out. This probably would have been a better idea if we hadn't already had our fill of Elfman's music this past summer in "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory."
The look of the movie is unimpressive, which I think was a byproduct of the claymation. Whereas you can do anything with animation, the rules of physics apply when you are using puppets. Thus, the movie has a stilted, somewhat disjointed feeling to it. It's like watching a real movie with real actors who move at 15/16ths speed.
Burton also makes a mistake with the color scheme. He wants the underworld to look alive and vibrant, but the colors (flat-looking purples, greens and blacks) are insipid and bland. The living world is painted with monochromatic browns and grays. The goal, I suppose, was to make this world look cold and industrial, but instead it just looks muddy. None of Burton's trademark visual playfulness is able to truly come through in such a shoddily rendered environment.
"Corpse Bride" is especially perplexing because it appears to exist in a vacuum. The movie seems to be made for Tim Burton fans and Tim Burton fans alone. Okay, fine, they need entertainment. I'll accept that. But who else is this movie supposed to appeal to after the hardcore Burton fans have had their fill? It's too bleak and bland for kids; if they aren't freaked out by the dancing skeletons, they'll be bored stiff. It's also too thin for older viewers. So where does that leave everyone else? They've got little more than a movie with no logical audience and no logical reason for existing.
It's a vanity project, pure and simple–a classic example of style over substance. It's also the kind of needless flexing that I thought Burton was done with in 2003 after "Big Fish." Alas, Burton has reverted back to his old showy form this year with "Corpse Bride" and his gawd-awful version of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory."
There's nothing wrong with having a unique vision, but if you don't put it to good use in a story that people are actually going to care about, then you're just wasting everybody's time. I'm sorry, but it's true. All the tech-heads and Depp/Burton groupies are going to disagree with me, but deep down they know I'm right. Tim Burton is a talented director who has made good movies and will make good movies in the future. "Corpse Bride” just isn't one of them.
Grade: D
