Aylmer to Zazzoo and Beyond: Frankenweenie

Sunday, October 7, 2012

Frankenweenie

Frankenweenie
(2012)
Comedy | Animation | Horror
87 min.

Rated: PG
Grade: B+

Director: Tim Burton
Writers: John August (screenplay), Tim Burton (characters), and 3 more credits »
Stars: Winona Ryder, Catherine O'Hara and Martin Short, Charlie Tahan| See full cast and crew

From creative genius Tim Burton comes Frankenweenie, a heartwarming tale about a boy and his dog. After unexpectedly losing his beloved dog Sparky, young Victor harnesses the power of science to bring his best friend back to life-with just a few minor adjustments. He tries to hide his home-sewn creation, but when Sparky gets out, Victor's fellow students, teachers and the entire town all learn that getting a new "leash on life" can be monstrous. A stop-motion animated film, Frankenweenie will be filmed in black and white and rendered in 3D, which will elevate the classic style to a whole new experience. -- (C) Disney

Frankenweenie is a remake of Tim Burton's 1984 short film which starred Shelley Duvall
Daniel Stern and Barret Oliver (buy it here) of the same name and is a parody of and an homage to the 1931 film Frankenstein based on Mary Shelley's book of the same name. It is a black-and-white stop motion family fantasy film about a boy named Victor who loses his dog, named Sparky and uses the power of science to resurrect him. It is presented in 2D (the version that I saw) and 3D and is the first stop-motion film to be released in IMAX 3D. Disney has released a book/ibook version (available here).

Frankenweenie tells the story of young Victor Frankenstein (Charlie Tahan) who lives in the suburban town of New Holland. Victor is a boy with two passions in life: science, and his dog, Sparky. There is a big science fair coming up which Victor has plans for the winning entry. His parents however (voices of Martin Short and Catherine O’Hara), would like to see him on the baseball field with other boys. He placates his parents and joins the team, but the result of this misguided “experiment” is the sad demise of poor little Sparky.

Being a 'man of science', Victor can not simply accept the loss of his loyal companion – he has the mind and the ways and means to resurrect Sparky from the dead. When one mixes life, death and science the combination can have unexpected consequences. When the word gets out about Victor’s experiment a nightmarish chain of events unfold that could spell the end for the town of New Holland.

Frankenweenie is the latest film from Tim Burton and is arguably his best film in years. Far and away a cut above and beyond his recent live-action works like Dark Shadows and Alice In Wonderland. The major difference in the passion and soul and much more so than in the technique.

In Frankenweenie Burton’s passion for the material shows through, the entire time. The simple story of a little boy and his dog builds a unique, very Burton-esque world around that simple core, and populates it with fun quirky characters and Gothic humor.

The film recalls the magic of Burton ’80s-era films like Beetlejuice - a fine balance of dark humor and twisted imagination. Frankenweenie is sort of a cross between Edward Scissorhands (a satirical vision of 1950s-era American culture); Corpse Bride (stop-motion animation using elongated, Gothic-style figures); and some ’50s-era sketch comedy thrown, creating something that distinctly Burton, engaging and genuinely fun.

The script, a collaboration with John August (Big Fish, Corpse Bride), and homage to a multitude of classic horror films, comedic acts (like Abbot and Costello), and even some modern sci-fi and/or horror flicks. The characters are funny, lively, unique. This is Tim Burton at his best, his direction is technically sound and delightfully imaginative.

Tim Burton's brand of imagination and design combined with the ’50s-era black and white filmmaking, is eclectic yet strangely harmonious. Frankenweenie is a welcome departure in both style and substance from the recent rash of cookie cutter CGI animated films belched out by Hollywood with great regularity. The visual gags, tthe wordplay, insider jokes based on cinematic allusion and homages. While the film's humor is surprisingly sharp and witty and is targeted more at moviephiles than young children, Frankenweenie is still highly appropriate for the little ones.

Cast