While most children watch Charlie Brown and the gang for their annual Christmas cheer, I relished in Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas. I thought Jack Skellington’s vision of getting the ghouls and goblins of Halloween Town to celebrate Christmas was fascinating, and I loved the songs! I distinctly remember my parents saying “well that was weird…” when the credits rolled and thinking it was fantastic! No, I may not have been the most normal six-year-old in the group, but I sure did love Tim Burton movies.
Which is why while reading the November 2009 issue of Vanity Fair magazine, I was delighted to find in Fanfair on page 96 Aaron Gell’s “Death Becomes Him: MoMA Celebrates the Dark Artistry of Tim Burton.” According to Gell, from November 22 to April 26, the Museum of Modern Art will feature a gallery and film exhibition of Burton’s work. Aptly titled “Tim Burton,” the exhibition will include Burton’s 14 feature films, 700 pieces of art, home-made shorts from his teen years, and Disney Channel’s 1983 Hansel and Gretel.
I cannot think of a director more deserving of a MoMA exhibit, and to showcase an artist so creative is sure to create a stunning exhibition. Unfortunately, I also cannot think of a way to get to the MoMA, so I’ve created a blogpost to highlight some of the director/writer/producer’s work for us non-N.Y. locals.
Since Burton has quite a resume, here are some of my favourite features:
Edward Scissorhands (1990)
Starring: Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder, Dianne Wiest, Anthony Michael Hall
Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands is a modernization of Mary Shelley’s monster in Frankenstein.
When a brilliant inventor creates Edward (Depp), he only has one final touch to add: Edward’s hands. As the inventor is about to attach Edward’s hands, he dies, leaving the creation with nothing but a pair of lengthy scissors as fingers.
Poor Edward is left isolated in the inventor’s hilltop mansion, feeling desperately alone until a nice lady named Peg (Wiest) meets the gentle man.
Peg invites Edward to live in her home, and he quickly falls in love with her daughter, Kim (Ryder). Unfortunately, the scissorhanded man cannot help but get into all sorts of trouble, finding himself in the same shunned position as Victor Frankenstein’s monster.
But will Edward avoid the same fate?
View the trailer below…
Beetlejuice (1988)
Starring: Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis
“Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice!” What child didn’t love the antics that the rebellious Beetlejuice got himself into? He was always acting out and always getting scolded, which is probably why kids adore the character.
I myself loved the children’s cartoon, and being too young to have watched the film in theatres, I remember renting the video cassette and giggling away at dear ole’ Beetlejuice’s antics.
The film features Adam (Baldwin) and Barbara (Davis) Maitland, who, after being killed in a car crash, become ghosts in their New England home. When a yuppie couple moves in, the Maitland’s grow concerned with the new resident’s modern taste.
Trying to scare the new homeowners away, the Maitland’s attempt at being spooky ghosts, but their efforts are unsuccessful. Hoping to get the family out, the Maitland’s turn to a rambunctious ghost named Beetlejuice (Keaton) to do the deed.
View the trailer below…
Big Fish (2003)
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Albert Finney, Billy Crudup, Jessica Lange, Alison Lohman
I adore the movie Big Fish. It is magical, eccentric and heart-warmingly sweet. It is a tale about love and believing, and it truly is a wonderful film.
Will Bloom (Crudup) thinks his father is a liar. Growing up, Ed Bloom (Finney) told his son outrageous tales of his youth, and now that Will is all grown up, he believes his dad is full of it.
But when Ed Bloom faces his last moments as he dies of cancer, Will visits after years of silence to piece together the truth of his father’s life. Ed Bloom’s tales of wonderment cannot possibly be true, can they?
The father’s mystical stories come to life in flashbacks of his younger days (McGregor) gallivanting from adventure to adventure.
Big Fish is the sentimental bond between father-and-son. It is a sweet movie for any age, and is far adrift from Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas, with its beautiful sets and cute costumes.
View the trailer below…
The MoMA “Tim Burton” exhibition is sure to be fascinating to fans of the eccentric artist. Reading his impressive list of films, I realize I have a few DVDs to rent (Hansel and Gretel for starters!) Burton’s latest project, Alice in Wonderland, is expected to be released in 2010 and I for one am hoping to see it at an IMAX.