Director: Tim Burton, Mike Johnson
Starring, the voices of: Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Emily Watson, Tracey Ullman, Paul Whitehouse, Joanna Lumley, Albert Finney, Richard E. Grant, Christopher Lee

- Reviewed by Vickie

If Tim Burton decided to abandon live-action filmmaking for a career in animation, I’d say, “Bravo!” The wild-haired director is, in my opinion, one of both genres’ most inventive and imaginative artists, as this latest offering proves.

Reminiscent of 1960s holiday specials like Jack Frost and Santa Claus is Coming to Town (not to mention Burton’s own seasonal outing The Nightmare Before Christmas) in tone and style, Corpse Bride tells a surprisingly poignant tale of mismatched love. Victor (voiced by Johnny Depp) is a nervous, nebbish man whose social-climber parents arrange for him to marry the wealthy Victoria (voiced by Emily Watson). But a panicked pre-wedding walk through the woods to rehearse his oft-bungled vows inadvertently lands Victor a wife… in the form of a delighted corpse (voiced by Helena Bonham Carter) who’d assumed his declaration of love and devotion was directed at her, and who springs up to say, “I do!”

Whisked into the land of the dead, Victor is soon faced with a difficult choice—abandon the world of the living for a new life below ground, or leave his loving-but-decaying new bride and return to a potentially unhappy life above.

Wonderfully whimsical and overflowing with creative genius, Corpse Bride is a retro-reminder that animated films don’t require pop-culture references or snarky humor to be successful. All they need is good storytelling and engaging characters, which this film has in spades. The art direction is, not surprisingly, top notch, and Burton’s unique stamp is on every bone, in every corner and dangling from even the smallest cobweb. It’s undeniably charming and, for a movie about corpses, sentimental and sweet. Even its requisite musical numbers work nicely and show off the wonders of stop-motion animation.

At a trim 78 minutes, the film is compact, but manages to have a great deal of heart crammed into its sparse running time. Having said that, be warned those of you who cry easily: pack a tissue for the end. You’ll no doubt need it for Corpse Bride’s touching final scene.

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