” Burton’s masterful storytelling skills intertwined with his artistically unique style make this a stylised vision of the ” outsider” story. Using a similar idea to Frankenstein, taking the ” outsider” into a new community and creating havoc, director Tim Burton creates a new outlook on this story by adding his own style and vision. This film can be classified as a fantasy, yet it is also a comedy, and a drama, and a romance. Many threads are thrown into this film, with an overall feel of a fable – something that screenplay author Caroline Thompson says should be understood, but not necessarily believed.
So many elements work so well together in this film, starting with Tim Burton’s artistically stylistic mind. Burton has the talent to come forward with his unique, different vision and create film after film with his alternatively artistic ideas. In Beetlejuice a warped sense of reality can be seen, then in Sleepy Hollow his unique vision emerges with the comically black Headless Horseman and his lair, and then in Planet of the Apes his stylistic retelling of the ’68 story with his own twisted style gives insight into his vivid imagination.
Looking at concept art for his films, you gain an understanding about his aims for his creations, and his vision of the ideas. His unique vision makes many of his films so appealing as they pose different ideas and different visions to the more conventional ideas from a director. Rather than relying totally on CGI (Computer Generated Image) to create these worlds, Burton aims to create as much as possibly using physical elements to create a greater world which his team can then work with. Colleen Atwood, the costume designer for many of Burton’s other films, including Sleepy Hollow, Planet of the Apes, Ed Wood and Mars Attacks! uses her imagination to build on Burton’s concept art.
Atwood’s freedom and creativity aids Burton’s vision and helps tie everything together. Danny Elfman, the master responsible for the score, has also worked with Burton before on films including Pee Wee’s Big Adventure, Batman and Beetlejuice and has the talent to create a moving melodic score that raises the emotions of the audience. The emotion in the score that builds along with the images on the screen makes films such as Edward Scissorhands so powerful in their own melodramatic way.
Colours are used to a large extent to extend the character of the characters, especially with Kim (Winona Ryder). During the ” ice dance” sequence she can be seen in a white dress, symbolising innocence and purity, as this is just after the loss of a mean-spirited person in her life. Her room is filled with rich yellow and golden tones adding a happy and carefree feel to her character. With Edward, his black leather outfit contrasts sharply to his stark white face. These subtle yet meaningful symbols occur throughout the film and add so much to the story. ”
