Frankenweenie

In New Holland, the boy Victor Frankenstien is a bright but outcast student without any friend but his dog Sparky. When the newcomer science teacher Mr. Rzykruski challenges the students to participate in the science fair, Victor's father forces him to play baseball otherwise he would not sign the necessary authorization for his son.

During the game, Sparky chases the ball and is hit by a car. Victor recalls Mr. Rzykruski's class about the effects of electricity and successfully resuscitates Sparky using lightning. Victor hides Sparky in the attic but the weird Edgar sees the dog on the garden and blackmails Victor to learn how to bring the dead to life. Edgar does not keep the secret and soon Victor's envious schoolmates revive several creatures to win the science fair contest. When the town is invaded by the monsters, Victor and Sparky are the last chance to rescue the girl Elsa van Helsing from the claws of Mr. Whiskers.

"Frankenweenie" is another stop-motion animation by Tim Burton in black and white with a great tribute to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein with a happy ending. The story is actually an adorable tale of loyalty and friendship and it is delightful to see the frolic of Sparky. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Frankenweenie"

In 1984, when Tim Burton worked for Disney made a short film called Frankenweenie, which tells the story of Victor, a boy who after losing his dog Sparky in an accident decides to bring him back to life in the purest Frankenstein style, without considering the consequences this may cause. This work helps us to understand the basics of Burton's thematic and visual style, which became his trademark over the years: dark worlds with isolated and/or solitary characters faced to the reality of the world that confronts or rejects them.

It is almost 30 years later and a streak of quite irregular films that Burton returns to his roots and decided to resume the story of Frankenweenie to make an animated feature making use of the stop- motion technique, with which he created some of his best works such as the Nightmare Before Christmas and Corpse Bride, and Frankenweenie is no exception, as it represents a return to the best films of Burton.

On this occasion the original story remains intact and makes a bigger emphasis on the impact of the resurrection of Sparky among Victor's friends and as they'll try to emulate the feat with catastrophic results for the small town they live in. Likewise, the relationship between Victor and Elsa, her neighbor and school crush is explored, through which a great reference to The Bride of Frankenstein is made, although it'snot the only one, since along the film there are winks to classic monsters movies from the 30's as the Mummy, Creature from Black Lagoon, Cabinet of Dr. Cagliari and even classic monsters like Godzilla. And the film itself is a homage to this cinema being filmed in black and white and with music in perfect tone by Danny Elfman (Burton's closest collaborator).

An innate quality of Burton is the skill to create endearing characters out of the dark and grotesque and the best example of it is Sparky, a little dog now part of the most adorable creations on the burtonian universe, and that somehow reflects many of elements or themes that have remained constant in most of Burton's filmography: childhood, loneliness, friendship and a strange fixation with death and what happens after this.

Excepting the end that seems to betray the original concept, it is safe to say that Burton needs to do more films like Frankenweenie and much less like Alice in Wonderland.

Frankenweenie (2012)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Tim Burton's excellent remake of his 1984 short about a young boy who suffers a heartbreaking loss when his dog is ran over and killed by a car. Inspired by a science experience, the young boy decides to use electricity to bring him back to life. FRANKENWEENIE was a pretty big disappointment at the box office but I guess this type of storyline would be a hard sell to certain parents plus the B&W might scare off a few as well. I can honestly say that this here is the best thing Burton has done in years as it really reminded me of his earlier days where the imagination was all over the place and it really delivered some fun, laughs and great emotion. I really, really loved the original movie and I really didn't think it would work when expanded to a longer running time but Burton and screenwriter John August has done a very good job with this. I think what makes this one so special are the various homages to earlier horror movies like BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN, FRANKENSTEIN and there's no question that the scientist here is a homage to Vincent Price and we even got a great way to show off Christopher Lee. The entire look of the film is excellent as well because you really do feel as if you're watching a horror movie from their Golden Age because the sets are incredible, the humans are wonderful and once the animals start to come back at the end you can't help but smile. I really liked the way the other kids started to copy our hero here and we're left with a monster mash at the end including a giant turtle, which is obviously a wink to the Godzilla films. Catherine O'Hara, Martin Landau, Martin Short and Winona Ryder are all extremely good in their vocal work as is Charlie Tahan as the young boy. FRANKENWEENIE is certainly a terrific little gem that I think will play extremely well with the right child and of course the parents are really going to enjoy not only the charm but also the respect towards the films that came before it.

With its cute, yet, decidedly creepy-looking characters, and all, I thought that Frankenweenie was a pretty darn good "Mad Scientist" story that's sure to be a hit with audiences of all ages.

Containing some very nice touches of warped humor, grotesque horror and several arousing moments of pathos (cleverly injected into its weird, but oddly wonderful, little tale), Frankenweenie has proved, once again, that director Tim Burton still has the master's touch when it comes to making stop-motion, animated films that seem to emerge from the very depths of the dark-side.

If nothing else, Frankenweenie certainly turned out to be a lovingly-charged homage to a variety of classic horror, monster, and Sci-Fi pictures from those glorious days of yesteryear.

All-in-all, Frankenweenie certainly had its share of flaws, but, just the same, I certainly hadn't expected to enjoy this film as much as I did.

Appropriately filmed in b&w, thank goodness that it didn't contain any musical numbers.

If anywhere there was a braver ending needed, it's here. Kids could have learned that life is but fleeting, we all suffer heartbreak sooner or later, say goodbye to the ones we love... This is an important lesson indeed. But, no. In the interest of a few mums and dads having to tolerate some waterworks on the way home from the cinema, Burton decides to go for what is essentially a cop out. Rather cowardly, if you ask me.

The whole film has the feel of an old B movie (but is set in the present day) as it is shot entirely in black and white and contains more than one horror reference. Spookiness pervades the atmosphere, as Danny Elfman's Gothic score meanders in the background like a funeral march. Poor Victor loses his dog, and his mourning and subsequent resurrection of his pet carries real emotion weight.

This doesn't last though, as the plot stretches to Victor's classmates experimenting on other deceased creatures, turning them into freaks of nature that invade the town. This is an arresting spectacle, but a betrayal of what transpired before... turning the movie from a personal tale about a boy and his half-dead canine, into an OTT monster movie. It feels like a different film, and not one that matched up to the poignant first half.

Not for one minute would I suggest I could tell Mr Burton how to do his job. But I think less action, and more storytelling would have improved the final reel no end... As well as a more courageous conclusion. Oh well, everyone's a critic (Most don't enunciate their thoughts as well as I do, though)... ;) 6/10