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Reviews
Corpse Bride (2005)
"Corpse Bride" awakens art of stop-motion animation
Tim Burton's visually stunning debut into the world of stop-motion animation (otherwise known as "claymation") was 1993's "The Nightmare Before Christmas", a meticulously crafted masterpiece that re-invigorated the genre.
Burton's latest foray in claymation, "Corpse Bride", is as darkly funny, and as visually appealing, as it predecessor. The plot is simple, if overly so: timid Victor Van Dort (Johnny Depp), one day shy from marrying his fiancée, the equally demure Victoria Everglot (Emily Watson), accidentally weds a dead woman upon practicing his vows in a forest. Placing a wedding ring on what he believes to be a twig, a horrified Victor watches as a beautiful, blue-tinged, wedding gown-clad corpse emerges from the ground. "You may now kiss the bride!" she proclaims with glee. Complications of a mistaken marriage ensue, with Victor's frantic attempts to return to his beloved.
As the voice of the film's title character, actress Helena Bonham Carter makes the most of her playful delivery and impish giggle. Johnny Depp and Emily Watson portray their characters with a hint of yearning, and as the Maggot, Scottish actor Enn Reitel jokingly pays tribute to actor Peter Lorre of "Casablanca" fame.
In addition to the Lorre reference, the film provides an abundance of homage to films of present and yesteryear. Among the spoofed are "Gone with the Wind", Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds", "Forrest Gump", "and Victor/Victoria".
Danny Elfman's original score is as whimsical as it is sinister, perfectly enhancing the chaos amid the characters' surroundings. The musical numbers, at times incoherent, still give the viewer a good jolt of toe-tapping energy.
As a feature film, "Corpse Bride's" 76-minute run-time should be acknowledged as an amazing feat, considering the painstaking efforts put forth by Burton and his team of animators. A 12-hour workday produced just two seconds of footage for the film, and the completed animation for "Corpse Bride" took nearly three years to finish. The result is a brief but altogether satisfying movie experience.
It Happened One Night (1934)
Timeless in its appeal.
Classic romantic comedy featuring Academy Award-winning performances from Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert.
Colbert plays a runaway, recently married heiress; Gable is an out-of- work newspaper reporter looking for a story. The two meet on a bus to New York and, through a strange course of events, fall in love.
Great direction and screenplay, with undeniable chemistry between Gable and Colbert. One of the greatest comedies of the 1930s-I highly recommend this film.
The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927)
Vintage Hitchcock at his best.
In a quiet British town, a serial killer known as The Avenger is on the loose. Noted for his partiality for blondes, The Avenger has killed seven women-and shows no signs of stopping.
Ivor Novello, as the title character, is a quiet and mysterious man who appears at a boarding house soon after the seventh murder is committed. The landlady reluctantly allows him to stay in an upstairs room, but becomes suspicious when she notices the young man turning over all the portraits of blonde-haired women in his room. It doesn't help the landlady's suspicions when the man begins showing an interest in her daughter, Daisy (naturally, a blonde). Daisy's boyfriend, a detective, is assigned to The Avenger's case, and (almost immediately) becomes suspicious of the lodger as well.
Although The Lodger isn't Hitchcock's first feature, it most certainly is the film that launched his career as the "Master of Suspense." Noticeable Hitchcock trademarks are apparent here-namely the lodger's arrival and the ceiling/mirror scene.
Loosely based on the infamous serial killer Jack the Ripper, this silent thriller is fast-paced with exceptional performances. The score, at times, seems out of place, but Hitchcock fans will nonetheless enjoy this film.