Tim Burton Essay On a sunny day in a small neighborhood, a lady is trying to sell cosmetics. She can’t seem to get anyone to buy anything from her. After going from house to house in her neighborhood, she gets an idea to go to the mansion on the hill. When she reaches the mansion, she knocks on the door but gets no answer, so she let herself in. After going around the house for a bit, she ends up in what looks like the attic and finds Edward, from Edward Scissorhands, in the corner. When he sees her, he slowly walks towards her and comes from the shadows. When the saleslady, Peg, sees him, she gets frightened and tries to leave but Edward stops her. Ghoulish and awkward situations like this happen often in director Tim Burton’s work. His films …show more content…
After Barbara and Adam died, they went back to their house. All of the lights were off and it was only lit by the fireplace, which created many shadows in the room. The low key lighting makes the scene look dangerous for Barbara and Adam, and it looks like something bad could happen to them again. This creates suspense because it leaves the audience wondering if they will be safe in their house. The suspense is further heightened when they tried to leave their house, but ended up in the desert. There are many shadows there because the sky is dark. It creates suspense and can leave the audience asking if they will return home safely. Both examples create suspense; by making the audience wonder what will happen to the characters, Burton shows that his style is creative and mysterious. Overall, Burton’s creative style is clearly seen in his films Edward Scissorhands and Beetlejuice. It is most clearly seen through his use of dramatic music and low key lighting. The dramatic music helps to set the mood and the low key lighting creates suspense and leaves the audience asking questions. Through the use of these 2 cinematic techniques, Burton is able to fascinate his audience with mysterious and exciting stories, and that is what makes him a great and unique
Individuality is rejection, whether it be a rejection of society or a rejection by society. Burton explores the consequences that can derive from rejection and how appearances may differ from reality. The work of Tim Burton consists of a unique style unlike any other. Not only do his films convey his ideas of individuality to the audience, they are done in a distinctive Burton way. Burton’s style of the formal elements of German Expressionism, gothic horror, and unique characters allow him to convey his ideas.
Though the majority of the film remains well-lit as the characters remain in the generator-powered bunker, the scenes begin to darken with low-key lighting as the film nears its ending, reflecting the more sinister and suspenseful aspects of the plot. In the chase to escape from Howard, Michelle is flooded with shadows and darkness as she crawls through the air ducts to reach an air filtration system room with a door leading to the outside world. The unpredictability of Howard catching up to her already triggers a thrilling sensation within the audience, causing their hearts to race with adrenaline. Along with the action, Trachtenberg enhances these emotions of fear by dimly lighting the film sequence in order to generate apprehension towards the uncertainties held within the shadows. As Michelle frantically manages to break open the door, low-key lighting continues to add intensity to the still shot of her standing in the darkness of the night outside the bunker. This holds the viewer in their seats and encourages them to glance around at the corners of the screen, anticipating a jump scare to come out of the shadows. Though previous scenes have been flooded with light, Trachtenberg’s use of darkly lit scenes presents a stark contrast, creating suspenseful tones that impose feelings of fear and adrenaline on viewers and making the film out to be incredibly
From the very beginning, Edward is cast as the monster – but is he really? We first see Edward when Peg searches for the owner of a dark, ominous, gothic mansion. She climbs up a set of gigantic spiral stairs that lead to “Edward’s room”. The setting is quite dark and the only lighting is coming through a gaping hole in the roof. Her curiosity gets the better of her, and as she examines this foreign place, we can hear in the bac...
Using the production elements of symbolism; especially hands themselves, and the use of allusion to elements from other genres; particularly those from fairytale and gothic romance/horror films, Tim Burton has directed the film in such a manner to illustrate, emphasise and ridicule the materialism and lack of imagination of society. The film however, is prominently a satire which has certain elements from fairytale, comedy and horror genres. Through the choices made by the director, the audience is invited to become aware of the inhumanity present in the way society functions, especially in its prejudiced treatment towards people who do not conform. The use of allusion in Edward Scissorhands is one of the most important choices in production that has been made by director Tim Burton. In order to fully appreciate and understand the plot, the movie is dependant on the audience being able to recognise certain references and elements emulated from other films.
Indisputably, Tim Burton has one of the world’s most distinct styles when regarding film directing. His tone, mood, diction, imagery, organization, syntax, and point of view within his films sets him apart from other renowned directors. Burton’s style can be easily depicted in two of his most highly esteemed and critically acclaimed films, Edward Scissorhands and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Burton ingeniously incorporates effective cinematic techniques to convey a poignant underlying message to the audience. Such cinematic techniques are in the lighting and editing technique categories. High key and low key relationships plus editing variations evinces the director’s elaborate style. He utilizes these cinematic techniques to establish tone mood, and imagery in the films.
The fact that it is set in a castle is not only typical of a gothic genre, but it builds suspense by saying "in which the young. duke died. This makes the reader feel that death is imminent. It heightens tension as it makes the reader feel as if the narrator will die at the end of the story. Dialogue is also used by the author to create tension.
Timothy Walter Burton is an American film director, producer, artist, a writer and an animator who was born Burbank, California, 1958. He has been known for his dark, gothic, unsettling and spooky fantasy films such as Edward Scissorhands (ES), Charlie and the Chocolate factory (CATCF), Corpse Bride, Big Fish,...among others. As a child , Burton was influenced by Dr. Seuss's grisly fairy tales and Roald Dahl’s dark children’s stories so his films are characterized by a somewhat subtly frightening method of childhood storytelling to remind his audience of the age-old morals lessons by an unhidden encouragement of the delightful escapism into worlds of imagination and fantasy that are so dear to every young heart. Tim Burton has made many achievements,
The inventor was amazingly imaginative and made many shocking and ingenious devices. Suddenly, one day he chose to make a human being whom he later named Edward. Edward was like any other person. He had lungs, kidneys, liver, legs, face and everything a normal human should have. The inventor loved Edward and treated him as if he were his own son. However, because of his exceedingly old age the inventor passed away and thus Edward was left all alone in the spooky mansion, unfinished, having scissors instead of hands. Surprisingly, due to a dumbfounding event Edward’s life looked as if it was about to change for better or worse. Peg Boggs, a sales representative for Avon, accidentally notices the spooky mansion and so decides to go up to the mansion to find customers. Wandering around the huge, haunted mansion she finds Edward who emerges from the dark corner into the bright morning sunlight. Looking at how lonely Edward is, Peg is filled with compassion and decides to bring him to the town to live with her. His difference quickly becomes an obstacle which prevent him from being
For example, in his film Edward Scissorhands, Burton displays
Tim Burton said in an interview that when he was a kid he would watch all kind of monster movies. “My parents said I started watching those movies before I could even walk.”As a kid he loved horror movies and he liked drawing pictures. He said he did not care what people thought of his drawings and just drew them his own way. His drawings also show his love for horror because they are all unique and creepy looking. Some of his pictures are based on the movies he directed. He started directing at twenty years old. He was very interested in animation. One of his first films was Batman. Most of the films he directed have a gothic horror aspect. I believe since his childhood was all about horror movies, he gained an appreciation for those films and applied his passion in the films he directed. "Vincent Price, Edgar Allan Poe, those monster movies, those spoke to me. You see somebody going through that anguish and that torture –things you identify with –and it acts as a kind of therapy, a release. (Tim Burton 17).”Besides the fact that he watched horror movies, the place where he lived influenced him as well. The dark and light aspects of life have always fascinated Tim Burton, consistently arguing that one cannot exist without the other: ‘life is an incredible jumble of being funny and sad and dramatic and melodramatic and goofy and everything’. During his childhood in suburban Burbank, Burton found the
How does the director, Tim Burton, build an atmosphere of suspense in the film Sleepy Hollow?
First, a key method used to create suspense is the usage of the setting. When a character is in an unwelcoming or uninviting location, uneasy or tense feelings can be formed. When there is a sense of not knowing what is around the corner or lurking in the shadows, suspense is created. Also, ominous weather, such as threatening thunderstorms, can lead the reader to anticipate an unfortunate event occurring. An example of an uncomfortable setting is the secret passageway, which is dark, dirty, and most often only occupied by a single individual. Under these conditions many people become anxious, and because of these uneasy feelings that one may encounter, when a character is subjected to these conditions, the reader may become apprehensive, which leads to the formation of suspense. When Dan Needham shuts John Wheelwright in the secret passageway while both are in a drunken stupor, a high level of suspense is created. The description of the secret passageway adds to the suspense of the scene, "The passageway was dark; yet I could discern the scurrying of spiders.
When speculating Tim Burton and his films, a dark and eerie mood may come to mind. Burton is famous for his sinister, childlike films. He is known to overemphasize characters and actions and also likes to show contrast in his films. Some of Burton's well known films are Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Corpse Bride, and Edward Scissorhands. Although Tim Burton uses various cinematic techniques to establish his dark and mysterious style, there are certain techniques that stand out the most. He uses music and sound, lighting, and framing and camera angles to create such a deep emotion in the films.
When auteurs craft their work, they provide themes to the audience. These may be about love, death, or the importance for family, among other things. They use these themes to provoke an emotional response within an audience, or send home a message to the viewer. Edward Scissorhands is certainly a prime example of showing how themes influence a film. The themes that Tim Burton addresses in Edward Scissorhands are those of the connections that we have with other people, and the relationships and the bonds that we form with them. Non-conformity is used in the film as a highly prioritised theme, as well as the importance of friendship and the portrayed innocence that Johnny Depp's character reveals to us. Through this film, the themes of relationships
The producer was aiming to create mystery and fear. The dark of the night and the description of the house as feeling dead in the protagonist’s narration sets a suspenseful scene filled with fear and tension. The young girl is followed by the camera as she explores the mansion. When entering the room suspected to be that of her aunts the camera leaves her side to pan around the room. The darkness doesn’t reveal everything but one becomes aware of a search. The revelation of little secrets leaves the viewer with many questions. The room is familiar to the protagonist as she finds items symbolic to her and familiar photographs. This familiarity however does not retract from suspicions that something sinister has been hidden. The producer has successfully captivated the viewer. The protagonist is being followed throughout the scene and has thus allowed for the viewer to bond with them. They are engaging with the audience through narration and have in return enticed the viewer to follow them along their journey. One feels nervous for the young girl however through tension in the scene one does not want them to discontinue the journey as too many questions have been left unanswered. One has been drawn into the world of which the protagonist dwells and is intrigued as to how the drama is