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Review: Sleepy Hollow
By SKillBot, (DT)
November 20, 1999 8:16 PM PT

Tim Burton has done it again.?Sleepy Hollow is a masterful presentation of Washington Irving's classic tale.?Starring Johhny Depp, Christina Ricci, and (a surprise to me) Christopher Walken as the headless horseman.?Read our review

One of the first things I noticed was something that Tim does so well in his movies. Everything seemed dark, yet very visible. This was great for Sleepy Hollow, a bit of a drama, comedy, and murder mystery at the same time. There were bits that made the audience laugh, like every time someone got their head cut off. It was so blunt, and it was funny because the characters were built to be so disposable, but at the same time interesting. The dark tone reminded you that it's still a spooky movie, and it gave the whole film a flavor that made everything glow with attraction.

Ichabod Crane, played by Johnny Depp, was a great character. I didn't care much for Christina Ricci's acting though. The dialogue seemed a little tough for her, and I swear there was one scene where she was looking behind Johnny's head and reading lines. But she's fun to look at so that can be forgiven. The other characters were very good. And the costumes were amazing.

The plot was okay. I haven't read the original story, but I'm pretty sure this was a little different. It sort of turned into an action flick towards the end, complete with cliche villains, but it was fun. Still, I didn't pull much of a moral out of it.

All the effects were great. The opening titles were pretty cool. And all the violence was great. There was a lot of it, but it wasn't ever excessive or inappropriate. You would be hard pressed to see a movie with more decapitation. It showed the act of beheading on all but one of the victims.

Danny Elfman did the music for this one, which made this film complete. Go see it. And then you should see these other movies directed or produced by Tim Burton: Mars Attacks!, Ed Wood (also with Johnny Depp), Nightmare before Christmas, Edward Scissorhands, and Beetlejuice.