Corpse vs. Wallace

Rating: 8/10 (8 October 2005)

By now I think most of us can agree that the two main contenders for best animated feature are Corpse Bride and Wallace and Gromit. Both films are great, but my pick would be Corpse Bride.
I have been a fan of both The Nightmare Before Christmas and the Wallace and Gromit shorts since I was a child, so judging between the two has been no easy task. Ultimately, however, I chose Corpse Bride. I just can't ignore the amazing animation, acting, and of course, Mr. Elfman's amazing score, as usual. In many ways, it surpasses Wallace and Gromit tremendously.
Corpse Bride did have its flaws, mainly in the story. This movie is only 80 minutes. Ridiculously short, but understandable for a movie that uses a filming process so excruciatingly slow and painful. But because of its short length, at times the story seems rushed, particularly about fifteen minutes in, when Victor first meets the Corpse Bride. The entire sequence just felt to me as though both writer and director were trying to speed things along, and you never want to feel this way when you're watching something. You want it to go at an even pace. Not too slow, and not too fast.
Should you see this movie? Will you like it? Hard to say. It's brilliant, and Oscar-worthy, but that doesn't mean that everyone will like it. I'd say if you've seen anything with Tim Burton, Johnny Depp, or Danny Elfman in it, then you should see this movie and you will probably like it. If you haven't, then you need to watch the trailer a couple of times and decide for yourself if it looks good. The trailer is very helpful, I promise. And F.Y.I, Danny Elfman wrote the opening for The Simpsons, and that definitely counts.