The creepiest movie in years,with a delicious visual flair

Rating: Null/10 (28 May 2000)

Seeing this movie gives one a real understanding of how important detail is to the tone and context of a movie.The entire Sleepy Hollow town gives a sense of surreal foreboding and excitement,and the Woods give a sense of a maze-like Hell:each tree looks like a gnarled creature.Noticing things like that takes a second viewing,though. When you see Hollow the first time,you're swept away by the main character:NO,not Ichabod.The Horseman!The Headless Horseman steals the show almost instantly.Not since the T-1000 in Terminator 2 has a villain moved with such unstoppable motive and force:when he stomps towards a victim,twirling his axe with supernatural style,you know instantly the poor sap is doomed.Ray Park did a fantastic job with his fancy sword-work,horse riding,and just basic movement.This villian is truly amazing,and the effects are seamless and amazing.This monstrous villian is the #1 reason to see this movie.Aside from that and the backrounds,the costumes,props,and Elfman's fantastic score are great.Hm?Oh...the acting.Well...it leaves a little to be desired.You end up losing track of the victims' names,which becomes very important to know later in the movie.The drab,gray scenes take their toll when there's supposed to be an emotional scene-it's just too drab to show anything but apprehension.I was a little surprised to find that a good deal of the movie had mystery elements,when it was obviously advertised as a horror movie.Those are somewhat excusable though-it's just a movie that's better seen than heard(quite a coincidence that the best character-the Horseman-has no lines). So don't wait to see this one.Press the mute button and enjoy this Burton masterpiece!