Beautifully Tim Burton

Rating: 10/10 (5 June 2012)

When I first watched this film I had some apprehensions that it would be the same a Sweeney Todd which, although Sweeney Todd is one of my favourite movies, would have been dull and repetitive. Sleepy Hollow, however, was in my view, of an entirely different genre and feel altogether. The movie is dark and mysterious, as are most Tim Burton movies, and the colour palette of greys blacks and whites means it has a black and white movie feel, without being black and white. Suspense is high all the way through and it manages to be gory and scary in parts, without being unwatchable for a squeamish audience.
The cast of this movie is superb despite the fact that there are few supporting characters and there are actors in the film like Christopher Walken who has no lines at all! Johnny Depp was perfect, as ever, and his portrayal of a determined yet fairly quiet man, haunted by his past was thoroughly believable and entertaining. Christina Ricci I felt in some scenes lacked emotional depth, but otherwise was well cast and I believe she has the perfect look for Katrina Van Tassel. Miranda Richardson is an actress who is often overlooked in films as she often plays a supporting role but I feel it is hard not to mention her. She just has such a "Sleepy Hollow" look about her that she blends perfectly into the background for the greater part of the movie and appears as a quiet and subdued lady of the house before turning to reveal the mass murderer underneath which I felt she pulled off flawlessly, she is brilliantly watchable, as always. Michael Gambon, though his accent throughout the film is British, still somehow manages to fit in with the people of Sleepy Hollow and the rest of the cast are all completely in character and capture the strange and eerie feel of the movie.
Overall, the movie is brilliant. I have never heard a telling of the legend the same as this one and there are many references to early visual effects through the cardinal illusion and the lantern in the midwife's house. The town, forest and windmill, all constructed physically within 3 months gives it a rustic atmosphere and the use of mist, horses and coffins adds to the slightly Gothic allure of the overall piece. The acting is perfect, the set, music and story are ensnaring and the twists and turns in the plot had me guessing until the end. I would not give it 10/10 if I could find something negative about it.