Excels as a Gothic exercise in atmosphere and dark humor

Rating: 8/10 (21 April 2017)

Director Tim Burton's elaborate take on Washington Irving's tale of Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman doesn't have much in common with Irving but excels as a Gothic exercise in atmosphere and dark humor.
This rich visual feast demands a viewer's attention with its stunning photography and art direction, with countless memorably framed shots of 18th Century New York, with its foggy woods and small town cobblestone streets. Lurking about, too, of course, is the legendary Headless Horseman who seems to be collecting an increasingly large number of heads of his hapless victims.
This brings about the arrival of Crane, transformed by Burton from Disney's spindly school teacher of animation fame into an analytical would be Sherlock Holmes type detective. Only this detective is decidedly squeamish about blood (not to mention spiders) and, on at least one bloody occasion, will pass out. The role is an ideal showcase for Johnny Depp, whose Crane is both darkly handsome and a bit prissy. Depp is truly endearing in his part, an engagingly idiosyncratic individual who will eventually turn reluctant hero.
None of the rest of the cast, while capable, make much of an impression next to Depp. A few old timers occupy that cast, however, including Christopher Lee, Michael Gough and Martin Landau. However, Christopher Walken also appears, chillingly, in a significant role.
It's a shame, of course, that Burton's skills with narrative story telling are not nearly as effective as his flair for visual dramatics (as unquestionably impressive as the latter are here) and, as far as the story itself is concerned, the film is confused and falls a bit flat. Nor are the horror elements of the story all that horrifying, though this is a film in which the decapitations by the Horseman will keep the heads a rolling. Burton largely treats these moments of bloodshed and "terror" as darkly humorous more than anything else.
More than any of the special effects involving the Headless Horseman, what stays with me are Depp's performance and, particularly, the Gothic elegance of this production. That alone makes Sleepy Hollow well with the investment of a viewer's time.