Well, there was nothing else on offer .........

Rating: 6/10 (2 November 2002)

I could never be a Tim Burton fan, and even less still one of Johnny Depp's. However, on seeing that this film is based on a story by Washington Irving, I thought I would give it a try . With the result of a few mixed feelings. My attitude towards both Burton and Depp have not changed in the slightest.

Irving gave rather good accounts of stories based on the mythical and fantasy-surrealist, generally in a historic context, that is to say, in a specific place at a specific moment. His tales have become minor classics in a way. I would thoroughly recommend `Tales from The Alhambra' for example.

What the film has in its favour is good photography, mostly good musical accompaniment which at times became somewhat overly present, better than good scene-setting and directing, and Christina Ricci; as well as some of the other actors playing very interesting rôles. The story is right: the treatment was a little wrong. This is basically because on a number of occasions the scenes being enacted take on a certain comic perspective, which, following Irving's story, should never have become apparent. Maybe another actor instead of Depp. No; that would not have saved the situation: Burton could not repress these comic failures, which lent nothing to the telling of the story.
Anyway, it was not a worthless watch: I enjoyed some of it, even most of it. But I wish people would be more faithful to the original story when adapting one for the screen. For example, do not worry about trying to see `The Ninth Gate' starring Johnny Depp, adapted by Polanski from the novel `La Novena Puerta' by Arturo Pérez-Reverte (qv): absolutely a sacrilegious outrage which the original book does not deserve at all.