Once again, Burton takes adults on a journey into a magical, mystic world.

Rating: 10/10 (19 November 1999)

Sleepy Hollow, directed by Tim Burton, is a wonderfully imaginative take on the American tale.
Using saturated colors, whitened skin tones, and a lot of fog, Burton successfully transports the viewer in to the magical realm where fairy tales live and legends are born. Emulating Hammer Horror Films of past, Burton stretches our reality. As a director, he is free and bold. Always making the unexpected seem ordinary and the ordinary seem like magic. Using 1899 New York as a template and the world on the brink of scientific revolution as a moving plot force, Burton further endears the American tale... only this time we get transported into the world of Icabod and his eccentricities. The fog laden woods full of crooked, dead trees give a nightmare-ish quality to the atmosphere. Surprisingly graphic decapitations, and rolling heads are sure to get the hair to rise on your neck.
The screenplay, written by Andrew Kevin Walker, of SeVen Fame, is solid in structure and imaginative in dialogue. It feels like dialogue from the darkest parts of a Dicken's novel. The mixture of science and mysticism is balances masterfully. Character's motivations are strong and carefully crafted, including even the smallest of character rolls. In short, the work is as solid as Walker's past screenplays which only make us yearn for more.
Performances are superb, especially Johnny Depp, who makes Icabod frail yet curious. Supporting characters are interesting and full of history and background.
This holiday movie is sure to please many, and makes this film lover anxious for our next adventure with Burton. 10/10