Frankenweenie

It’s hankies at the ready in this quirky and heart-warming tale of a little boy who refuses to part with his beloved dead dog… and therefore decides to resurrect him in true Frankenstein manner!

Director Tim Burton treads on familiar territory in his latest creation Frankenweenie – a b/w stop motion affair in 3D, and a homage to the old Universal ‘Frankenstein’ flicks (which explains Burton’s decision to boldly dish out this movie in black & white).

Frankenweenie is a remake – or extended version if you will – of one of Burton’s early short films, with the difference that his original short film featured live actors. Likewise, the hero of the story – a boy named Victor – is the same character as in another one of Burton’s earlier animated shorts.

Young Victor Frankenstein lives with his parents in the very middleclass suburb of New Holland, where neighbours, just like in ‘Edward Scissorhands’, are obsessed with washing their cars and grooming their gardens. A born oddball (aren’t Burton’s heroes always oddballs?), Victor channels his passions into filmmaking, science, and his adored and adorable dog Sparky. When Sparky snuffs it out following a freak accident, Victor figures that if the whole resurrection schtick worked for Colin Clive and Boris Karloff in the Universal movies, it should work for him too. During a windswept and stormy night, the little boy plays grave robber at the local pet cemetery and digs up the remains of his canine companion. Shortly after, in the attic of his parent’s house, a strange experiment takes place – with seemingly successful results… But how is Victor supposed to hide his resurrected dog from his parents and friends?

The secret leaks out soon enough. The first one to find out about the macabre goings-on is the grotesquely deformed Edgar E Gore, one of Victor’s classmates with an agenda of his own. His discovery sets a whole chain of bizarre events in motion, culminating in a riot of freaks and monsters during a local fairground celebration.

A lot of effort and thought went into each and every one of the film’s characters: there is Mr. Rzykruski, an East European science teacher whose looks are modelled on Vincent Price; there even is a female poodle with a beehive hairdo who ends up… well, I won’t give that one away though you can guess for yourself. And yes, there’s a showdown at a nearby windmill!

The voice talents feature the likes of Martin Short, Martin Landau, Winona Ryder and Charlie Tahan. Rather strange for a Tim Burton movie, the name Johnny Depp doesn’t creep up anywhere in this one, however, Sir Christopher Lee makes an ‘appearance’ when a clip from the 1958 Hammer Horror flick ‘Dracula’ is shown in a scene. Indeed, a lot of in-jokes and film references throughout will keep geeks and movie buffs happy.
‘Frankenweenie’ is a wonderful oddity and the perfect Halloween movie for all the family – make sure you don’t miss it!

The film sees its European premiere when it opens the 56th London Film Festival, and a special ‘Frankenweenie’ exhibition will be held at the Southbank Centre’s Festival Village from 17th to 21st of October.