Technology
Tim Burton's Breakout Short Is The Perfect Horror Movie To Stream This Halloween
"Frankenweenie" remains an excellent example of gateway horror, and how the genre can reach out to younger audiences. Sometimes kids need that extra push to challenge them, but Disney didn't see it that way. The short was intended to precede the 1984 theatrical re-release of "Pinocchio," but was instead replaced by a Pluto cartoon. Burton was then fired from Disney, with the top brass claiming it was a waste of resources to make something so scary for the younglings. It wasn't until after Burton became a major success by directing "Beetlejuice" and "Batman" that "Frankenweenie" was made available on VHS, albeit in a censored version. The full short has since been restored in all its glory, and we know now that it was well worth pushing those boundaries. If it hadn't been for "Frankenweenie," Paul Reubens wouldn't have sought Burton out to direct "Pee Wee's Big Adventure."
You can really see Burton's admiration for gothic expressionism flourish from the get go, as the suburban neighborhood in "Frankenweenie" is compellingly abstract. It features all the promise of a hungry talent who applied his macabre sensibilities to something funny, horrifying and touching. Not only does the short feature warm performances from Shelley Duvall and Daniel Stern as Victor's concerned yet loving parents, but it also features an early appearance from future filmmaker Sofia Coppola as one of Victor's classmates.
In a full circle moment, Burton would later go on to direct a feature-length version of "Frankenweenie" in stop-motion. Unfortunately, for all its aesthetic bells and whistles, Burton's big screen expansion of "Frankenweenie" quickly loses sight of Victor's story for his thinly-written classmates and their creations. It's sweet, but it doesn't have its predecessor's macabre heart.
"Frankenweenie" is currently streaming on Disney+.
"Frankenweenie" remains an excellent example of gateway horror, and how the genre can reach out to younger audiences. Sometimes kids need that extra push to challenge them, but Disney didn't see it that way. The short was intended to precede the 1984 theatrical re-release of "Pinocchio," but was instead replaced by a Pluto cartoon. Burton was then fired from Disney, with the top brass claiming it was a waste of resources to make something so scary for the younglings. It wasn't until after Burton became a major success by directing "Beetlejuice" and "Batman" that "Frankenweenie" was made available on VHS, albeit in a censored version. The full short has since been restored in all its glory, and we know now that it was well worth pushing those boundaries. If it hadn't been for "Frankenweenie," Paul Reubens wouldn't have sought Burton out to direct "Pee Wee's Big Adventure."
You can really see Burton's admiration for gothic expressionism flourish from the get go, as the suburban neighborhood in "Frankenweenie" is compellingly abstract. It features all the promise of a hungry talent who applied his macabre sensibilities to something funny, horrifying and touching. Not only does the short feature warm performances from Shelley Duvall and Daniel Stern as Victor's concerned yet loving parents, but it also features an early appearance from future filmmaker Sofia Coppola as one of Victor's classmates.
In a full circle moment, Burton would later go on to direct a feature-length version of "Frankenweenie" in stop-motion. Unfortunately, for all its aesthetic bells and whistles, Burton's big screen expansion of "Frankenweenie" quickly loses sight of Victor's story for his thinly-written classmates and their creations. It's sweet, but it doesn't have its predecessor's macabre heart.
"Frankenweenie" is currently streaming on Disney+.
