Review of Corpse Bride

Tim Burton's videos are dark, to be sure, but they do a wonderful job of mixing lighthearted humor with macabre subjects like death and decomposition! The dead people in this movie seemed so much more likable than the living, and I couldn't help thinking that Emily (the Corpse Bride herself) was far prettier and full of life than ("little Miss Living") Victoria! As in Burton's other foray into this genre (The Nightmare Before Halloween) the special effects were both artistic as well as sinister-yet-amusing, with real personalities emerging from the excellent casting of the voices. I also thought some moments in the film were genuinely frightening, especially early on when Victor is fleeing his corpse wife, taking refuge in his fiancée's room where he then discovers to his horror that his corpse bride has followed him and has climbed the balcony and is about to enter the room! That was a brilliantly shot scary scene that reminded me of something out of Edgar Allen Poe's "The Fall of the House of Usher!" I also loved the way they resolved Victor's dilemma at the very end when you don't know if he'll end up with a dead or a living wife. Bottom line - I really loved this film!