Dupuis: Frankenweenie

Weird Girl

Choosing between a live action film and a stop-motion animated film is not hard when it comes to the content of the film. When it comes to Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie, I think he makes the right choice by re-making it in stop-motion. The 1984 version of Frankenweenie is limited by the emotions and laws of nature whereas the 2012 stop-motion animated Frankenweenie can be anything it wants to be. The basis of film I think screams for stop-motion. The 1984 film seemed restricted by the normality of life, when the film is based on a larger than life element; I think it just makes sense for the film to be outside the boundaries of life. The stop-motion allows for there to be other monsters but also allows the characters to be how I think Burton imagined them to be, considering Staring Girl was a member of the animated cast. Personally I did not like the live action 1984 short film. I had other problems with it other than the live actors and the effect that had on the characters. First off, the film was too short and did not allow for much context about the relationship between Victor and Sparky. Second, the short film does not deal with death in any way. After Sparky is killed, the town brings him back and he is revived right away. The 2012 at least had a little break between when Sparky died again to when he was revived that allowed a little self-reflection and acceptance of death. My final problem with the 1984 film was, of course, the live-action element. Going into the movie I expected animation but when it was not and the actors came out, it felt forced. I did not feel like this is what Burton wanted the film to be, and that caused me to lose interest and dislike the film. But when I saw the 2012 Frankenweenie I knew it was Burton, I could feel it. The emotions were in it more than the 1984. Knowing about Burton’s passion for making stop-motion films, it made the film more like this was Tim Burton’s baby. The stop-motion made the characters more intense. The weird girl could look as weird as Burton wanted her to look. And Edger could have be the strangest, creepiest thing that Burton could imagine. Burton would never have been able to find a character that looked as weird as he wanted Edger to look. These odd characters add to the effect of the film, like the science teacher. Burton got to exaggerate his look because he used stop-motion. Also the monsters that the kids created made the film’s action scene at the end more intense than the 1984 short film. The plot line of the film also makes more sense to have in stop-motion. Victor is bringing his dog back to life because he loves him so much; it sounds more like a bedtime story. The stop-motion gives the effect that this film is a bedtime story coming to life.