1999 / 105 Minutes / R
Reviewed by Jason Jones

When I heard they were making a “Sleepy Hollow” movie, I was as excited as anyone. When I heard Tim Burton (”Batman”, “Pee Wee’s Big Adventure”) was helming the production, I was practically beside myself. Not a better choice could have been made. Burton was the perfect choice to give the film the look and feel that it deserves. Throw in Burton’s trusty sidekick Danny Elfman to do the score, and things appeared as if it would all go off with a hitch. Which I believe the film does in most respects. However, if you are looking for a faithful adaptation of Washington Irving’s original vision you will find yourself disappointed.

At the outset of the film Constable Ichabod Crane (Johnny Depp) is dispatched from New York City to a farming community called Sleepy Hollow. He is being sent to investigate three murders that have occurred over the past two weeks, which have left the victims headless. When he arrives he is enchanted by Katrina Van Tassel (Christina Ricci) and told, by the town elders, of a Headless Horseman that haunts the area. Crane is of the opinion that the Horseman is a myth and that the killer is a person of flesh and blood. He takes up an investigation that involves corpse excavation, rooting about in the woods, and taking a look at town records. In the meantime we are captivated by the merciless nature of the Horseman, as he claims more victims by each passing day. As the bodies continue to pile up, Crane is haunted by memories from his past that will have to be resolved if he is to unravel the mystery of the Horseman. It all boils down to a conclusion that can only be described as a “Scooby Doo” ending.

This film divides me in a way that few films do. I love it for it’s beautifully dark visual style that only Burton can make possible. Elfman’s score accents the film well enough, but it isn’t anything spectacular. Depp is wonderfully cast as Ichabod Crane. I can’t think of any other actor who could have brought this legendary character to life in the way that Depp does. His timidness is what brings humor to this film. The scene the morning after he has seen the Horseman is particularly amusing. Christina Ricci holds up her end of the deal, but doesn’t do much else. She doesn’t really bring anything to the film, but doesn’t take anything away from it either.

One thing I really love about this film is Burton’s vision of a mercilessly cold and sadistic Horseman. He has to be one of the better villains in recent years. He is an equal opportunity killer. Men, women, children. It doesn’t matter to the Horseman. I felt that, that was a breath of fresh air. I have grown weary of these supposedly cold blooded killers that still have enough scruples so as not to harm any women or children. In that respect Burton succeeds where so may others have failed.

My problems with this film are numerous. First of all, the lack of faith to the original story. Ichabod Crane is now a Constable instead of a schoolteacher. That one is a minor problem however. I can understand changing his occupation in order to liven up the story, so that one doesn’t rub me to raw. One thing that does irritate me is something that left me feeling more betrayed by a filmmaker than I ever had before, or since. There is a point in the film where Ichabod and Brom Van Brunt (Casper Van Dien) are being chased by the Horseman. In my mind I am screaming, “Go across the bridge!” In being faithful to Irving they would have been able to evade the Horseman by doing so, but in Burton’s world the Horseman can cross the bridge. Talk about a world class disappointment. Instead of the bridge being the Horseman’s undoing we are left with, of all things, the Church. I don’t know about you, but to me this religious symbolism in movies is getting really old. Especially in cases such as this, where religion isn’t even relevant. It seems as if the Church was picked simply so the Horseman could have a rather glamorous kill scene. Which, by the way, is quite cool, but not cool enough to necessitate the Church’s relevance to this film. For once I would like to see evil done away with, without God’s help. Why does He always have to meddle in these things?

What else is troubling me? I guess all that is left to be bothered by is the end of the film.
There will be some SPOILERS, so if you don’t want to know anything about the end of the film you should probably bypass this next paragraph.

The ending of the film is centered around the Horseman pursuing Katrina due to the fact that he has been commanded to kill her. Makes sense right? It did to me too, but then he goes after Ichabod as well. He does this even though, throughout the rest of the movie, he has only gone after those people he was sent to kill. On top of this we have an exploding windmill. Yeah. You heard right. An exploding windmill. Wasn’t that nice. One bonus about the end is that the chase scene is very well done. It gives a feeling of immediacy that thrusts the viewer headlong into the fray. After the chase things get mildly lame, as the Horseman reclaims his head flesh grows back over it even though he is supposedly dead the whole time. How exciting? I actually find myself laughing as I watch the flesh growing over his skull.

Despite all of my problems with this film it is still fairly entertaining. If you are a fan of Burton’s work and don’t care about how it is translated from the original story, then you will undoubtedly find this film to be wickedly entertaining. But if you are in search of a faithful adaptation of Irving’s work you will find yourself greatly disappointed by what Burton has labeled “Sleepy Hollow.”

This entry was posted on Friday, November 19th, 1999 at 3:10 pm and is filed under Jason's Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.