FRANKENWEENIE

Any Tim Burton fan worth there salt is familiar with Frankenweenie if only by name, but did you know there was a short film from 1984 way before the 2012 remake ever saw the light of day? Its only 27 minutes so nowhere near movie length, but its well worth talking about none the less.

Also for the record, I’m a cat person anyway

Frankenweenie is a 1984 American science fiction comedy horror featurette directed by Tim Burton and written by him and Leonard Ripps. When young Victor's pet dog Sparky (who stars in Victor's home-made monster movies) is hit by a car, Victor decides to bring him back to life the only way he knows how. But when the bolt-necked "monster" wreaks havoc and terror in the hearts of Victor's neighbors, he has to convince them (and his parents) that despite his appearance, Sparky's still the good loyal friend he's always been.

Also there is no real organic way to fit this in but I simply must mention, if the kid playing Victor (Barret Spencer Oliver) was also our leading man in THE NEVER ENDING STORY.

I remember enjoying the remake when I saw it, but this short film I absolutely love. This short film is oozing with all things Tim Burton from the German Expressionist graveyard, the darkly whimsical sense of humor, and even that Edward Scissorhands suburbia that he has always captures so well. I love how it manages to playfully embrace the taboo of death without ever diving to deep into the darkness, and the whole thing being shot in black and white makes it feel wonderfully at home with the classic UNIVERSAL monster movies that inspired it. Its as gorgeous as it is fun, and I’m glad Tim Burton was allowed to make something so incredibly unique without getting to much shit from everyone’s favorite anti-Semite.

I mean there’s no way he could run into any kind of problem for making such a harmless little short film… Right?

Wrong. Burton was fired by Disney after the film was completed, as the studio claimed that he had been wasting company resources and felt the film was not suitable for the targeted young audiences. The short was originally planned to be released alongside the summer re-release of The Jungle Book, but its release was rescheduled with the Christmas re-release of Pinocchio on December 21, 1984. However, It wasn’t until The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) DVD is its first uncensored appearance on home video. It’s a shame this short was never really given a fair shake, and an even bigger shame the remake didn’t stick to the same live action format.

Who would have thought people would have a hard time dealing with a live action dead dog coming back to life… and then the town trying to burn both the kid and dog alive…

10/10