Tim Burton Research Paper

Dark, Surreal, Humorous and Mysterious. These are a few words that people have used to describe Tim Burton’s Films. Making kid movies and adding a dark twist seems to have that kind of affect on a film. This essay will explain how director Tim Burton tends to use irregular characters, low key lighting and symbols to create films that are dark and funny.

To begin, Let’s talk about the unusual characters in Tim Burton’s movies. One major example found in Tim Burton's films is from the movie Edward Scissorhands, the main character Edward. Throughout the movie Edward is set apart from everyone else because he is different. As the title of the movie states, Edward has scissors instead of hands. Having scissors for hands is not normal and is not seen in

In “Edward Scissorhands”, Whenever any of the characters go to Edward’s castle, the castle is usually masked in shadows and at least one of the characters walks out the the dark. The castle is constantly poorly lit. The low-lighting makes the castle seem more spooky and dark. Characters walking out of the shadows constantly adds a bit of a mysterious approach to the movie. In “Edward Scissorhands” the low lighting adds a feeling of darkness and mystery. In his other film “Alice in Wonderland” low key lighting is used quite often throughout the entire film. Each scene uses the low lighting to cast highly noticeable shadows and makes Underland have a more creepy and dark feel. This technique is used in almost all the scenes taking place in Underland. Lastly, low key lighting is also seen in some scenes of “James and the Giant Peach.” Specifically in the scene where James fights the cloud Rhino, the cloud covers the sun and makes the entire scene become dark and almost has a scary feeling to it, exactly what James feels like in the beginning of this scene. All three films support the fact the by using low key lighting Tim Burton creates a darker mood in his