Twenty-seven years ago, Tim Burton directed his first full-length feature film, “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure.” Since then, he’s navigated the streets of Gotham, climbed down the rabbit hole with Alice and traveled to the depths of Sleepy Hollow, all in the hopes of developing a unique filmmaking style and vision (one that was good enough to get him his own exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art).
On Friday, the director’s creativity is on display once again, this time in “Dark Shadows.” Based on the popular 1960s gothic soap, the movie stars Burton’s favorite actor Johnny Depp as an imprisoned vampire who awakens to settle a score with a crazed witch (Eva Green).
Not surprisingly, “Shadows” features the typical Burton tropes fans have come to know and love: crazy hair, pale anti-heroes, partying with the undead — all in all, a smorgasbord of gothic kookiness that can really only be described as “Burton-esque.”
In honor of “Dark Shadows,” let’s take a look at the style and fashion behind some of Tim Burton’s biggest films.
PHOTOS:
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“Pee Wee’s Big Adventure” (1985)
In no small part did the aesthetic help make “Pee Wee” the cult classic it is today. <a href=”http://www.salon.com/2000/10/10/peewees_big_adventure/” target=”_hplink”>Salon’s Stephanie Zacharek said</a> “Everything about Pee-wee’s Big Adventure, from its toy-box colors to its superb, hyper-animated Danny Elfman score to the butch-waxed hairdo and wooden-puppet walk of its star and mastermind is pure pleasure.”
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‘Beetlejuice’ (1988)
“Beetlejuice” is not only recognized for one of the best renditions of the Banana Boat Song. (Also, don’t forget those <a href=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fNeN844RwxY/TpIq0OlI_4I/AAAAAAAAAcw/P-s31doNWzg/s1600/normal_beetlejuice084.jpg” target=”_hplink”>outlandish pieces of modern art</a>.) The off-beat horror comedy went on to win an Oscar for Best Makeup in 1989.
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‘Batman’ (1989)
The design of the movie, which was decidedly darker than previous Batmans, was hailed as a great success. <a href=”http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19890623/REVIEWS/906230301″ target=”_hplink”>Roger Ebert wrote</a> “Batman is a triumph of design over story, style over substance, a great-looking movie…” And indeed, his opinion was unanimous: Anton Furst and Peter Young won the 1990 Academy Award for Best Art Direction for their work in the film.
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‘Edward Scissorhands’ (1990)
This marks the first collaboration between Depp and Burton. Transforming Depp into the pasty, scissor-wielding character reportedly took two hours. The director has also said that “Edward Scissorhands” was his most personal film.
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‘Batman Returns’ (1992)
Stan Winston, who fashioned the prosthetic makeup for Edward Scissorhands, created Danny DeVito’s evil Penguin. The makeup took two hours to apply, and DeVito had a mixture of mouthwash and red/green food coloring in his mouth “to create a grotesque texture of some weird ooze.” As for Catwoman, <a href=”http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0103776/trivia” target=”_hplink”>over 60 Catsuits were designed</a> for Michelle Pfeiffer’s character, with each one costing $ 1,000 to make.
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‘Ed Wood’ (1994)
This critically acclaimed biopic saw Johnny Depp as the eccentric director Ed Wood. While the film tanked at the box office, it went on to receive two Oscars: Best Supporting Actor for Martin Landau and Best Makeup for Rick Baker (who designed Landau’s prosthetic makeup), Ve Neill and Yolanda Toussieng.
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‘Mars Attacks!’ (1996)
Based on the 1960s trading cards, Burton insisted in keeping the art direction, cinematography and costume design consistent with their original style. The inspiration for the Martian (who was played by Lisa Marie Smith, Burton’s then-girlfriend) <a href=”http://www.variety.com/article/VR1116675270″ target=”_hplink”>was a combination of</a> Marilyn Monroe, the work of Alberto Vargas and Jane Fonda in “Barbarella.”
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‘Sleepy Hollow’ (1999)
While the response to “Sleepy Hollow” was mixed, Burton’s art direction was praised. Richard Corliss from <em>Time</em> wrote “Burton’s richest, prettiest, weirdest [film] since Batman Returns. The simple story bends to his twists, freeing him for an exercise in high style.”
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‘Planet of The Apes’ (2001)
Fox pushed for computer-generated apes, but Burton insisted on using prosthetic makeup by Rick Baker. That would prove very savvy on Burton’s end: Despite criticism regarding the film’s ending, Baker’s makeup was hailed as a triumph.
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‘Big Fish’ (2003)
To strike the right tone for the 2003 “Southern Gothic fantasy,” Burton wanted to severely limit the amount of digital effects. The director also reunited with Stan Winston — who helped him create “Edward Scissorhands” — to design Helena Bonham Carter’s prosthetic makeup.
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‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ (2005)
For the revamp of the 1971 classic, Burton wanted to distinguish the overall look of the movie from the original. For instance, the team was committed to making the Chocolate River look appetizing. Apparently, nine shades of chocolate were tested before the director was satisfied.
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‘Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street’ (2007)
Johnny Depp was very hands-on in his creation of the infamous barber. <a href=”http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20471622_20156283,00.html” target=”_hplink”>He said</a>, “He makes Sid Vicious look like the innocent paper boy. He’s beyond dark. He’s already dead. He’s been dead for years.” And the stylish white streak in his hair? “The idea was that he’d had this hideous trauma, from being sent away, locked away,” Depp said.
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‘Alice in Wonderland’ (2010)
Burton’s most successful film — and first foray into 3D — grossed over $ 1 billion worldwide. The fantastical revamp was praised for its gorgeous features, as the movie went on to win Oscars for Best Art Direction and Best Costume Design.
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‘Dark Shadows’ 2012
For his latest film, Burton was fixated on creating a “tactile” Barnabas. His fingernails were of particular importance: “There was something about the fingers that was important to me, just the way a vampire touches things. I think it also helped with the emotional quality of the character’s expression.”
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