Tim Burton's Corpse Bride

I am a big fan of Tim Burton, and the man has now churned out two decent films this year, which is good news for me! On the opposite end of the scale from his big budget and colourful adaptation of Charlie and Chocolate Factory, Corpse Bride is a much smaller affair. A short, concise and entertaining animated feature this is a small treat, not an epic but good for what it it. The story concerns a young man, Victor (Johnny Depp) who is about to be married by arrangement to a wealthy lady called Victoria in order that his family get out of the poverty trap. However he gets cold feet and ends up accidentally married to a corpse (voiced by Helena Bonham-Carter). The story switches between the land of the living, and of the dead and there is a great contrast between the two worlds. The living is cold and grey, while the dead represents a mexican influenced carnival atmosphere with some innovative character designs and great song and dance routines. The songs are generally good with the Corpse Bride's story being the highlight, the music is great but it does feel slightly odd at first to have these characters sing. It's not really a kids film, bits are slow and subtle and there are few obvious jokes, I just hope this perception doesn't put older people off as there's a lot to like here. The animation is stunning and very smooth, the designs are great and the action never stops. The characters are well defined and really come to life.I think one of main factors thet made me not like this film as much as I could was simply that compared to Wallace and Gromit, which uses a similar animation technique this film just can't compete. That film set such a high standard, and was so expertly made that at times this feels a bit flat and dull. Other than that the only real criticism of the film is that it is quite thin. The film is short and not very deep, the story is fairly simple. This is like a snack film, not a main course. But as such it is expertly made, has a great sense of atmosphere and imagination and is well worth a watch. A small, but perfectly formed animated feature that entertains for its runtime but lacks the depth to make it a classic. The Tim Burton style is here in force, but at times it feels like it needed more.