Favorite Tim Burton movie?
 

Tim Burton is without a doubt my favorite director. He is the reason I studied film in college. His movies are often visually interesting, while the stories' focus is normally on a sympathetic misfit. He's directed box office hits in the 80's, 90's, and the 00's. Even if you don't care for most of his movies, almost everybody can choose at least one movie of his that they thoroughly enjoy. So what's your favorite?

(Some of you may be wondering why I did not include The Nightmare Before Christmas. That is because Tim Burton did not direct that movie, he wrote and produced it.)


I had to go with Batman, with Pee Wee's Big Adventure as a very close second. Batman just has everything for me; my favorite director, my favorite superhero, and my favorite actor (Jack Nicholson) playing my favorite super villain. It just doesn't get much better than that, IMO.

Now, while I do love Burton's movies, I'm under the belief that his last great movie was 1999's Sleepy Hollow. After that, his movies range from good (Big Fish, Sweeney Todd), to decent (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Corpse Bride) to bad (Planet of the Apes, Alice in Wonderland). Everything leading up to Sleepy Hollow, is pure gold as far as I'm concerned.

I like that one with Johnny Depp in it :).

===HERO

Totally in the Minority,but I have always Loved Batman Returns tied with Beetlejuice and Mars Attacks.

Edward Scissorhands, followed by Ed Wood and the Batman films. Love Burton's early work in particular, but I always look forward to his films.

My prefers are : Edward Scissorhands, Sleepy Hollow and Batman.... :tgrin:

I dont like nothing of Sweeney Todd.... :tgrumble:

I'm not big on Burton. Style over substance and I don't particularly like the style.

That said, Pee-wee's Big Adventure is one of my absolute favorite movies. Brilliant.

Gotta go Beetlejuice

Beetlejuice for me too, both Batmen take the second place.

I adore Tim Burton, he's also my favourite director.

I don't really have an overall favourite movie. That decision is too hard to make.

Tim Burton In Love, starring Johnny Depp

Probably a tie between Pee Wee and Beetlejuice. Gonna have to go with Pee Wee on the poll though.

After those, probably Batman and Edward Scissorhands.

Mine favs: Edward, followed by Corpse Bride, Beetlejuice, Sweeny Tood and Alice

Forgot to mention Ed Wood. Not including The Nightmare Before Christmas (as mentioned, that's Henry Selick's film; Burton never even visited the set he was too busy), it's the only non-Pee-wee Burton film that I love. Brilliant. I think Burton's at his best when he scales back the wacky set designs and slightly dark themes and just focuses on comedy.

Being Christmastime and all, I just watched Batman Returns today... what a ****ing piece of pig poo that movie is. It's not really Burton's fault I guess, the script is a God damned train wreck on paper. So yeah, that didn't be my vote.

I love the first Batman, Pee Wee, Edward Scissorhands and Beetlejuice though.

For me my absolute favorite Tim Burton movies are Sleepy Hollow and Sweeney Todd: his two best films in my book.

A close third would be Batman Returns.

Aside from Mars Attacks (I HATED this movie-thought it was so bad), I've enjoyed/loved all of Burton's movies that I've seen (have yet to see Ed Wood *waiting for it for Netflix Instant Streaming* and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory *honestly have no desire to see this one*).

Burton is an interesting guy with a unique style. Sadly his style has become pretty common fair now and isn't very unique anymore. I think his best, and in my opinion last really good, film was Sleep Hallow. It had all the elements of a Burton movie which served the dark fairy tale style quite well. It was nice to see him cut loose and do something R rated as well.

Funny I thought it was the best of the 4 Batman films before Nolan took over. Not a fan of his first Batman movie as it felt really subdued and had way too much Prince in it. Jack's Joker never did much for me either. What I like about Returns was it fit his style so well. It's probably the only time we will ever see a mixture of something dark and Gothic with a slight Adam West vibe to it. Forever and Batman and Robin attempted the West thing too but went way too far with it and it came out disastrous.

Funny, I rather like Batman Forever.

But like I said, me hating wasn't really about Burton's directing. The characters had no good motivations and Batman is hardly in it at all. Then the rocket launching penguins are just too much for me.

I think Batman Returns is easily one of the most, if not THE most boring Batman film.

Mhm. Plus there's just about 0 connection to the previous film aside from 2 quick chats about Vicki Vale... it really doesn't even deserve to be called a sequel. Or have "Batman" in the title.

I think I would have titled it: An Oswald Cobblepot Christmas.

I want to love Returns, I really, really do. It was one of my favorite movies as a kid. I still adore the music, the set designs, the effects, the cinematography, the atmosphere, the way it's a gothic winter wonderland, the crazy circus gang, and even the cast and acting.

But, as you say, the script is so friggin' awful, and I see that so much more now than I did as a young'un. And agreed with your later post: the penguin march just really kills all enjoyment I could receive from that film. It's hard for me to ever want to rewatch this movie again. I know I will, and I know I will several times. (And I really wish the Blu-ray transfer weren't a steaming pile of poo.) But I don't know how much I'll enjoy it. There are pretty visuals, there's an amazing score, but the whole thing is so empty.

And two little details that really put this high on the Stupid scale: when Batman is playing for the people the audio of Penguin insulting them and he does a record scratch...on a f***ing CD; and the other is when Bruce rips off his mask at the end, saying they should turn Shreck in—but if Shreck had lived, he would know Batman's true identity. Those two details murder me.

Burton's first Batman flick, while I don't love, it's loads better in so many ways. It doesn't look very gothic, but it has this different visual style that I find really appealing. It, too, has some fantastic set designs, matte paintings, effects, and all that good stuff. It's a beautiful film (and thankfully, the Blu-ray for this one doesn't look like a turd), and that's...pretty much all I like about the movie, music score aside, although it's overall far more tolerable than the sequel.

But Batman also has a really aggravating detail (well, a lot of them, really, but this one chafes my pole the most): Bruce sleeping upside down. Like he were a bat. Haw haw. Real funny, Burton. For that and all the other stupid things in the first film, I'm convinced you could've had the best writer in the world for Returns and Burton still would have mucked it up. If he loved The Killing Joke so much and hated everything else Batman, why couldn't he have played either of his B'man films straight with great characters and dialog like the comic and not added in all the retarded crap? And Nicholson's Joker sucks. He just does. Can't understand the people who say he's a great Joker. It's just Jack Nicholson playing Jack Nicholson in clown paint with a hint of Cesar Romero. It sucks.

Nolan Batman... There's some retarded stuff in those films, too, but nothing nearly as camp and outrageously bad, and they're really good movies overall, so I can forgive the weak spots.