IMDb > Corpse Bride (2005)
Corpse Bride
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotes
Overview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv schedule
Awards & Reviews
user commentsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage board
Plot & Quotes
plot summarysynopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotes
Fun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQ
Other Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDesk
Promotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo gallery
External Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clips

Corpse Bride (2005) More at IMDbPro »

Photos (see all 64 | slideshow) Videos (see all 12 NEW)
Corpse Bride (2005) -- When a shy groom practices his wedding vows in the inadvertent presence of a deceased young woman, she rises from the grave assuming he has married her.
Corpse Bride (2005) -- Clip: You Lied To Me
Corpse Bride (2005) -- When a shy groom practices his wedding vows in the inadvertent presence of a deceased young woman, she rises from the grave assuming he has married her.
Corpse Bride (2005) -- ZuGuide.com - Trailer (Flash)
Corpse Bride (2005) -- Trailerfan.com - Trailer (Flash)

Overview

User Rating:
7.5/10   54,190 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 120% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Writers:
Tim Burton (characters) and
Carlos Grangel (characters) ...
more
Contact:
View company contact information for Corpse Bride on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
23 September 2005 (USA) more
Tagline:
Loving You Is Like Loving The Dead more
Plot:
When a shy groom practices his wedding vows in the inadvertent presence of a deceased young woman, she rises from the grave assuming he has married her. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
Nominated for Oscar. Another 5 wins & 15 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(127 articles)
Movies That Make Me Think of Halloween
 (From FilmExperience. 30 October 2009, 9:51 PM, PDT)

How John August pitched Prince of Persia
 (From Filmonic. 14 October 2009, 1:17 AM, PDT)

User Comments:
Real Emotions Breathe Life in THE CORPSE BRIDE more (438 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Tim Burton's Corpse Bride (Singapore: English title) (USA) (complete title)
more
MPAA:
Rated PG for some scary images and action, and brief mild language.
Runtime:
76 min
Country:
UK | USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Filming Locations:
England, UK more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Danny Elfman originally wrote the part of BoneJangles looking for another musician to sing it, but after not finding a voice that fit, Elfman decide just to sing it himself. more
Goofs:
Revealing mistakes: When Barkis Bittern drinks the poison at the end of the movie, only his face turns blue while his hands remain flesh-colored. more
Quotes:
[first lines]
Town Crier: Hear ye, hear ye, ten minutes to go till Van Dort's wedding rehearsal.
more
Movie Connections:
References Vincent (1982) more
Soundtrack:
Remains of the Day more

FAQ

What happens to Emily at the end?
Is this a musical?
How did Emily die?
more
74 out of 96 people found the following comment useful.
Real Emotions Breathe Life in THE CORPSE BRIDE, 26 September 2005
9/10
Author: seaview1

Don't let the creepy title of this animated, musical tale throw you off. In the tradition of other excellent, animated features of recent years, The Corpse Bride will surely rank as one of the best. Granted, this kind of film may not be for all tastes, but if you can get past the title and are game for a wondrous, haunting world of fantasy and love, then this is your meal ticket.

Victor and his parents meet Victoria and her family to attend a wedding rehearsal. Unbeknownst to Victor's family, it seems Victoria's parents are broke and desperately need the marriage to secure their future. Yet, marriage is new to the nervous Victor, and when he gets jittery at the church, he runs off and into the woods to collect his thoughts. There, he jokingly recites his wedding vows and slips his wedding band on a finger shaped piece of what appears to be wood. The next thing he knows, the wooden finger is a real finger belonging to a former bride, and she has sprung 'alive' to his offer of marriage. As Victor reels in horror and confusion at his 'corpse bride', he is whisked away to another world of people who have died. While the corpse bride is partly decomposed, she retains much of her former beauty. Yet others in this strange land are mere skeletons and rotted flesh. It turns out that the corpse bride was to be married, but her groom had evil plans for her. She has been waiting for her true love ever since her demise. Meanwhile, Victoria's parents are approached by a mysterious, handsome suitor who wants to marry Victoria. Victor must make a fateful decision and choose between the two brides even as the dead descend on the land of the living for a wedding ceremony like none other. One groom and two brides-what to do? This is Tim Burton's latest foray into stop motion animation, and he and Mike Johnson direct with economy from a relatively simple screenplay by John August, Pamela Pettler, and Caroline Thompson. The characters, especially Victor and the corpse bride, are well etched and create an emotional bond with the audience. Although we want Victor to marry his love Victoria, we grow to feel sympathy and attachment to the corpse bride as well. As for the images of the dead, Burton and company do a delightful job of making what, on the outset, could be grotesque and turning them into energized, playful souls. There is a terrific Peter Lorre homage with a worm who keeps popping in and out of the bride's eye socket. After a short time, the skeletal limbs and discolored dead no longer seem frightening or gross. Ironically the most colorful sequences involve the world of the dead while the living are painted in austere, lifeless mutes of gray.

Much of the production team are veterans of other Burton films. Longtime collaborator Danny Elfman again provides an atmospheric score and a handful of nifty, little songs to move things along. Even the voices of the principals are Burton alumni, Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter (Burton's significant other). Give Depp credit for voicing a British sounding character convincingly while others like Emily Watson, Albert Finney, Christopher Lee and Tracey Ullman, to name a few, are quite effective at bringing their figures to life. It's a testament to Burton's imaginative appeal that twice the usual number of major acting talents contributed to this work.

For all those who loved Burton's earlier produced efforts, The Nightmare Before Christmas (whose ghoulish nature is quite similar) and James and the Giant Peach, this is a worthy followup. The animation itself is virtually seamless, and the characters and figures move as in real life. It is a far cry from the Rankin-Bass Christmas specials of the 1960's. The set designs and costumes are very much Gothic in style. It seems that Burton is drawing from his own films or is perpetuating his influences as evidenced in his previous films like Beetlejuice, Batman, and Edward Scissorhands particularly in his obsession with the good and evil in man. It also delves into the perception of life versus death. Who is really alive and who acts like the nonliving? It is evident that the true antecedent of The Corpse Bride is Burton's own version of Washington Irving's Sleepy Hollow with a nod toward Dickens (with its contrast in class distinction and its unsavory characters), especially the Miss Havisham character in Great Expectations.

The Corpse Bride marks a continuing peak in the current revival of animated feature films which was signaled by Toy Story a decade earlier and has been raised to new heights with such recent triumphs as Shrek and Finding Nemo. The final shot is a wondrous, memorable end that recalls the transformation scene in Disney's classic, Beauty and the Beast. In fact, so good is its animation and technique that it is easy to forgive any shortcomings in what is basically a one act, one note story albeit told with sincerity. With just a bit more pathos and storyline, Burton's team would have had an instant classic. It's a near miss, but its status as the best animated film of the year is secure.

Was the above comment useful to you?
more (438 total)

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Corpse Bride (2005)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Piano song? Stampsfightclub
Jewish mythology? PhillyGal
Are the puppets really Real?? junktom
Hasta los huesos LeoDRK
Poe meets Gorey wanderingseth
more

Recommendations

If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
- - - - -
The Nightmare Before Christmas Evil Dead II The Good Earth Beetle Juice Stardust
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
Show more recommendations

Related Links

Full cast and crew Company credits External reviews
News articles IMDb Animation section IMDb UK section
Add this title to MyMovies

You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Update' button will take you through a step-by-step process.