![]() ![]() It's no wonder that “Your country does not make enough scientists.” “You do not understand science, so you are AFRAID of it!” thunders Landau (who won an Oscar as Burton's version of Bela Lugosi in “Ed Wood”). Rzykruski is challenged by parents and the school board, he gives a tactless rant that would rattle the “ignorant” and “stupid” corners of America to their core. And there are big messages here about what makes a child's connection to a dog so primal, and death and about science. There are rival students (who look like extras from old Universal horror films of the '30s) aiming to beat Victor at the science fair, and a cute Goth neighbor girl (Winona Ryder, of course) with a poodle whom Sparky sparks for. But he ensures that there's an animated warmth to the boy's connection to this playful goof of a mutt, who is pretty much his old self once he's revived – save for the odd body part that falls off. Victor will dig up Sparky, patch and stitch him up, attach a positive and negative lead on his neck (bolts, of course) and thunder-storm jolt his beloved dog back to life.īurton revels in the props and appliances Victor re-purposes for his project. Rzykruski has made a dead frog's muscles twitch with electricity. It's only when Victor sits through a demented, inspired thunder-storm lesson by his Eastern Bloc science teacher (the always inspired Martin Landau) that he has his answer. Mom's reassurance that no one you ever love dies, “they just move into a special place in your heart,” isn't enough. Victor, a morose, quiet kid, mourns in a morose, quiet way. But a highlight of his young life is crushed when Sparky chases the home-run ball into the street and is killed. Victor just wants to come up with a project for the big science fair at school.ĭad suggests they “compromise,” and to Dad, that means “nobody gets what they want,” so Victor finds himself at the plate, struggling to master baseball. Mom (Catherine O'Hara) indulges him, but Dad (Martin Short) wants the boy to get out, make some friends and take up a sport. He's pretty much friendless, save for his beloved weenie dog, Sparky. Victor (voiced by Charlie Tahan) is a loner, a smart kid who spends hours in the attic, fiddling with science projects. Burton gives that genius concept full voice in a rich, delicately-textured, 3-D jewel in the stop-motion animation style. That was the kernel of the original 1984 “Frankenweenie,” back at the beginning of Burton's career. Tim Burton has taken the animated short that launched his career and expanded it into a vivid and moving essay on science and love – the love a budding middle-school scientist, Victor Frankenstein, has for his dog Sparky. “Frankenweenie” is darned near an instant classic. ![]()
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