Top Tim Burton Movies of 90s

Burton's underrated bat-sequel is one of the best superhero movies ever, and greatly improves on the original. Although some people found the sequel boring, the visuals and four lead performances cannot really be faulted.

The plot is still unessential, but this does have a better script than the first one, thanks to Heathers scribe Daniel Waters. Burton weaves a dark fairytale about a group of freaks running amok in Gotham City. Unusually for a blockbuster, it is character-driven, not story-driven. It's a great exploration of animalistic personalities, not the feel-good comic adventure some people were expecting. This time Batman faces three enemies, which may seem like overkill but each one represents a different facet of the Caped Crusader's personality (that's the pretentious take on it, anyway).

The Penguin is the bitter outsider/freak that Bruce Wayne could have become under other circumstances - both have lost their parents. The perverted mutant is a perfect role for Danny DeVito, who even manages to bring some pathos to the role, which was what the Joker lacked.
Michelle Pfeiffer is excellent as Catwoman/Selina Kyle. She manages to be believable as a mousy secretary who becomes a sexy, feminist avenger after being thrown out a window and revived by cats (the best scene in the movie). She is the dark side of Batman, a costumed crime fighter whose goodness is undermined by her violent nature. She also represents his perverse relationship with the opposite sex. In a brilliant touch, her costume becomes more frayed and ragged as her sanity unravels towards the end.

Finally we have Max Shreck (another brilliant performance from Christopher Walken) who is the true villain of the piece. Beloved by Gothamites, he is Bruce Wayne without the conscience. In an example of the cleverness of the film, Walken's character is named after the actor who played Nosferatu. Aside from emphasising the German Expressionist feel of the film, it also fits with Shreck's vampiric plan to suck power from Gotham City. Keaton himself is still underused, though he brings more humour and introspection to his dual-character this time. Michael Gough is amusing as Alfred the butler.

Elfman's score is even better than last time, the visuals are more arresting, and instead of Prince music we have a Siouxsie and the Banshees song. There are moments that drag, and not everything works, but this is probably the first $80 million art movie. Where else do you get a comic book movie that begins with a deformed baby being thrown into a sewer (and outraged McDonald’s family customers to boot)? Like Edward it improves on repeat viewings and there are some interesting psychological statements amongst the gadgets and costumes. It’s strange that some people can’t accept surrealism in what is obviously a fairy tale.
It would have been interesting to see what Burton could have done with the series next but instead we got the pathetic (but surprisingly popular) Batman Forever. The Joel Schumacher who made The Lost Boys and Falling Down probably could have made a good Batflick. Unfortunately, BF seemed to be made by the same man who did Dying Young.

The director's second film about a guy called Ed is a funny and touching tribute to the worst director of all time. It's ironic that Burton's most critically acclaimed film was his first to fail at the box office. It's different in that it dispenses with some of his usual exaggerated visuals in favour of a more realistic approach.

The storyline (all based on 'sworn testimony') follows Wood, Jr. in the making of his three most infamous films. He gathers around him a bizarre collection of characters and proceeds to shoot his films in a series of hilariously inept sequences. His passion for women's clothing drives his girlfriend away, but he develops a symbiotic relationship with ageing horror star Bela Lugosi. When Bela dies, Ed completes his 'masterpiece' Plan 9 From Outer Space and finds true love with his future-wife.

Johnny Depp is entertaining, playing an extroverted outsider for once. Sarah Jessica Parker is convincing as the worst actress ever, and Bill Murray brings laughs as Ed's trans-sexual friend. Lisa Marie does a convincing impression of horror-queen Vampira, and Vincent D'Onfrio does the same for Orson Welles in a fictional encounter. Best of all is Martin Landau as drug-addicted Lugosi, deservedly winning an oscar for the role.

The black and white visuals make this almost like a biopic made in the style of Ed Wood himself (if that director had talent.) The opening title sequence is another classic, based on the actual opening to Plan 9. Howard Shore's score is fun, if not up to the standard of the usual Elfman/Burton collaborations. This probably has the best script of any Burton film, although it could be argued that the attention paid to such a worthless character is pointless. In fact, Wood was ahead of his time with some of his ideas, it's just a shame that he never allowed bad filmmaking to get in his way.

This is one of Burton's most accomplished films, even if it doesn't quite have the emotional power of Edward Scissorhands.

It's a sad fact that, as Tim Burton's films have become more interesting post-Batman, they've been increasingly less successful at the box office. MA! continues that trend, as well as Burton's love-affair with Ed Wood. It's his first attempt at wild and crazy comedy since Beetlejuice and while it's not quite as good as that film it's certainly not a failure. There's no reason why it couldn't have made a lot more money in the U.S. if the marketing people hadn't screwed up. It did do better in Europe, though.

The convoluted plot manages to imitate Independence Day (even though MA! was started before) with it's alien invaders attacking a culturally broad range of characters across America, led by the President. The opening credits invite us to the sight of '50's style flying saucers converging on Earth in a scene that, like the rest of the movie, manages to be awesome and tacky at the same time. The first half-hour is slow, but not too boring. When the aliens finally land, and vaporise everyone present, the film kicks into overdrive and we are treated to hilariously inventive scenes of world-wide destruction, totally unnecessary experiments on human captives and cruelty to animals. The ending is extremely silly, although not as illogical as ID4's Mac-compatible alien computers.

Visually, this is as good as anything Burton's done, even if it is deliberately tacky-looking in places. The Martians (the best thing in the movie) are brilliantly computer animated 'toons that are surprisingly likeable in their callous mayhem. All we ever hear them say is 'Ack-ack!' and the reasons for their invasion is never given. Misunderstanding, hatred of humans - who cares? Compared to them, the humans are so boring and/or obnoxious that they deserve to get fried.

The big stars are mostly wasted in their cardboard parts, though it is fun seeing them killed in a variety of ways. Sensibly, in a Burton film, the eventual heroes who save the world are the outsiders and misfits (and Tom Jones!). Jack Nicholson is good as the President with a fondness for making impassioned speeches. His second role, as a Las Vegas real-estate dealer, is notable only for what seems to be an impression of Beetlejuice. Of the remaining cast, the standouts are Pierce Brosnan and Sarah Jessica Parker (as, respectively, a pompous scientist and dumb reporter who end up in a 'heady' romance); Annette Bening, as a hippie chick; Natalie Portman, playing the Winona Ryder role as the President's daughter; Lisa Marie as an alluring Martian Girl and Lukas Haas as the long-haired misfit who discovers what kills the Martians.

The suitably creepy music marks a welcome return from Danny Elfman, and the script has some good ideas, even if the dialogue isn't up to much. It's the visual gags that made me laugh.

Like Ed Wood, it's clear that Burton doesn't have a clue how to make a normal Hollywood movie (although he does have the benefit of working with better actors and technical people than Wood ever could). Plot and structure are totally unimportant, he's into visual storytelling, which is what movies are about, after all. MA! is no ID4, and doesn't pretend to be. It's a shame that it followed in the wake of that awesome entertainment. As flawed as it is, Mars Attacks! is another shining example of how Burton cannot make a bad movie even if, as here, he tries to. And how can anyone really hate a movie that includes such visual delights as destroying a dog, Martians inhaling a nuclear blast, and the Houses of Parliament being blown to smithereens?

Tim Burton's first true horror film is a gothic near-masterpiece.

Based loosely on the classic American folklore tale, this tells the creepy tale of a ghostly headless horseman believed to be responsible for several beheadings in the small town of Sleepy Hollow. The plot is surprisingly complex for a Burton movie (some would say too complex - the final revealing of the villain's plot is almost impossible to follow!) but it also has all his usual ingredients.

The cast is excellent, as you would expect. Johnny Depp turns in another inspired performance as Ichabod Crane. He manages to be camp and heroic in equal measure, and provides most of the film's laughs (the scene where he is found cowering in bed after his first sighting of the Horseman is a classic). Christina Ricci is bewitching (sorry) as the love interest. The supporting cast is mainly made up of talented British character actors such as Miranda Richardon and Michael Gough. Lisa Marie and her incredible cleavage also appear again. One of the coolest things about the cast (apart from Christopher Walken's cameo) is that three (count em, three) Sith Lords appear in it. Christopher Lee (Darth Tyranus) has a superb cameo at the beginning, and Ian McDiarmid (Darth Sidious) has a small role as the town doctor. But you'd be hard pressed to recognise Darth Maul (Ray Park) without his head.
Technically this is up there with Burton's best. Elfman's score is lush and haunting, and the visuals are as creepy as you'd expect. The action and sword play are impressive, as well as the special effects. This certainly is the ultimate film for fans of beheadings. Burton also puts in some more serious stuff, such as commentary on the justice system pre-20th Century century and the persecution of Crane's mother by her religious zealot husband (revealed in haunting dream sequences). Mostly though, this is just crowd-pleasing fun, even if the plot does lose momentum towards the end. It also marked something of a comeback for Burton, earning $100 million at the US box office.