Tim Burton is known for his unique way of visualising a story and turning it into something terrifyingly magical. His quirky characteristics are consistently applied throughout his oeuvre, being widely recognised by audiences on a global scale. Thus, when looking at Burton’s 2010 adaption of Lewis Carroll’s novel Alice in Wonderland, his distinct style and directorial choices, particularly his artistic control over visual style and mise en scene, can be clearly identified and exemplified by audiences. This essay will discuss Burton’s characteristics as an auteur, how the biographical details of his background and upbringing reflect largely on the themes and aesthetics shown in his films, as well as analysing how he is able to control the visual
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The incorporation of his beliefs and values through visual stylistics in film is what sets him apart as an individual auteur. Burton has made it known that he himself went through childhood as an outsider, often feeling misunderstood (Alexander, 2014). He has strong views against society, which is effectively conveys through film as an output for his opinion (Alexander, 2014). With this, Burton becomes characteristically quirky. For the majority of his films, the narrative is centered on a naïve and childlike main character that is in some form separated from mainstream society. For Alice in Wonderland, as the title suggests, this is the character Alice. With this characteristic, Burton always manages to successfully incorporate unusual yet recognisable characters within his work. This can be clearly seen with the recurring styles or symbols including; dogs, spiders, striped outfits, model towns with extreme architecture, a very distinct style of spiraled trees, and usually some form of a graveyard setting. These have become trademarks of Burton’s name, allowing his oeuvre to remain true to defined stylistic and visual components as well as the narrative itself. During an interview with The Guardian, Burton stated that his films are “like his children” (Raphael, 2010). This proves an interesting quote, for in the same interview he also stated “It’s good to scare kids a bit if they can handle it” (Raphael, 2010). Here lies a direct reflection on Burton not only as an auteur, but also as a person, with his films being either original or odd hybrids of well-known stories. One major characteristic that definitely sets Burton aside as an auteur is his unapologetic attitude towards featuring the same actors. It seems as though Burton likes to hire actors that have no vanity, hence why he has a famously known recurring cast consisting of Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham
The incorporation of his beliefs and values through visual stylistics in film is what sets him apart as an individual auteur. Burton has made it known that he himself went through childhood as an outsider, often feeling misunderstood (Alexander, 2014). He has strong views against society, which is effectively conveys through film as an output for his opinion (Alexander, 2014). With this, Burton becomes characteristically quirky. For the majority of his films, the narrative is centered on a naïve and childlike main character that is in some form separated from mainstream society. For Alice in Wonderland, as the title suggests, this is the character Alice. With this characteristic, Burton always manages to successfully incorporate unusual yet recognisable characters within his work. This can be clearly seen with the recurring styles or symbols including; dogs, spiders, striped outfits, model towns with extreme architecture, a very distinct style of spiraled trees, and usually some form of a graveyard setting. These have become trademarks of Burton’s name, allowing his oeuvre to remain true to defined stylistic and visual components as well as the narrative itself. During an interview with The Guardian, Burton stated that his films are “like his children” (Raphael, 2010). This proves an interesting quote, for in the same interview he also stated “It’s good to scare kids a bit if they can handle it” (Raphael, 2010). Here lies a direct reflection on Burton not only as an auteur, but also as a person, with his films being either original or odd hybrids of well-known stories. One major characteristic that definitely sets Burton aside as an auteur is his unapologetic attitude towards featuring the same actors. It seems as though Burton likes to hire actors that have no vanity, hence why he has a famously known recurring cast consisting of Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham