Review of Frankenweenie (2012) by Adam F — 28 Oct 2014

"Frankenweenie" is a touching and intelligent story about a boy and his dog and it's sure to delight adults and children too. Based on the short created by Tim Burton in 1984, it's the story of a boy named Victor who brings his newly deceased dog back to life through science. This remake and expanded version of the story is told in black-and-white and in stop motion.

The premise for this film is pretty wacky, but this isn't really a comedy. It does have some laughs in it, but it doesn't aim to have you fall out of your seat. It has a lot of dramatic parts and is more concerned with telling its story than anything else, but that's a good thing. Not only does the film look great, with a bold visual style, black and white colour scheme and stop motion animation (which always looks excellent when properly executed) but if you have seen the original short, this is a very intelligent expansion of it. The story takes the original idea of re-animating your best four-legged friend and takes the concept further, exploring how other people would react in both the best and worst ways and building on the renewed relationship between the boy and his best friend. It also has a genuine sense of wonder and really pushes the idea that being creative and inventive are good things. Not only does Victor (voiced by Charlie Tahan) create his own short films and use his brain to solve his problems, but there are scenes where adults tell or inspire the protagonists (which are children) that they should try to do some creative problem solving of their own. So many children's film are just colourful creatures bouncing around or just glorified commercials but "Frankenweenie" has some genuine ideas and relationships to develop in its story.

On top of being the most visually unique film you can take your kids to this year, it offers many treats for adults. If you're a classic horror fan you'll be very entertained by the numerous references to classic horror films ranging from the Universal Monsters to the Hammer Horror films. These references don't feel forced and are entertaining even if you have no idea what they are alluding to. It's a great time at the theatre and a delight for the whole family, though watching it in 3D is not required. (3D theatrical version on the big screen, October 11, 2012).