Time for a change, Tim Burton
Sarah Zeeck
Issue date: 4/1/09 Section: The Edge
The old adage, "The only thing constant is change," might be so overused it has become cliche, but in a nation driven by change, it holds truth.
The entertainment industry is no stranger to this concept of change. In order for a work, be it musical, cinematic, novelistic or otherwise, to flourish, creators must constantly reinvent themselves.
"Coraline," a stop-motion animated film that was recently released, follows this standard. The director, screen adaptation writer and producer, Henry Selick, was also involved as a director in "The Nightmare Before Christmas," and a director and writer for "James and the Giant Peach." Each of these movies follows the same gothic stop-motion scary-fairytale concept that Tim Burton has become known for.
Although this creepy, eerie fantasy is popular now, one can't help but fear for the futures of Burton and Selick. They seem to rely on the same kinds of inspirations, motivations and movements to make their art come to fruition.
For example, Burton almost always casts Johnny Depp in his films or draws from Roald Dahl's works for his movies. Whereas this has worked and produced many blockbuster movies, there is only so much longer before the audience grows tired of the form and moves on to "the next big trend."
Take music, for instance. Certain bands have spanned several decades - The Red Hot Chili Peppers, U2 and Coldplay, to name a few - because those bands have taken their art and evolved as necessary. Some may say these bands have "sold out," but these bands took their basic forms, themes and ideas and contorted them into different forms for the generation they're playing for.
The movie industry is no different. The directors that change with the times and continue to reinvent themselves will work for their entire lives. The ones that stick in a rut of their common trend will find their work dying soon. The forms are working for now, but if stop-motion animation, the sadistic fairy tale and the gothic ambience is abused too much, it will grow old and die out altogether, leaving Selick and Burton jobless.
As Bob Dylan once sang, "The times, they are a-changin'." Though he sang the infamous words more than 40 years ago, they still ring true today. To maintain their timelessness, artists must, to an extent, roll with the times.
The entertainment industry is no stranger to this concept of change. In order for a work, be it musical, cinematic, novelistic or otherwise, to flourish, creators must constantly reinvent themselves.
"Coraline," a stop-motion animated film that was recently released, follows this standard. The director, screen adaptation writer and producer, Henry Selick, was also involved as a director in "The Nightmare Before Christmas," and a director and writer for "James and the Giant Peach." Each of these movies follows the same gothic stop-motion scary-fairytale concept that Tim Burton has become known for.
Although this creepy, eerie fantasy is popular now, one can't help but fear for the futures of Burton and Selick. They seem to rely on the same kinds of inspirations, motivations and movements to make their art come to fruition.
For example, Burton almost always casts Johnny Depp in his films or draws from Roald Dahl's works for his movies. Whereas this has worked and produced many blockbuster movies, there is only so much longer before the audience grows tired of the form and moves on to "the next big trend."
Take music, for instance. Certain bands have spanned several decades - The Red Hot Chili Peppers, U2 and Coldplay, to name a few - because those bands have taken their art and evolved as necessary. Some may say these bands have "sold out," but these bands took their basic forms, themes and ideas and contorted them into different forms for the generation they're playing for.
The movie industry is no different. The directors that change with the times and continue to reinvent themselves will work for their entire lives. The ones that stick in a rut of their common trend will find their work dying soon. The forms are working for now, but if stop-motion animation, the sadistic fairy tale and the gothic ambience is abused too much, it will grow old and die out altogether, leaving Selick and Burton jobless.
As Bob Dylan once sang, "The times, they are a-changin'." Though he sang the infamous words more than 40 years ago, they still ring true today. To maintain their timelessness, artists must, to an extent, roll with the times.
Viewing Comments 1 - 4 of 4
Jamesa
posted 4/01/09 @ 10:58 AM CST
Change simply for change's sake is foolish. The day that Tim Burton starts forsaking his vision in an effort to anticipate the fickle tastes of the public is the day he begins his decline. (Continued…)
monkey
posted 4/01/09 @ 12:07 PM CST
how funny and a happy april fools day to you too!!
too bad you weren't at the afi ceremony last night giving mr. selick the tex avery award for animation. (Continued…)
Mayan Fox
posted 4/05/09 @ 12:13 AM CST
You mentioned Coldplay as evolving through the decades. Are you sure you don't want to rethink that staement and think back to when they first broke the scene? It was the late 90's when they formed and their breakthrough hit 'Yellow' came out in 2000. (Continued…)
polly
posted 4/16/09 @ 10:06 PM CST
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