PROJECTOR: Image of Tim Burton shown on screen [item 24], Edward Scissorhands theme song played [Item 28]
SPEAKER: My research project is based around the well-known working relationship of Tim Burton and Johnny Depp. My intention is to explore this relationship and then go on to answer the question, is Tim Burton an auteur? Auteur theory is the "basic premise that a movie director, in certain circumstances, can be assigned the title of 'author'." [11]. A US film critic, Andrew Sarris, stated that, "the strong director imposes his own personality on a film; the weak director allows the personalities of others to run rampant." [11]. This quote means that an auteur is a director who has recurring themes, actors and subjects in his films, which distinguishes them from other ordinary directors who may use many different styles or actors in their films. Tim Burton is known to be an auteur, and his constant casting of his friend and working partner, Johnny Depp is one of the reasons why.
PROJECTOR: Image of Tim Burton and Johnny Depp together [item 25, image]
SPEAKER: Before meeting Burton, Johnny Depp was the heart-throb in the television series, 21 Jump Street. The soon-to-be star played Officer Tom Hanson and was in the show for three years. [17] Depp didn't want to be seen as a 'poster boy' for the rest of his life and wanted something different. This was when he met Tim Burton and was cast as Edward Scissorhands. The duo explain in this interview with Jonathan Ross when asked about how Burton found Johnny Depp and why he was casted for this character.
PROJECTOR: Clip of interview with Tim Burton and Johnny Depp [item 22] (play from 1.00 to 2.11)
SPEAKER (cont): As you've just heard, Johnny Depp seemed like the perfect actor for the role of Edward Scissorhands as he was misperceived for a section of his acting career, due to his part in 21 Jump Street. Whenever asked, Tim Burton always states that Johnny Depp is very similar to him and this is why the pair constantly work together. In an interview with Burton, he was asked what was "the basis of the bond between (Burton) and Johnny Depp that enables (Burton/Depp) to work together so successfully?" [4] and he responded with "I realised something about Johnny...which is that he has baggage too. He looks a certain way, but who he is goes far beyond his appearance. There's a lot going on with Johnny." [4]. This statement informs us that Depp is very similar to Burton and this is the reason for him being casted as the main character for Edward Scissorhands. This point relates to Auteur Theory as Tim Burton puts parts of his personality in each of his characters and this is a factor of the theory as many directors, who are seen as auteurs, commonly do this.
PROJECTOR: Image of Tim Burton and Johnny Depp [Item 25]
SPEAKER: Burton has a very strange and distant personality, which is something he likes to portray in the characters featured in his films. Edward Scissorhands is the most similar in regards to personality and how the character acts etc. This has been stated that Burton's greatest character [18] is Edward Scissorhands. "Edward Scissorhands is as Burton as a character can get; his alienation from suburbia, his dark shaggy hair (and) pale complexion..." [18]. In this sequence from Edward Scissorhands, Edward is discovered by Peg, the Avon lady who takes him in and gives him a family. When Edward is found, he is distant and seems scary and peculiar, which is very similar to Burton and his personality.
PROJECTOR: Sequence from Edward Scissorhands [Item 1] Sequence where Peg finds Edward in the large house.
SPEAKER: So as you saw, Edward seemed peculiar and Peg thought she was going to be in danger when he began to get closer to her, due to his scissor hands. However when Edward began to talk to her and came out of the darkness and into the sunlight, she saw that he was a gentle person and she saw his "trusting nature and sweetness"[18]. Burton's personality and ideas for his films are sometimes perceived that way. However, these weird and strange thoughts work in Burton's films, as you can see from the amount of success they always produce. Whenever Burton and Depp are thought about, many people think of their relationship being very symbiotic. This means that are very close and they understand each other well. In an interview with Esquire Magazine, the Burton stated that "There are partnerships where one person is good at one thing and the other is good at another... But we're very connected in terms of taste." [27] This states that the pair have a very symbiotic relationship, in Burton's own words. Depp has stated "Even when we first met, we connected on all these super absurd levels" [26] and this goes on to back up the previous point.
PROJECTOR: Image of a drawing which Tim Burton did when he was young boy [Item 23]
SPEAKER: This image is a drawing of Burton's idea of Edward Scissorhands, from when he was thirteen. It could be argued that this looks like Johnny Depp, despite the duo not meeting until the late 80's. This must be a 'happy coincidence' however it is strange. Another thing which allows Tim Burton to be called, "auteur" is his constant reference to the actor, Vincent Price.
PROJECTOR: Clip of The Inventor reading a story to Edward in Edward Scissorhands [Item 1], After clip has ended project image of Vincent Price, Tim Burton and Johnny Depp on the set of Edward Scissorhands. [Item 26]
SPEAKER (CONT.): In Edward Scissorhands, Price plays Edward's creator, who could also be seen as a father figure. Price also worked with Burton by doing the voice over for Burton's short film, Vincent, which is about him. [19] This could be seen to be an auteur style factor, as reference to Price and his genre is a regular thing that is seen in Burton's films. Sweeney Todd [3], featuring Depp, is a film version of the famous musical, which was made by Burton in 2007. The film features singing, which means that Burton must have trusted Depp, despite it being out of his comfort zone. This continues to show us the strong working relationship that the pair have.
PROJECTOR: Clip from Sweeney Todd, song 'Epiphany' [Item 3]
SPEAKER: Another factor which may make Burton an auteur, is the constant use of the protagonist being a romantic and the idea of falling in love. This can be seen in Edward Scissorhands [1] where Edward falls in love with Kim, the beautiful daughter of the family who find him. It is also seen in Sweeney Todd [3] where one of the main characters, Mrs Lovett is in love with Todd, despite him not seeing it. It could also be argued that the proposal scene in Alice In Wonderland [2] is very romantic, when Hamish proposes to Alice. This also shows that Burton sees himself as Depp in these romantic roles because these are things he can't express, therefore he has to use his characters to do this for him.
PROJECTOR: Clip from Alice In Wonderland, when Hamish proposes to Alice. [Item 2] Then show clip from Edward Scissorhands scene “Because you asked me to.” [Item 1]
SPEAKER: However Burton and Depp don't always work together and the pair have both been known to work with other actors and directors. Could this be argued that this is the factor which makes Burton an ordinary director instead of an auteur? Burton has been known to have a very good relationship with actress Helena Bonham Carter as well as Depp. One thing that is known is that Burton and Bonham-Carter are in a long-term relationship and have been since 2001. [29] It is sometimes argued that despite her having a smaller role than Depp, Bonham-Carter had more screen time than Depp in the most recent film Burton has made, Alice In Wonderland. Depp plays the Mad Hatter, while Bonham-Carter plays the Red Queen. It could be argued that the relationship the Hatter and the Red Queen have is similar to Burton and Carter's, with her being 'bossy' and demanding things constantly.
PROJECTOR: Clip from Alice In Wonderland, sequence where Mad Hatter fits the Red Queen with a selection of hats. [Item 2]
SPEAKER: William Goldman, an American novelist and filmmaker, often argues against auteur theory, and makes a point which asks why 'auteurs' are the authors of their films by stating, 'How in the world is Stephen Spielberg the "author" of that? Why is it often referred to today as "Stephen Spielberg's Jaws"?'. This is a valid point and it could be argued with Tim Burton. Why are Burton's films referenced to as 'Tim Burton's Alice In Wonderland' and 'Tim Burton's Edward Scissorhands'? In regards to Edward Scissorhands, Burton wasn't the only writer for the film, as he received help from Caroline Thompson [20]. So surely this makes the film Thompson's as well as Burton's?
SPEAKER (CONT.): Despite Burton also using Helena Bonham Carter in his films quite frequently, this doesn't stray from the title of auteur as this could be considered as another feature to the theory. I personally do not think that this makes Burton an ordinary director because Burton will never be ordinary due to his personality, which is always seen in his films, and despite him not using Johnny Depp in every single film he produces and giving other actors more screen time, there will always be auteur factors within the films which still give him the auteur title such as the types of characters used in his films. In regards to William Goldman's view on auteur theory, the films that Burton makes are solely his own ideas and visions. This then gives him the right for the film to be called a Tim Burton film. It adds to his auteur title even further. The types of films that were created and produced by Burton is an new style of film itself which could be called 'Burton-esque'. Films such as Henry Selick's Coraline take on this style of film to honour Burton's way of filmmaking. Henry Selick was the director for Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas therefore Selick would be familiar with Burton's style of work.
PROJECTOR: Screen shot of The Nightmare Before Christmas IMDb page (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107688/) to highlight details of the film.
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