Writer-director Tim Burton was inspired by the famous 1931 version of “Frankenstein,” starring Boris Karloff, for his black-and-white stop-action animated comedy, “Frankenweenie.”
Burton pays tribute to many more famous monster and horror films in a story about a boy who brings his beloved dog back to life after a traffic accident.
I loved the monster and horror movies of my youth (they never scared me), and this is a very funny and clever tribute to those films.
Charlie Tahan voices Victor Frankenstein, a boy whose beloved dog Sparky gets run over in traffic. Like the Frankenstein monster, Sparky comes back to life, scarred and stitched-up. Like Frankenstein, Sparky unintentionally wreaks havoc in the town of New Holland.
Winona Ryder voices Victor’s next-door neighbor, Elsa van Helsing, who has a pet poodle, who through another electrical procedure, gets a hairdo like the Bride of Frankenstein.
“Frankenweenie” has a great cast of celebrity voices including two stars of famous horror films: Martin Landau as the Vincent Price-like weird science teacher who encourages Victor to experiment, and Christopher Lee as the voice of Dracula.
Others are Catherine O’Hara as Victor’s mom and several other voices; Martin Short as his dad Ben Frankenstein, and Atticus Shaffer as Edgar Gore, the Igor-like classmate of Victor’s who is Weird Girl’s (Catherine O’Hara) potential love interest.
“Frankenweenie,” the first stop-motion picture in 3-D and IMAX formats, is a project near and dear to Tim Burton’s heart. The affection shows. Even monsters need love.
Three and a half stars