“Sweeney Todd” and the Pie Factory

Tags: Tim Burton, Sweeney Todd, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Title Sequences

As I stated in my last post, much of my beef with Sweeney Todd was that it felt a little too weightless, and I believe that the same could be said for Tim Burton’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. In a more literal sense, the effects in both films, while providing interesting imagery, feel like “fluff” and uninspired.

I did, however, find the title sequences of both films to be interesting, especially when juxtaposed.

The two opening sequences are both CG, both involve some sort of “factory,” both convey a process, and both involve something that the Johnny Depp character is fascinated with, something he craves, and something he’s obsessed with. As a result, the two separate sequences are like siblings, resembling each other in their feel, their look, their content, their shapes, their compositions, and their movements.

Below I have some screen captures of both sequences. Sometimes the similarities are obvious, other times you have to look at it for a little bit. Either way, I find them fascinating. Is this a Tim Burton trademark? He sure seems to love his title sequences (Ed Wood or Mars Attacks! anyone?). Yet the possibility that Tim Burton is ripping himself off is very real.