SLEEPY HOLLOW (1999)

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"That's the problem. He was dead to begin with."

This is now probably my second favorite movie of all time, and no surprise it has Johnny Depp and Tim Burton working together, and that's ALWAYS a good combination. I always end up loving the movie when these two team up, and now is not any different. It's a very spooky and intense film, and I loved every minute of it.

The director, as I've said before, of this film is Tim Burton, and Burton is my favorite Director of all time, and he always seems to like working with my favorite actor of all time, so the product is always incredible, and with this movie the result is no different. Burton's movies are always interesting to see visually also, and that is why I like him so much, and everyone knows who he is, so I don't really need to go there!!!!!

The visuals in this movie are very interesting ones, as they always are in a Tim Burton film. They're dark and dreary, just the way I prefer to see films as, and all the effects are incredible. Like the Headless Horseman looks so real, and when you see him appear from his grave and the stuff grows out of his bones and stuff, it's incredible, just like when the horse comes out of the tree, it's all very interesting to see, and they are definitely five star worthy.

The storyline is a very weird one, yet it's incredibly gripping. I'm not sure if it's based off of any stories or plays or anything, but I definitely loved it. A constable is sent from New York to a little town called Sleepy Hollow to investigate the murders of people and help to find the murderer. It's definitely a strange one, and it can be very confusing, but as things begin to unfold, you know exactly what's going on, and it's a very fun movie to watch, it's very fast-paced and there's quite a bit of comedy, as usual in a film that stars Johnny Depp.

Johnny Depp plays the lead character in this movie, the Constable Ichabod Crane. Ichabod Crane was sent to the little village of Sleepy Hollow to find out who has been murdering the villagers, and when he arrives at Sleepy Hollow, he finds that there is much more to the case than his superiors told him about. He finds out that the bodies are found without their heads, and that the heads were never found. Then he learns about the myth of the Headless Horseman, but he shoves it aside, being a man of pure naturality, he believes what he sees and that's it. That is until one night he is attacked by the Headless Horseman, and let to live. He immediately begins a search, asking every elder in town that he can find, and getting to the bottom of the case. He finds out also that the Horseman's blade is almost red hot, cauterizing the necks of his victims and preventing bleeding. Ichabod falls in love with the daughter of the man who is housing him, Katrina Van Tussel. Johnny Depp, as always does an excellent job in this movie as Ichabod Crane, he has the whole silly manner yet completely serious tone down, and it's a very funny character. He makes everything so believable and it definitely adds to the movie.

Katrina Van Tassel is played by Christina Ricci, and Christina does a very good job, though I've not seen her in anything else. Katrina is the daughter of Baltus Van Tassel, the man that is housing Ichabod Crane, and she falls in love with Ichabod almost instantly. Her father is all she has left besides her step mother, since her mother was killed. Katrina is sort of a witch, and she constantly casts spells to prevent Ichabod from being hurt by the Horseman, and she even goes out with him into the woods to be of asistance as he searches for clues to the Horseman's whereabouts. She soon begins to pull away when she finds out that Ichabod suspects her father, the only one left in her life that cares for her after the Horseman kills her boyfriend, Brom Van Brunt. Christina Ricci, who like I said I don't know, does an excellent job in this movie. She is very good at playing such a distressed and passionate character, and she has everything down. She was definitely a great casting choice for this movie.

Christopher Walken plays the headless horseman. Hessian Horseman was a very brutal and ruthless battle warrior, he cut the heads off of his victims and never lost. He sharpened his teeth down to stubs and never talked. He always has his one companion with him, a black battle steed, well one day this horse of his dies, and he wanders in some woods, and is attacked by a group of people, he kills all of them until he is stabbed by one that wasn't quite dead, this one chopped off his head and buried the body, but somehow someone is summoning him to do their bidding by using witchcraft, and sending him after certain people for a reason that Ichabod Crane is trying to uncover. Christopher Walken plays a very creepy character in this movie, and though he has absolutely no words, he definitely has the movements and gestures down that make the creature so scary, and it's really what helps to make this such an awesome movie.

Miranda Richardson plays Lady Van Tassle, as well as the crone that Ichabod Crane stumbles upon in the woods, the one who tells him how to find the remains of the Headless Horseman, so that he can unlock the secret to the mystery. Lady Van Tassle is Katrina's stepmother, and she's a very mysterious woman, yet she is a very nice woman also, very well kept, and able to take care of herself without servants. She is found cheating though, and tells Ichabod that he must keep this secret from her husband because he is the one that found her cheating. Miranda Richardson has always been good at these strange and weird roles, and in this one she does very good at it, and she's got the facial expressions and the emotions down, making her ANOTHER great casting choice for the movie.

Michael Gambon plays Baltus Van Tussel, the man that allows Ichabod Crane to be housed within his home. Baltus Van Tussel is a very nice man and also very accomadating, and he's the only one that still lives and cares for his daughter Katrina. He's basically the royalty of Sleepy Hollow, and it's lead citizen, but his dealings with The Magistrate, The Reverend, and The Notary are very strange, and cause Ichabod to suspect that he is the one causing the Headless Horseman to return from beyond the grave to reak havoc upon Sleepy Hollow. Michael Gambon, whom I only know from the Harry Potter films, does an excellent job in this film, and he is very good at all the things that this character needs because he has to be guilty looking yet at the same time act not guilty, and that would be a tough thing to play I'd believe, but he's definitely got the role down.

All in all this is a movie that you must go and buy right away if you haven't already because it is definitely worth the watch, and it's now one of my all time favorite movies ever. Even if you don't think this is your kind of movie, go and rent it because it is definitely a movie that almost everyone will like. Trust me, it's an excellent movie that is definitely worth five stars!!!!!