The Molding of Tim Burton and German Expressionism

 

               Many people, including myself, has either heard of or consumed the majority of Tim Burton’s work that has influenced its own vast subculture with his distinct gothic, quirky style and his wonderous world building we are used to. It garners a wide gamut of appreciation to regress back to the early days of an artist’s career to see how they started, what/who inspired them, and how the kind of future melded became a reality. I, personally, have never heard of nor seen Tim Burton’s take on Hansel &Gretel, which is very understandable since it has only ever aired on Disney twice. After watching the film (with the inclusion of Vincent), I can now see how the ideas of German Expressionism affect Burton’s style of filmmaking.

            German Expressionism is considered to be one of the most important movements of filmmaking history. It stemmed from a zeitgeist in the mid-1910s when Germany banned all foreign films, and the public were digressing their interest away from romance and into the more gritty and violent genres of art. Which would make sense because one of the founding principles of German Expressionism is the projection of the inner feelings of artists. It does this by focusing on simple shapes accommodated with bright vibrant colors. Those elements are best shown throughout the movie with the witch’s house, Hansel, Gretel and their father’s costumes, their house, and the contrast with the pink rocks and the woods. These elements implemented in Burton’s work would later evolve and thrive to produce other works like the Alice in Wonderland films and Charlie and Chocolate Factory.

            What’s unique about this movement is that it does not cater to one form of art, but with multiple. The principles for Expressionism are so flexible that it can inspire many different genre’s that are fitting to the artist’s emotions. Like Tim Burton’s style of fantasy, Expressionism is also a grand inspiration for the horror genre, which is apparent since people prior to the movement had an affinity towards cruelty and violence, a trait that still persists to this day.