Sleepy Hollow by Tim Burton - Movie Review Example

The thesis is: Burton uses sound, lighting, shadows, camera angles and shots, mise-en-scène, and characters to show that people should go beyond appearance and balance rational and supernatural beliefs because they lead to open-mindedness and critical thinking that is essential in finding the truth.

Significance of the Paper

The working title of the paper is The Rational and Irrational Sides of the Truth in Burton’s Sleepy Hollow. This paper is important because it wants to determine the varied ways that a film explores contesting ideas about the concept of “truth,” especially when the setting and culture affect ideas about knowledge and reality. This topic is also original because so far, much of the research done on the film has not fully explored the theme of finding the truth. David Arnold focuses on gender in his article, Fearful Pleasures, or 'I am Twice the Man': The Re-Gendering of Ichabod Crane,” while Martin Kevorkian explains the meaning of specific words and images in the film in his article, “'You Must Never Move the Body!': Burying Irving's Text in Sleepy Hollow.” Stanley Orr analyzes colonial themes in the film through his essay, “A Dark Episode of Bonanza's Genre, Adaptation, and Historiography in Sleepy Hollow.” These resources do not specifically concentrate on the theme of truth, but they can be used to support some of the elements of the paper, nevertheless.

Methodology

            To answer the research question, the primary text (the film) and secondary resources will be used. Analysis through a reader-response interpretation of the film elements and secondary research will support the claims of the paper. They are the most proper methodologies because they help provide an original and insightful response to the question, while using established and credible resources to support its elements.  Below are the outline and the research plan for this paper.

Outline: The Rational and Irrational Sides of the Truth in Burton’s Sleepy Hollow

The thesis is: Burton uses sound, lighting, shadows, camera angles and shots, mise-en-scène, and characters to show that people should go beyond appearance and balance rational and supernatural beliefs because they lead to open-mindedness and critical thinking that is essential in finding the truth.

1. Introduction
2. Hook through an insight into the truth
3. Summary of the film
4. Introduction of the thesis
5. The conflict between appearance and substance
6. Sounds to depict a sinister appearance
7. Digetic sounds
8. Non-diegetic sounds
9. Camera angles and shots to portray substance
10. Angles of characters to depict their personalities and motives
11. Angles of settings to signify meaning
12. Shots of the setting and people to support the narrative and themes

• The clash between rationality and the supernatural

1. Rational versus irrational
2. Camera shots and lighting of country versus city
3. Characters and Symbols of Science versus Witchcraft
4. Man versus woman
5. Characters and symbols of feminine versus masculine
6. Diversity in gender, rational witches versus evil witches
7. Individual versus social interests
8. The truth about individual evil
9. Characters and unfaithfulness to jobs and women
10. Character with morals
11. Individual versus society
12. Greed and vengeance
13. Love versus finding the truth and attaining justice
14. The truth
15. Open-mindedness and critical thinking
16. Self-sacrifice
17. Conclusion
18. Summary
19. Insight
20. Final idea

Research Plan

Date

Activity

Goal

Outcome

28-Mar-12

Watch Sleepy Hollow.

To write preliminary perceptions about the film elements and themes.

Outline of potential important film elements and some themes

Brainstorm on several theses.

To enumerate several possible theses.

List of possible theses and main claims

29-Mar-13

Collect secondary resources for the paper.

To access resources that can support potential theses.

List of references and notes on them

1-Apr-13

Review arguments with another friend who has watched it.

To gain comments and share insight about the film.

The new list of claims for the film

2-Apr-13

Watch Sleepy Hollow again.

To take note of film elements

List of film elements and their meaning and significance to the plot and themes

3-Apr-13

Watch Sleepy Hollow for the third time.

To verify the validity of initial impressions and opinions.

Expanded list of film elements and their meaning and significance to the plot and themes

4-Apr-13

Prepare the first draft.

To write the first draft.

First draft outline

Collect additional resources, when needed.

To access resources that can support the paper.

Expanded list of works cited page

6-Apr-13

Finish the first draft.

To finish the first draft.

First draft

7-Apr-13

Have a peer read and criticize the first draft.

To get comments that will enhance the first draft.

First draft comments

8-Apr-13

Write the second draft.

To write the second draft.

Second draft

9-Apr-13

Have a peer read and criticize the second draft.

To get further comments that will improve the second draft.

Second draft comments

11-Apr-13

Write the third draft.

To write the final draft.

Third Draft

13-Apr-13

Revise the paper.

To check the paper for the strength of arguments and clarity of writing.

First revised paper

14-Apr-13

Revise the paper.

To check the paper for the strength of arguments and clarity of writing.

Second revised paper

15-Apr-13

Edit the paper.

Check the paper for awkward sentences and words.

Edited paper

To polish the whole paper's coherence.

To check proper citation and reference list.

17-Apr-13

Proofread the paper.

Check the paper for errors in sentence structure, grammar, spelling, citation, verb tense, and punctuation.

Final draft

18-Apr-13

Submission of the final draft.