Most of the time, since the 20 century, to speak about gothic novels or movies, we use the example of Tim Burton’s. This famous American director  ( born in 1958) made lots of movies and animations movies in association with other film directors, he realized some animations movies based on the on the technique of the stop motion, and the evolution of puppets in a real decoration set. He is famous for right some stories, with lots of black humor, with strange creatures, and the important influence of the ghoulish. He is famous, for example, for his movie Dark Shadow, a gothic movie about vampires. Tim burton has two favorite actors, who have played in lots of his movies: Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter. We can’t say that he is only a gothic director, because he realized also fantastic comedies. But this genre has influenced a lot his movies, with, most of the time, a heavy and lugubrious atmosphere, and fantastic creatures.


 
In 2005, he realized in association with Mike Johnson and John August, Corpse bride. This American animation movie is inspired of the dead bride’s legend, a typical gothic legend, ghoulish and stressful. The atmosphere of the movie is stressful too, because all elements and characters are in black, grey, blue and white, there aren’t many colors and it creates a lugubrious atmosphere. The movie’s music, likes sounds are disturbing.


 

Corpse bride takes place during the XIX century, in a small village. The story is about a man, Victor Van Dort, who has to get married with Victoria Everglot. At the beginning, this wedding is only a forced marriage, organized by the parents, who think win money since this union. But as incredible as it can be, between the two young peoples, it’s immediately the love at first sight. But some terrified elements will happen and waste this rising love. In fact, a dead bride, Emily will appear from the death’s world. Unintentionally, Victor will be engaged with this corpse alive, and he will, during the entire movie, try to cancel this engagement. He wants to get married with Victoria, his real soul mate. But during this short time during which Victor disappears, she has to get married with a strange man, Emily’s murderer and former husband. During all the movie, Victor try to return in the real world, to live his love with victoria.

 
 

This movie is a typical gothic story, with a ghoulish atmosphere. The settings are the most important elements in corpse bride, to represent the gothic. First, Victoria’s castle is an old castle, with big corridors, and nobody around, and that’s disturbing. Later, when Emily makes Victor travels in the death’s world, he meets undead peoples, going up of their coffin. These supernatural events and spooky characters are typical elements of the gothic genre.  The death’s theme is recurrent in this movie, and from the beginning, to the end, the terror is going up, when Victor discovers this other world, when undead peoples appears or when Emily’s murderer appear, and try to accomplish it again with Victoria. The general atmosphere, oppressed, is typical of the gothic, and characters, seems like undead too, there are disturbing and can affrays us.


 
The imaginary notion is really important and present in Corpse bride. First, the setting in which the action happen is unrealistic. The death’s world is what makes this movie influenced by the imaginary. Characters like undead peoples, and the bride, dead, but alive when Victor asks here to engage with him unintentionally, are also elements of the imaginary. The imaginary is present in all the animation movie, settings, characters, and the events are imaginary facts. And that makes the story gothic, because this genre is based essentially based on the imaginary notion.