There’s a lot to love about Tim Burton’s gothic masterpiece, from those weirdly identical, colour coordinated houses to the light comedy and those fine-looking dogens after Edward has given those good boys a decent grooming. And a bit of German Expressionist imagery with Edward’s strange house. Who doesn’t love a bit of German Expressionist imagery? …I do, anyway.
What’s perhaps most striking, however, is Danny Elfman’s ethereal score, which reaches its magical crescendo in ‘The Grand Finale’, and plays during the film’s final scene. If you’re willing to ignore that initial, disconcerting aging make-up as Kim remembers her lost love, then you’re in for a treat. After her granddaughter asks why she thinks that Edward is still alive in that house, she announces that, while she isn’t certain, she believes he resides there nonetheless.
We see Edward walking through the garden and making sure the topiaries are neatly trimmed while Elfman’s tune plays. Kim explains that no snow ever came before Edward arrived, cutting back to Edward walking through his darkened abode. She then romantically notes that sometimes she can still be seen dancing in it. At this point Elfman’s violins and whimsical chorus burst into epic song as the camera pans to an image of an ice sculpture of Kim in Edward’s attic, her right arm raised in dancing posture aside a sculpture of a fountain and playing children. Edward works on a block of ice, and in true fairytale fashion, the ice he shaves flies out from the window in a flowing passage, suddenly flashing back to a young Kim staring up at the weather in awe and joy. The scene is an enthralling mix of wonder and tragedy, forged by a combination of magical imagery, minimal dialogue and an outstanding score.