The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving and the new movie “Sleepy Hollow” directed by Tim Burton are completely different. The names of the characters are the only thing that connects the two. The Ichabod Crane character from the movie is absolutely nothing like the character from the book. Also, Brom Bones character has been all but cut in the new movie. The settings and costumes in the movie were very well planned out.
Ichabod Crane is a police officer in New York. Ichabod Crane plays a level-headed educated man that doesn’t believe in superstition. He gets assigned to investigate murders that have occurred in the small town of Sleepy Hollow. On arriving in Sleepy Hollow, Crane is summoned to investigate a murder that had just occurred. Crane seems frightened at the sight of the dead body. This made no sense for his character. He is a police officer that dealt with dead bodies on a daily basis.
Brom Bones character didn’t fit into this movie. They had him killed of in the middle of the film for no real reason. Katrina never seemed to be Brom’s girl at all. Brom Bones was only in the movie because his name is associated with the book. In fact Katrina’s character was made incredibly different in this version as well. She used witchcraft at several times in the film.
Tim Burton did an excellent job directing this film. He used interesting camera shots to heighten the atmosphere of the film. The costumes fit the setting and the film very well. I enjoyed the feel of the movie.
Comparing this film to the short story is like comparing apples to oranges. The entire story line is completely different in the movie. I understand that the story would have to be lengthened to be made into a movie. However, this new version has only the names of the characters from Washington Irvine’s classic story.

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