Despite its popularity and success with critics and the general public, not everyone Tim BurtonHis films were a critical success and, surprisingly, his best and worst rated films on the Rotten tomatoes were not directed by him. Tim Burton’s film career began in the 1970s with several short films, and he made his feature film directorial debut in 1985 with Pee-wee’s Big Adventure. However, it was with Beetle juice in 1988, Burton was able to fully showcase his unique narrative and visual style that mixes elements of horror, fantasy, comedy and gothic.
Since then, Burton has brought his signature style to the superhero genre with Batman and Batman Returnsfor stop-motion animation with Corpse Bride and Frankenweenieto classics of children’s literature such as Charlie and the Chocolate Factoryscience fiction with Mars attacks!and much more. Of course, while Burton’s works have built a loyal fan base and many of them are now cult classics, not all of them have been well received by critics and, interestingly, his best and worst rated films on the Rotten tomatoes nor were they directed by him.
Tim Burton’s highest-rated film on RT is The Nightmare Before Christmas, but he didn’t direct it
Contrary to popular belief, The Nightmare Before Christmas was not directed by Tim Burton
Tim Burton served as producer on several films, some of which are mistakenly believed to have been directed by him. Tim Burton’s highest rated film in Rotten tomatoes and The Nightmare Before Christmasdirected by Henry Selick and based on a story and characters created by Burtonhence why Burton’s name was added to the film’s title. The Nightmare Before Christmas follows Jack Skellington (voiced by Chris Sarandon), the king of Halloween Town who, tired of doing the same thing over and over, decides to bring Christmas to Halloween Town.
At the time of writing, The Nightmare Before Christmas has a 95% critic score on Rotten tomatoes and an audience score of 92%, giving it “fresh” labels. In addition to creating the characters and story, Burton served as producer on The Nightmare Before Christmas. The film was praised for its animation, stunning visuals, story, music, and performance from its voice cast. The Nightmare Before ChristmasThe haunting, strange, yet charming visual style and its unique characters gained even more critical praise, and it is now a Halloween and Christmas classic.
Tim Burton’s lowest rated film on RT is Alice Through the Looking Glass, which he produced
Tim Burton did not return to direct the Alice in Wonderland sequel
On the other hand, Burton’s lowest-rated film to date wasn’t directed by him either, but he was still involved in it: Alice through the looking glass. The sequel to the film directed by Burton Alice in Wonderland was released in 2016, directed by James Bobin and with Burton as one of its producers. Alice through the looking glass follows Alice (Mia Wasikowska) as she returns to Wonderland through a magic mirror. Alice reunites with the Mad Hatter (Johnny Depp), who is acting stranger than usual. Alice then embarks on an adventure through time to save her old friend before time runs out.
Alice through the looking glass has a 29% score from critics on Rotten tomatoes and an audience score of 48%, both considered “rotten” reviews. Although its visuals were praised, critics pointed to its underwhelming and confusing story, bland characters, and lack of humor as the film’s biggest flaws. Interestingly, Burton’s second lowest-rated film on Rotten tomatoes it was also not directed by him: Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunterdirected by Timur Bekmambetov and produced by him, Jim Lemley and Burton.
Ed Wood and Dark Shadows are the best and worst films directed by Tim Burton on RT
Tim Burton’s best and worst films on RT are very different
The highest and lowest rated films in Rotten tomatoes directed by Tim Burton are Ed Wood and Dark Shadows. Launched in 1994, Ed Wood is a black and white biographical comedy-drama about the career of the cult filmmaker (played by Johnny Depp), specifically the time in which he made his most famous works and his relationship with Bela Lugosi (Martin Landau). Ed Wood has a 92% critic score on Rotten tomatoes and an audience score of 88%, with praise for Depp’s performance and how the film celebrates Wood’s career rather than mocking it.
Dark Shadows was released in 2012 and is based on the gothic novel of the same name. Dark Shadows is the story of Barnabas Collins (Depp), who broke the heart of a witch named Angelique (Eva Green), who turned him into a vampire and buried him alive. Two centuries later, Barnabas escapes and joins his family, but soon discovers that Angelique is his family’s business rival. Dark Shadows has a critic score of 35% and an audience score of 46%, with critics praising the film’s visuals but finding it inconsistent, bland, and overcrowded, among other things.
Tim Burton’s darkest works have achieved high scores with critics and audiences alike. Rotten tomatoeshow are they Corpse Bride, Batman Returnsand Sleepy hollowwhile most of the films he produced but did not direct got “rotten” scores. It’s to see how well Tim BurtonThe next projects in the series will please critics, especially since one of them is a remake of a 1950s sci-fi horror film.