Critic Reviews
Sleepy Hollow (1999) Rank 3 Reviews
Expert Review Summary
based on (256) reviews
Click on the numbers to the right of the graph to see reviews of that rating
Reviews by Score:
artechock (Ruediger Suchsland)
filmcritic.com wakes up in Sleepy Hollow
San Francisco Examiner (Wesley Morris)
San Francisco Chronicle (Mick LaSalle)
San Francisco Chronicle (Mick LaSalle)
Needcoffee.com - Movie Review
3 Black Chicks ("The Diva")
This was not "Disney's Sleepy Hollow", that's for dang sure. I really enjoyed it, but then again, I happen to dig Tim Burton. He is sometimes a bit too weird for those who don't quite understand his style. This might make it difficult for some of y'all ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at 3 Black Chicks ("The Diva")
Dark Horizons (Garth Franklin)
It's three years since Tim Burton's last film "Mars Attacks" hit the screen and now he's back with this stylish, yet sadly empty version of the classic headless horseman legend. The cinematography, production design, artwork, etc. are all absolutely ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Dark Horizons (Garth Franklin)
Film Threat, Hollywood's Indie Voice
Paramount hasn't been known to create terribly comprehensive DVD presentations, but they take a big step in the right direction with the disc for Tim Burton's hit reimagining of the Washington Irving story. At first glance, Sleey Hollow appears to be ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Film Threat, Hollywood's Indie Voice
Movieman's Guide to the Movies (Brian Oliver)
I liked this movie for it's pure horror entertainment. It is not, however, for everyone. Decapitations abound throughout the picture (my count had it as high as 8). It is very well written with it's 18th Century dialogue by Andrew Kevin Walker, whose ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Movieman's Guide to the Movies (Brian Oliver)
Scott Renshaw
The story's protagonist is still named Ichabod Crane (Johnny Depp), but in SLEEPY HOLLOW Crane is a turnofthe19thcentury New York City constable dedicated to logical investigation and his own early explorations into forensic science. After a clash with ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Scott Renshaw
Walter Frith
If you wanted to take the film seriously, you would have to look at the characters first and foremost and unfortunately, Depp's is the only interesting one in the whole picture. The film seems obsessed, almost addicted like an alcoholic would be, with ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Walter Frith
TIME Magazine (Richard Corliss)
Burton's richest, prettiest, weirdest since Batman Returns . ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at TIME Magazine (Richard Corliss)
Rolling Stone (Peter Travers)
Q Network Film Desk (James Kendrick)
Jamey Hughton's Movie Views (Jamey Hughton)
Netflix (James Rocchi)
A spooky gothic horror tale with first-rate production design. ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Netflix (James Rocchi)
Projectionist (Sean Caszatt)
24 Frames Per Second (Edward Champion)
eFilmCritic.com (Scott Weinberg)
Tim Burton spins another eerie betime tale. ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at eFilmCritic.com (Scott Weinberg)
The Hot Button (David Poland)
The Art House Squatter
A Guide to Current DVD (Aaron Beierle)
Hollywood Jesus Visual Review
DVD Authority.com (Matt Brighton)
Gary Jones
Johnny Depp is a fine actor, but his performance here is little more than a reworking of his Edward Scissorhands, the similarity between the roles highlighted when Ichabod wields various spiky investigative gadgets. But what worked in Scissorhands ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Gary Jones
Susan Granger
Tim Burton fans are gonna relish this fantasy horror story, especially the creepy beginning. It's 1799 on a misty road near the small village of Sleepy Hollow in New York's Hudson River Valley when a coach carrying the region's richest man (Martin ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Susan Granger
Steve Rhodes
The warning is about the script and the miscasting of the female lead. Kevin Yagher's underdeveloped script, based on the famous Washington Irving story, "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," has some good ideas but lacks a cohesive narrative.Cast opposite ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Steve Rhodes
SF, Horror and Fantasy Film Review
In the early 1990s, following the unparalleled box-office and critical
success of films like Beetlejuice
(1998), Batman
(1989), Edward Scissorhands (1990),
Batman Returns (1992), The
Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) and Ed
Wood (1994), Tim Burton ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at SF, Horror and Fantasy Film Review
Natural Born Viewers ("Geeky Marcus")
This guy Tim Burton has talent, he is a master set designer. But somebody should
tell him that set designers do not make movies, they just do the sets. And
if you do both, you end up with "Sleepy Hollow," gorgeous eye candy
that tastes ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Natural Born Viewers ("Geeky Marcus")
Q Network Film Desk (James Kendrick)
Tim Burton's "Sleepy Hollow" is a wildly imaginative reinvention of Washington Irving's classic campfire ghost story about the Headless Horseman terrorizing a small, northeastern hamlet in the late 1700s. Burton and screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Q Network Film Desk (James Kendrick)
That Cow (B. Kiefer)
Everyone seems to be waiting for Tim Burton to grow up. I don't think that's going to happen. Tim Burton is as grown up as he is going to be. Burton is our Edgar Allen Poe. He's fascinated with the macabre and gothic. It's an easy jump for Burton to ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at That Cow (B. Kiefer)
Film Quips Online (John R. McEwen)
Depp and Ricci seem to be in a game of one-upsmanship to see who can look more sleepy and uninspired. The town elders are reasonably convincing in their small roles, but the intricacies of the plot seem to drag the film down instead of make it ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Film Quips Online (John R. McEwen)
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle (Jack Garner)
Most of us know the fable of Icabod Crane and the Headless Horseman from the popular 1949 Disney cartoon, featuring the oh-so-mellow narration of Bing Crosby.Tim Burton's newSleepy Hollowwith Johnny Depp and Christina Ricci isnotthat ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Rochester Democrat and Chronicle (Jack Garner)
Cinematter (Matt Williams)
Live action romantic horror film loosely based the legend of Ichabod Crane (Johnny Depp) and the Headless Horseman. Female lead Katrina Van Tassel will be played by Christina Ricci. Casper Van Dien will play Ichabod's rival Brom Van Brunt. Andrew Kevin ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Cinematter (Matt Williams)
The UK Critic (Ian Waldron-Mantgani)
No doubt Ricci was just so amazed by the movie's carefully constructed atmosphere that she could not stand in the way of it with her usual distracting sarcasm. "Sleepy Hollow" proves -- as do "Pee Wee's Big Adventure", "Batman", "Edward Scissorhands" ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at The UK Critic (Ian Waldron-Mantgani)
Laramie Movie Scope (Robert Roten)
The lavish sets and wonderful art direction add a lot to the style of this film. The cinematography by Emmanuel Lubezki ("Great Expectations") is excellent, as is the production Design by Rick Heinrichs ("Edward Scissorhands") and the art direction by ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Laramie Movie Scope (Robert Roten)
Three Movie Buffs (Eric Nash)
The headless horseman is very ominous and scary. Jack O'lanterns are everywhere. This could easily become a traditional Halloween favorite. But I guessed who the real villain was the not even half way through the movie. ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Three Movie Buffs (Eric Nash)
Dustin Putman
What "Sleepy Hollow" isn't is an adaptation of the Irving story. Aside from the key plot point of a headless horseman who prowls the countryside of the farming community, Sleepy Hollow, circa 1799, the film is only very loosely related to its source ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Dustin Putman
Detroit News (Susan Stark)
ToxicUniverse.com (Mike Bracken)
None of this is to say that Sleepy Hollow is a bad film, because it’s not. As I mentioned earlier, it might be ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at ToxicUniverse.com (Mike Bracken)
DVD Review e-zine
With every new release of a movie by cult director Tim Burton, viewers can rest assured that the vision they are presented with in each particular film is a rather unique one, no matter how familiar the thematic itself may be. Burton managed to flesh out ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at DVD Review e-zine
filmcritic.com (Christopher Null)
I’ll be the first to admit I don’t really remember the details of Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. But what I do remember, well, it didn’t go like this.
In typical Tim Burton fashion, a fairy tale gets an update ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at filmcritic.com (Christopher Null)
CinemaSense.Com: Movie Reviews of the Heart
Kalamazoo Gazette (James Sanford)
often feels akin to the Hammer horror movies made in England during the 1950s and 1960s, the spooky/gory spectacles that broke new ground in presenting on-screen violence. ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Kalamazoo Gazette (James Sanford)
The Oscar Guy (Wesley Lovell)
New York Post (Jonathan Foreman)
A visual tour de force. ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at New York Post (Jonathan Foreman)
Reel.com
With his foggy fable Sleepy Hollow, director Tim Burton builds a typically dark yet delightful fantasy, only to decapitate his creation with anticlimactic exposition and a drawn-out, action-heavy finale. Part Ed Wood and part Murder, She Wrote, this ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Reel.com
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Christian Spotlight on the Movies
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Popcorn Pictures Review
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Home Theater Info (Doug MacLean)
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In Film Australia
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Attack of the 50 Foot DVD!
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Mutant Reviewers From Hell
Los Angeles Times (Kenneth Turan)
UTK Daily Beacon (Nick Tipton)
Cineclub-Filmkritik
DVDTown.com (John J. Puccio)
...a marvelous film to look at, with its strange, surrealistic sets, if not a film to engage one's intellect very strongly. ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at DVDTown.com (John J. Puccio)
B Fatt. & Lazy Movie Reviews
PopMatters (P. Nelson Reinsch)
Matt's Movie Reviews (Matt Easterbrook)
watchingmovies.com (Rob McKinnon)
Film Blather (Eugene Novikov)
The Cranky Critic (Chuck Schwartz)
Expanded Cinemah
THE WEEKLY MOVIE REVIEW
Eccentric Cinema
DVD Town (John J. Puccio)
Horror DVDs Review
Scott's Movie Reviews (Scott Mantz)
Movie Hell (Michael J. Legeros)
SLEEPY HOLLOW is another classic Tim Burton atmosphere piece, which means the mood is infinitely more satisfying than the story. Or the characters... Or any action sequence... The visuals make this a must-see-shot after stunning shot from Emmanuel ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Movie Hell (Michael J. Legeros)
On-Line Review by Christian Leopold Shea.
** Shrubbery Review -- Sleepy Hollow **
ZombieKeeper.com
Rotten Tomatoes - Reviews from the Nation's Top Critics
Movie-Page.com review
DVD Verdict (Mike Jackson)
AmateurHomeTheater.com
The Spinning Image
Deseret News, Salt Lake City
Movie Geek Central
Movieman's Guide to the Movies
Jump Cut. Magazin für Film und Kritik
The Spinning Image (Graeme Clark)
Movie ram-blings (Ram Samudrala)
Philadelphia City Paper (Sam Adams)
The New York Times - Family Movie Guide (Peter M. Nichols)
11th Hour Reviews
DVD Town (Dean Winkelspecht)
Harvey's Movie Review (Harvey O'Brien)
Montreal Film Journal (Kevin N. Laforest)
This is a loose adaptation of the classic Washington Irving tale about supernatural events in a gloomy little town. Johnny Depp stars as Ichabod Crane, a constable operating in New York. It's the end of 1799, and Crane is preaching for more reasonable ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Montreal Film Journal (Kevin N. Laforest)
Classic-Horror.com
Movies 101 (Robert Glatzer)
City Pages, Minneapolis/St. Paul
Reel.com DVD review (Robert Payne)
Screen It! Entertainment Reviews for Parents
Cinema Laser (Derek M. Germano)
Salon (Stephanie Zacharek)
Blunt Review with Emily Blunt
Salon.com (Stephanie Zacharek)
MovieJuice.com Satirical Review of "Sleepy Hollow"
Foster on Film - Ghost Stories
eye WEEKLY (Jason Anderson)
Reeling Reviews (Robin and Laura Clifford)
Movie Magazine International
Natural Born Viewers
Sun Newspapers of Cleveland
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
"Sleepy Hollow" is a film that seems carefully designed to be a hit so big it will erase all these bad memories. It's a veritable retrospective of his eye-popping effects and stylistic flourishes, with a ghoulish "Frankenweenie"-like comic-horror ...read the complete Sleepy Hollow movie review at Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Nashville Scene (Noel Murray)
La Movie Boeuf (David N. Butterworth)
Spirituality & Health (Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat)
Triviana Reviews
The Phantom Tollbooth