Girl, uninterrupted
ANAHEIM, CALIF. Winona Ryder’s career was interrupted a few times, but she refuses to let the stalls stop her. She keeps plugging away.
Indeed, she was happy to say yes to friend Tim Burton when he asked her to voice Elsa Van Helsing in his 3D stop-motion animated movie Frankenweenie, which opens today.
The black- andwhite film tells the tale of young Victor Frankenstein (voiced by Charlie Tahan), who brings his dead dog Sparky back to life with a bolt of lightning.
The fantasy gives Burton an opportunity to pay tribute to his beloved monster movies, and his middle-class life growing up in Burbank, Calif. It also allowed him to reconnect with Ryder.
Q Was it pleasant to reunite with Burton?
A I’m so honoured to be part of something so personal for him. I would literally read the phone book for him, and I’m sure he would make it incredibly masterful.
Q Frankenweenie features a memorable teacher. Did you have one?
A I had a couple, but one in particular — Mr. Frank. He was a history teacher, who was inquiring and who taught us about history in all kinds of different ways.
Q Did you grow up in a suburban environment like Burton?
A I grew up in the (San Francisco) Bay area and we lived for a while in Mendocino County (Calif.) on sort of a commune with seven families. Q Did you get to watch movies? A We had a barn ... it was in the Redwoods. And they would put up a white sheet on the barn and (Mom) had a projector. Q Do you remember what you saw? A I remember seeing To Kill a Mockingbird and Gigi ... I remember seeing A Woman Under the Influence and some very deep movies that I didn’t understand. Q Did you have a childhood dog? A Well, I didn’t. My brother did. It was a stray. It was missing a leg, and so he called it Tripod.
Q Back to Burton. How do you think he manages to blend dark and light themes so seamlessly?
A Everything about Tim is very special. I love him so tremendously, both professionally and personally. I think there is so much heart in all of his darkness.
Q Is that you singing Praise Be New Holland?
A Yes. And I just found out I am on the soundtrack. I don’t know if that’s going to be downloaded so much.
Q How did Burton convince you to sing?
A Tim has this magical way of persuading you to do things. Q Is he your mentor? A He gave me a career in a big way. It really changed my life with Beetlejuice, in terms of it letting me feel like it was actually OK to be like (the Beetlejuice character) Lydia.
Q Is Burton still as casual as he used to be on set?
A Oh, yeah. (Laughs) I remember on Beetlejuice we were ready to shoot a scene, and Tim yelled out, ‘Wait, someone’s in the shot.’ It was Tim.