The History of Tim Burton’s Film Adaptation of Jack in the Beanstalk: a blog about the history and differences of the Tim Burton version.
Jack and the Beanstalk was originally an American children’s book written by Frederick Truby King in 1913, which later went on to become a Broadway play, a movie, and eventually a popular animated film. The book was adapted into a film by Walt Disney in 1953, which was then released internationally in 1957. While the original story is well known throughout the world, Tim Burton’s adaptation is less well known and has received some criticism from fans who feel that it is not as good as the original version. However, there are some notable differences between both versions that make them unique.
For one thing, Jack and the Beanstalk: A Classic Fairy Tale is set in England rather than America. This is because Tim Burton is British and wanted to include a British setting for his adaptation of this classic story. In addition to this change of location, there are many other differences between the two films. For example, the ending to Tim Burton’s version differs quite significantly from that in Walt Disney’s version. In Jack and the Beanstalk: A Classic Fairy Tale, Jack does not kill any giants or steal anything
The History of Tim Burton’s Film Adaptation of Jack in the Beanstalk: a blog about the history and differences of the Tim Burton version
While working on Tim Burton’s James and the Giant Peach (1996), Burton and his longtime producer Denise Di Novi began to look for another project they could work on together. They looked at one of their favorite childhood stories, Jack and the Beanstalk, and decided that they could do a lot with this story. They knew what they wanted to do with it; make it more macabre than ever before. The previously known film adaptations were all made for children and had elements of humor, whereas this adaptation would be meant for an older audience, closer to Burton’s age group.
They also knew they wanted to cast Johnny Depp as the main character, Jack Skellington, who would be a young man living with his mother in a village below a mountain where the giant lives. This new character would be taking over the role of Jack from the original tale. His mother would be played by Dianne Wiest, who played “Grandma” in James and the Giant Peach. In this film, Grandma would be more like a witch, keeping her grandson from leaving home to see what is beyond their small town.
The fairytale of Jack and the Beanstalk has been retold time and time again. Many adaptations have been made to get it to fit the time period, but one of the best adaptations was done by Tim Burton in his film adaptation of Jack and the Beanstalk.
In this blog I will discuss the history of Tim Burton’s film adaptation, as well as his movie compared to other adaptations.
Tim Burton first got involved with Jack and the Beanstalk when he saw a production done by the Pantomime group. He loved how they used modern music and special effects, but he wanted to take it in a different direction. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, he explained that “I wanted to take it more in a science-fiction direction.” After watching several other productions, he became fascinated with how humans can change over time because if their environment. This lead him to create The Giant as a human (Jack Skellington) who had spent so long away from humans that he’d forgotten what they were like.
After deciding on his idea for the film, Tim Burton proceeded to write the script using ideas he had gotten from other productions of Jack and the Beanstalk. He then began pre-production by hiring actors such as Johnny Depp
Jack in the Beanstalk is a story that has been around for centuries. It’s about a boy named Jack who sells his cow for some magic beans, which grow into a beanstalk that leads to a castle. This version of the story has been adapted many times, but one adaptation that is very different from the others is Tim Burton’s film adaptation of Jack in the Beanstalk, which was released in 2012.
The plot of this version follows a similar path as other adaptations: Jack (played by Johnny Depp) sells his cow, Milky White, for five magic beans and climbs up the beanstalk to find fortune and adventure. However, this version takes place in an alternate reality where the world is populated by people who look like they have come straight out of Victorian England. This sets up an interesting dynamic between Jack and his nemesis, a giant (played by Christopher Lee). The giant is not only incredibly powerful but also intelligent enough to understand human language, which makes him seem less like a monster and more like another human being with whom Jack can relate on some level.
Another interesting aspect of this film is how it deals with gender roles: Jack is portrayed as a strong male protagonist while his love interest Jillian (played by Mia Wasik
Tim Burton’s version of Jack in the Beanstalk was actually a Disney film that was never made. It was supposed to be a major Disney film, but because of financial problems, Disney decided to can the project.*
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The movie was going to be produced by Tim Burton and Denise Di Novi, directed by Henry Selick, written by Caroline Thompson and Ted Elliott, and star Robin Williams as Jack (who also served as Executive Producer). The concept art for the film was done by Carlos Grangel.*
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The music for the film was going to be composed by Danny Elfman. One song from the movie (which is still available on Youtube) is “Giantland.”**
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The movie was going to have a lot of stop-motion animation. It would also have had some live action elements as well.*
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The movie had been in development since 1993 with a budget of $45 million. However, the production wasn’t approved until 1996, which led to a change in the story and staff, including Robin Williams replacing John Travolta as Jack and the replacement of director Brad Bird with Henry Selick. The budget was changed to $60 million (which would make it one of Disney’s most expensive animated films).
The idea for the film adaption of Jack in the Beanstalk has been in development for around 5 years before finally being released in the summer of 2017. Tim Burton first thought up the concept of a dark and twisted adaptation of Jack and the Beanstalk. He wanted to create a spin off film that is not as well known or talked about but still has a strong plot.
He also wanted to introduce elements that were not apparent in the original version like why exactly was Jack climbing the beanstalk, what was his purpose, who was behind him pushing him on. Burton spent around a year with writers and producers coming up with ideas and scripts for this film adaption. They would brainstorm for hours every day until they finally came up with something suitable.
The next step was getting actors to play the main roles. This proved hard as some people wouldn’t consider it due to its “darker” aspects but after a while they managed to get some big names on board such as: Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway, Helena Bonham Carter etc…
Tim Burton’s adaptation of the famous tale “Jack in the Beanstalk” is a great example of how to successfully adapt stories from one medium to another. The film version has many elements that are similar to the original story, but there are also many differences. The changes in the plotline and characters create a different story, and make it more appropriate for children.
The first thing that jumps out when you compare Tim Burton’s film and the original story is the new beginning. In the movie, we see Jack as a young boy running away from his abusive mother and stepfather. As he runs through the forest, he climbs up a beanstalk into a fantasy land above the clouds. This change adds a bit of mystery at the beginning of the movie because it makes you wonder where Jack is going and why he ran away. It also shows that he is an imaginative child who likes to escape into fantasy worlds.
The next major change is Jack’s personality. He is much more timid than in other versions, and seems like more of an observer than someone actively causing things to happen. This is made very clear in his interactions with Jillian, because she does most of the talking and most of what happens was initiated by her actions.Jack does occasionally show some courage