Sleepy Hollow
About the Film
New York, 1799. Constable Ichabod Crane — a squeamish believer in reason and forensic science — is packed off to the isolated hamlet of Sleepy Hollow to investigate a string of grisly murders in which the victims are found beheaded. The terrified locals insist the killer is no man at all but the ghost of a Hessian mercenary, the Headless Horseman, risen to reap heads.
As Crane is drawn to Katrina Van Tassel and deeper into the town’s secrets, his rational world collapses: the Horseman is horribly real, and someone living is controlling him to murder their way to a family fortune. Crane must conquer his own fears to unmask the conspiracy and send the Horseman back to Hell.
Johnny Depp
Johnny Depp plays Ichabod Crane — reimagined from Washington Irving’s schoolteacher into a fussy, faint-hearted New York investigator who faints at the sight of blood yet insists on solving crimes by method and evidence. Depp modelled the delicate, easily-spooked performance partly on Basil Rathbone’s Sherlock Holmes, playing Crane as brave in spite of himself.
Cast & Crew
Cast
Ichabod CraneJohnny Depp
Katrina Van TasselChristina Ricci
Lady Mary Van TasselMiranda Richardson
Baltus Van TasselMichael Gambon
Brom Van BruntCasper Van Dien
The Hessian HorsemanChristopher Walken
Reverend SteenwyckJeffrey Jones
The BurgomasterChristopher Lee
James HardenbrookMichael Gough
Dr. Thomas LancasterIan McDiarmid
Crew
DirectorTim Burton
ScreenplayAndrew Kevin Walker
MusicDanny Elfman
CinematographyEmmanuel Lubezki
ProducersScott Rudin, Adam Schroeder
“Villainy wears many masks, none so dangerous as the mask of virtue.”
— Ichabod Crane, Sleepy Hollow
Filming Locations
- Leavesden Film Studios, England (principal photography)
- Shepperton Studios, England
- Culden Faw Estate, Hambleden, England (the town set)
- Yonkers, New York (sound stage)
More about this film
Trivia
- Tim Burton came aboard in 1998 after original director Kevin Yagher stepped down; the project shifted from a low-budget effects piece to a full gothic feature.
- Playwright Tom Stoppard did an uncredited rewrite, adding Ichabod’s comic bumbling and the romance with Katrina.
- The town of Sleepy Hollow — 12 buildings — was built from scratch at Culden Faw Estate for about $1.3 million over four months.
- Around 150 visual-effects shots were done mostly by ILM; Burton deliberately kept digital effects restrained after Mars Attacks!
Awards
- 2000 Academy Award — Best Art Direction Won
- 2000 BAFTA — Best Production Design; Best Costume Design Won
- 2000 Saturn Award — Best Actress (Christina Ricci); Best Music (Danny Elfman) Won
- 2000 Academy Award nominations — Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design
- 2000 BAFTA nomination — Best Visual Effects
DVD Easter Eggs
- Interactive quiz: from the menu open “Credits,” then select “Credits” again to unlock a quiz highlighting the film’s goofs and mistakes.
