The Auteur Theory Behind Tim Burton Through Charlie and The Chocolate Factory and Sweeney Todd : The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

This thesis intends to prove that the American director Tim Burton is today’s most prominent auteur in American film production. In my thesis, I support my statement by using examples from two movies Burton adapted: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory based on Roald Dahl’s novel and Sweeney Todd: the Demon Barber of Fleet Street based on Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler’s musical of the same name. Although the original stories were not written or created by Burton himself, he has the ability to make stories into movies in a way, that a distinctive and discernable style can be clearly seen and felt not only in the visuals but also in the atmosphere of his films. Burton is capable of creating stylistic and narrative units from other artists’ works and bringing a distinctively “Burtonesque” movie into existence, no matter if it is a fantasy drama or a musical horror film. Furthermore, I am also providing a chapter dedicated to the history and origins of the auteur theory, in which I explain the meaning of this expression.