FAQ for
Corpse Bride (2005) More at IMDbPro »

The following FAQ entries may contain spoilers. Only the biggest ones (if any) will be covered with spoiler tags. Spoiler tags are used sparingly in order to make the page more readable.

For detailed information about the amounts and types of (a) sex and nudity, (b) violence and gore, (c) profanity, (d) alcohol, drugs, and smoking, and (e) frightening and intense scenes in this movie, consult the IMDb Parents Guide for this movie. The Parents Guide for [iCorpse Bride[/i] can be found at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0121164/parentalguide.

Corpse Bride is based on a 19th century Russian-Jewish adaptation of a 16th century folktale "The Finger," in which a woman on her wedding day is murdered and a man on his way to his own wedding sees her finger poking out of the ground. For fun, he places his bride's wedding ring on the corpse's finger (which he thinks is just a stick) and practices his marriage vows. The woman's corpse emerges from the ground and declares herself married to the man. The tale was adapted for the movie by American screenwriters John August and Caroline Thompson and by producer/director Tim Burton.

Johnny Depp does the voice for Victor Van Dort. His parents are voiced by Paul Whitehouse (William Van Dort) and Tracey Ullman (Nell Van Dort). Victor's fiancée, Victoria Everglot, is voiced by Emily Watson, and her parents are Albert Finney (Lord Finis Everglot) and Joanna Lumley (Lady Maudeline Everglot). Emily, the Corpse Bride, is voiced by Helena Bonham Carter. Lord Barkis Bittern is Richard E. Grant. Christopher Lee does the voice of Pastor Galswells.

Technically, yes, although there are only four songs, i.e., music with lyrics, in the movie. The first is According to Plan, when the prospective bride (Victoria), groom (Victor), and their parents are beginning to meet for the first time. The second is Remains of the Day, when the skeletons tell Victor how Emily came to be dead. Number three is Tears to Shed, featuring the spider, the maggot, and Emily. Finally, The Wedding Song is a chorus of voices as Victor and Emily plan their wedding.

The song Victor played on the piano (though many mistakenly think it is Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata) is actually an original composition by Danny Elfman for the film. It is called Victor's Piano Solo, and it's available on the soundtrack album.

The best guess is that she got bashed over the the head by her fiancé. This is based on the line from the song Remains of the Day "and then, baby, everything went black", plus the telltale mark on her forehead. He then stole her family jewels and left her for dead. Later in the movie, it is revealed that the murderous fiancé was none other than Lord Barkis Bittern.

Emily finds peace. It was left vague so that the story could be accessible to all religions, but the implication is that she has moved on to Heaven.There is a bright light, and then she ascends to the sky in the form of hundreds of butterflies. The butterflies are symbolic of freedom. Her murder was avenged, and she allowed Victoria to have Victor in the land of the living.