10 Best Movies Like Corpse Bride

The lively but poignant Corpse Bride (2005) has its place as a highlight of Tim Burton’s storied filmography. Corpse Bride follows nervous groom Victor who is in an arranged engagement to the wealthy Victoria. While practicing his vows, Victor accidentally marries a dead woman who rises from the grave to be his wife.

The movie looks at such themes as murder, love, greed, and social status. The animation and stylish art direction helps to present these lofty themes in an alluring fashion. The movie is charming and captivating, an eccentric outing in the animation genre, and fans may find themselves enjoying these similar movies, too.

10 Hercules (1997) – Stream On Disney+

Hercules, this Greek mythological Disney movie, tells the story of half-deity half-mortal Hercules who must perform a series of unselfish heroic deeds to gain reentry to Mount Olympus. However, the king of the underworld Hades stands in Hercules’ way. While both films show their versions of death, the two differ greatly in their presentations. This movie shows the afterlife as a dark and gloomy wasteland where souls cry out from the river Styx. But, like Corpse Bride, Hercules infuses humor in the story despite the dark components.

9 Wallace & Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005) – Rent From Amazon Video

This Aardman movie is a send-up of monster movies and British Hammer Horror films that were often based in gothic horror fantasy. As a result, the two stop motion movies share the same aesthetics and homages. In Wallace & Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit the duo are operating a pest control business when they are tasked by Lady Tottington to thwart a giant rabbit that has been destroying the town’s crops. Corpse Bride and this movie also share a common cast member as Helena Bonham Carter plays both Lady Tottington and Emily the corpse bride.

8 James and the Giant Peach (1996) – Stream On Disney+

In this stop motion flick, an abused boy escapes his two mean guardians with the help of giant talking bugs by sailing on a floating stories-tall peach. The pals set course to New York City where they hope all their dreams come true. The blend of live-action and stop motion is exceptional even under today’s technology-sensitive microscope.

Each character, insect or human, has unmistakable personalities. This makes the audience relate and bond with the endearing characters. The voice acting is hard to beat as the talented cast breathes life to their creepy-crawly counterparts.

7 The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) – Stream On Disney+

When the king of Halloweentown Jack Skellington tries to bring Christmas to the area, his efforts are met with confusion. Tim Burton’s macabre humor is brought to life in this Henry Selick-directed movie. This movie has a die-hard devoted fan base with many falling in love with the movie’s characters and songs. The film is incredibly imaginative with weird but alluring features. Like Corpse Bride, the filmmakers take concepts that everyone is familiar with like death or the holidays but puts their own clear-cut spin on it.

6 Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007) – Stream On Paramount+

As it takes place in the Victorian setting, both films show a similar art direction. It helps that both films are made by the same director, the acclaimed Tim Burton. Corpse Bride could be looked at as the child’s version of Sweeney Todd as both feature similar themes of murder in Victoria’s England. But, the presentation of those topics differ. In this movie, a crazed barber returns to London after a wrongful 15-year imprisonment to enact revenge on those who ruined his life. Based on the Sondheim musical of the same name, the songs of the film are a step above and the cast does a wonderful job in their masterful portrayals.

5 Coraline (2009) – Rent From Google Play

Both films look at other worlds lurking beneath the surface. In Corpse Bride, the secret world is an enclave of the deceased who still have unfinished business. While, in Coraline, the other world is a parallel reality where a soul-hungry monster lurks behind a perfect facade. The movie aptly balances its quirkiness with the more ghoulish moments of the film.  The movie’s color scheme helps to reflect the true malevolent nature of the other world as the setting becomes darker and more monochromatic as compared to the brighter and contrasting colors of the happier moments earlier in the film.

4 Coco (2017) – Stream On Disney+

In this heartwrenching Pixar movie, aspiring musician Miguel gets swept into the Land of the Dead where he meets Hector. The two new friends venture to find the roots of Miguel’s family history and explain the family’s ban on music. The Land of the Dead is colorful and vibrant, inviting the viewer into the film’s setting. While the movie has a focus on death, it does so in a light and heartfelt way rather than in a gloomy and morose manner.

3 Paranorman (2012) – Stream On Netflix

Outcast Norman can speak to the dead in this dark animated kid’s movie. Through his gift, his late uncle warns Norman that an ancient witch’s curse on the town will soon be coming to fruition. It is up to Norman and the townspeople to fight off the impending doom. The film’s animation is fantastic and makes the most of its zombie film inspirations in its style. Both films share distinct aesthetics while sticking to their cinematic influences.

2 Beetlejuice (1988) – Stream On Peacock

When young newlyweds Barbara and Adam Maitland die in a car accident, they find that their ghosts are unable to leave the house.  When an unbearable couple and their goth daughter move into their house, the Maitlands hire a wacky conman human exorcist to get rid of the interlopers.

The film’s wacky but gothic style sets this imaginative and wholly original film apart from anything seen in the black comedy genre. The depiction of the process of death as a DMV-like bureaucracy and its related laws/rules was a completely unique take on death and the afterlife in cinema.

1 Frankenweenie (2012) – Stream On Disney+

In this bittersweet movie, a science-centric kid has his dog pass away. Heartbroken over the loss, the young scientist resolves to bring the canine back to life. This doggy, kid-friendly version of the familiar Frankenstein story is one of Tim Burton’s most heartfelt, sincere films. It is interesting to note that this stop motion version was Burton’s second attempt at the Frankenweenie story.  His first was a live-action short made with the Disney company all the way back in 1984 when Burton was still working as an animator for the Mouse House. However, the short was not released at the time as it was believed to be too dark for a Disney short. Viewers can now watch the short on Disney+.

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