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what is the movie sleepy hollow about

by Gordon Murazik Jr. Published 2 years ago Updated 2 years ago
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Movie Info Set in 1799, "Sleepy Hollow" is based on Washington Irving's classic tale "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is a gothic story by American author Washington Irving, contained in his collection of 34 essays and short stories entitled The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.. Written while Irving was living abroad in Birmingham, England, "The Legend of Sleepy H…

." Faithful to the dreamy custom-bound world that Irving paints in his story, the film mixes horror, fantasy and romance and features an extraordinary cast of characters that dabble in the supernatural.

Full Answer

Is Sleepy Hollow a true story?

Yes, Ichabod Crane was a real person, but his only inspiration in the Sleepy Hollow legend is his name. Irving saw his name in a paper and really liked it. The real Crane served during the War of 1812 and was alive at the same time as Washington Irving. However, the two never met. Crane was a military man and served for 45 years.

What is the moral of the Sleepy Hollow?

If any “moral” could be taken from “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” it is that there are some places where reason cannot guide us. The possibility of a place where reason and rationality are no longer useful is a direct and sharp critique of the ideals of the Enlightenment.

What is the plot and conflict of Sleepy Hollow?

The main conflict in “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” is that between Ichabod Crane and Brom Bones, as the two men fight for Katrina Van Tassel’s hand in marriage. As events will show, Brom Bones is prepared to play dirty to get what he wants.

What inspired 'the legend of Sleepy Hollow'?

What inspired the legend of Sleepy Hollow? According to the New York Historical Society, others believe Irving was inspired by “an actual Hessian soldier who was decapitated by a cannonball during the Battle of White Plains, around Halloween 1776.” Irving's story takes place in the New York village of Sleepy Hollow, in Westchester County.

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What is the main idea of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow?

Greed and supernatural themes in The Legend of Sleepy Hollow A major theme present in “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” is greed. Katrina, for example, loves the attention she gets while men quarrel over her. She does not seem to care much about either of them and only for their public displays of love and devotion.

Is the movie Sleepy Hollow Based on a true story?

As rooted in folklore as “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” are, they are not, in fact, popular legends and myths that sprang up during the early years of the United States — they are works of fiction penned by Washington Irving.

Who is the killer in Sleepy Hollow?

Ichabod Crane is sent to Sleepy Hollow to investigate the decapitations of three people, with the culprit being the legendary apparition, The Headless Horseman.

Why does the Headless Horseman carry a pumpkin?

It was a stroke of genius on the part of the character Brom Bones to impersonate the ghost and scare off the feckless schoolmaster who was stalking his girlfriend, Katrina van Tassel, in spite of her efforts to discourage his courtship, by chucking a large ripe pumpkin at the highly superstitious Crane in lieu of a ...

What does the Headless Horseman represent?

Franz Potter, a professor at National University who specializes in Gothic studies, says the headless horseman, as a supernatural entity, represents a past that never dies, but always haunts the living. “The headless horseman supposedly seeks revenge—and a head—which he thinks was unfairly taken from him,” Potter says.

Why did Lady Van Tassel cut her hand?

After confessing her crimes, Lady Van Tassel states that she now plans to have Katrina killed by the Horseman so she can get the entire fortune under her fist.

Did Sleepy Hollow have a good ending?

The thankful President makes Crane an American citizen for his efforts and reestablishes Agency 355. It's not a totally happy ending since there's still the whole issue of Crane selling his soul, but Diana vows to help him find a way out of the deal.

What was the ending of Sleepy Hollow?

At the end of the movie, Ichabod and Katrina, with Lady Van Tassel and the Headless Horseman chasing them, find themselves at the Tree of the Dead. Ichabod manages to get the skull away from Lady Van Tassel and tosses it to the Headless Horseman. That breaks the spell she has over him but doesn't break their bond.

Where is the real Headless Horseman?

While this frightening figure continues to live on in the pages of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, local lore claims that the Headless Horseman is buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York.

What happened to the Headless Horseman in Sleepy Hollow?

While initially a good man, he was devastated and angered by Katrina's decision to leave him upon the discovery that Ichabod had been the true love of her life. Abraham challenged his friend to a duel and when he apparently won, he was mortally shot by a Hessian soldier.

Where did the Headless Horseman come from?

The legend of the Headless Horseman (also known as "the Headless Hessian of the Hollow") begins in Sleepy Hollow, New York, during the American Revolutionary War. Traditional folklore holds that the Horseman was a Hessian trooper who was killed during the Battle of White Plains in 1776.

What is sleepy hollows real name?

Tegan Joshua Anthony ChambersSleepy HallowBirth nameTegan Joshua Anthony ChambersBornDecember 20, 1999 JamaicaOriginFlatbush, Brooklyn, New York, U.SGenresHip hop Brooklyn drill7 more rows

Storyline

The curse of The Headless Horseman (Christopher Walken) is the legacy of the small town of Sleepy Hollow. Spearheaded by the eager Constable Ichabod Crane (Johnny Depp) and his new world ways into the quagmire of secrets and murder, secrets once laid to rest, best forgotten and now reawakened, and he too, holding a dark secret of a past once gone.

Did you know

Johnny Depp adopted Goldeneye, the horse that played Gunpowder, Ichabod Crane's horse in this film, when he heard it was going to be put down.

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What parents need to know

Parents need to know that Sleepy Hollow is a 1999 Tim Burton -directed horror movie in which Johnny Depp plays an Ichabod Crane reimagined as an 18th-century detective sent to investigate a series of mysterious decapitations taking place in a rural upstate New York village.

What's the story?

Johnny Depp plays the honorable but easily frightened Ichabod Crane, not a schoolteacher in this version but a sort of 18th-century detective, committed to the use of science and logic.

Is it any good?

SLEEPY HOLLOW is less the Washington Irving story than it is Scream set in post-Revolution times. The themes of science vs. supernatural and appearance vs. reality appear throughout the movie as Crane must understand his own past to see the truth.

Talk to your kids about ..

Families can talk about whether gore is ever necessary in a film. Is gory the same thing as scary?

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Overview

Adaptations

• The Headless Horseman (1922), a silent film directed by Edward Venturini and starring Will Rogers as Ichabod Crane. It was filmed on location in New York's Hudson River Valley.
• The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949), an animated adaptation directed by James Algar, Clyde Geronimi, and Jack Kinney, produced by Walt Disney Productions, and narrated by Bing Crosby. This versi…

Plot

From the listless repose of the place, and the peculiar character of its inhabitants, who are descendants from the original Dutch settlers, this sequestered glen has long been known by name of Sleepy Hollow ... A drowsy, dreamy influence seems to hang over the land, and to pervade the very atmosphere.— Washington Irving, "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"
The story is set in 1790 in the countryside around the Dutch settlement of Tarry Town (historical Tarrytown, …

Background

Irving wrote The Sketch Book during a tour of Europe, and parts of the tale may also be traced to European origins. Headless horsemen were staples of Northern Europe storytelling, featuring in German, Irish (e.g., Dullahan), Scandinavian (e.g., the Wild Hunt), and British legends, and were included in Robert Burns's Scots poem "Tam o' Shanter" (1790) and Bürger's Der Wilde J…

Geographic impact

• Annually since 1996, before Halloween, the nonprofit organization Historic Hudson Valley has held "Legend Weekend", an event at the Philipsburg Manor House in Sleepy Hollow.
• In 1997, the village of North Tarrytown, New York (as the village had been called since the late 19th century), where many events of the story took place, officially changed its name to Sleepy Hollow. Its high sch…

See also

• Ghost films
• Ghost stories
• Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, founded in 1849, is adjacent to the Old Dutch Burying Ground. They are separately owned and administered.

Further reading

• Thomas S. Wermuth (2001). Rip Van Winkle's Neighbors: The Transformation of Rural Society in the Hudson River Valley. State University of New York Press. ISBN 0-7914-5084-8.

External links

• "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" from The Harvard Classics (1917), hosted online at Bartleby.com.
• "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" at American Literature.
• The Legend of Sleepy Hollow public domain audiobook at LibriVox

1.Videos of What Is The Movie Sleepy Hollow About

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8 hours ago In 1799, young Police Detective Ichabod Crane (Johnny Depp) is sent from New York City to a small town called Sleepy Hollow to investigate a series of murders. Approached by the town's …

2.Sleepy Hollow (film) - Wikipedia

Url:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleepy_Hollow_(film)

28 hours ago Set in 1799, "Sleepy Hollow" is based on Washington Irving's classic tale "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." Faithful to the dreamy custom-bound world that Irving paints in his story, the film …

3.Sleepy Hollow (1999) - Plot Summary - IMDb

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8 hours ago Is Sleepy Hollow Based on a true story? According to the New York Historical Society, others believe Irving was inspired by “an actual Hessian soldier who was decapitated by a …

4.Sleepy Hollow (1999) - IMDb

Url:https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0162661/

10 hours ago  · Sleepy Hollow movie production status is currently Development. June 12, 2022 • Story selection and rights acquired; idea being crafted into usable script; financing and casting …

5.Sleepy Hollow Movie Review | Common Sense Media

Url:https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/sleepy-hollow

5 hours ago The main themes of “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow are the city versus the country, creativity and imagination, and the meaning of marriage. City versus country: Crane embodies the …

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