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At the first and only scene with Christopher Lee in Sleepy Hollow (1999) there were a few moments where he's shown directly from the front where the wings of the eagle statue behind him look like they are spawning from his body. Was this an homage to his earlier horror movie roles or was there any other meaning for them?

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    I've actually seen shots like this fairly often in movies and tv where the angle of the camera is such to make something in the background look like a part of the actor's body. One that I always go back to is a shot in an episode of Twin Peaks which makes a character appear to have antlers. At first I just thought it was David Lynch being weird, but I'm now wondering if there is a specific name and usage for this type of camera shot.
    – sanpaco
    Aug 30, 2016 at 17:01
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    I've found this article where the writer says : The framing of the shots is interesting, especially when the statue behind the Burgomaster makes it appear as if he has bat wings in certain shots. Reportedly this was entirely unintentional, as hard as that may be to believe. I really find it hard to believe.
    – Montag451
    Aug 30, 2016 at 17:14
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    There is also this quote from Depp which makes me wonder if that scene was intentional : Depp laughs. "When you're in a scene with the guy and he's leaning down into you, his voice booming and you look in those eyes, I mean, it's Dracula."
    – Montag451
    Aug 30, 2016 at 17:20

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My interpretation of this imagery is that he's being loosely depicted as an angel of death, sentencing Ichabod Crane to go to Sleepy Hallow to investigate the weird murders.

Remember, in the original story of the Headless Horseman, Ichabod Crane actually ends up disappearing, never to be seen again. We are unsure of his fate, just as those watching this movie for the first time having heard of the Headless Horseman story previously are unsure of Ichabod Crane's fate at this time in the movie, wondering if he might end up disappearing or being killed entirely.

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