It's the 19th century and Victor (voice of JOHNNY DEPP) is a young and shy man whose working class parents -- Nell (voice of TRACEY ULLMAN) and William Van Dort (voice of PAUL WHITEHOUSE) -- have arranged his marriage to Victoria (voice of EMILY WATSON) -- the lovely daughter of Maudeline (voice of JOANNA LUMLEY) and Finis Everglot (voice of ALBERT FINNEY). Despite now being broke, the Everglots still maintain their snooty, upper crust ostentation and look down on Victor, as does their clergyman, Pastor Galswells (voice of CHRISTOPHER LEE), when Victor can't remember his vows during the wedding rehearsal.
Headed off to practice them, Victor unknowingly wanders into a long forgotten cemetery where his vows arouse the Corpse Bride (voice of HELENA BONHAM CARTER) whose thrust-up, skeletal hand comes into contact with Victoria's wedding band, thus meaning they're now married, at least in her mind. After accidentally knocking himself out, Victor awakens in the underworld where his new bride, Emily, and the rest of the dead live and celebrate the arrival of the newly dead.
Victor is taken aback by what he sees and tries to tell Emily that he's already spoken for, but he's soon drawn in by her story of having died on her wedding day and thence forever waiting for a groom. With the help of Elder Gutknecht (voice of MICHAEL GOUGH), they return to the world of the living, but when Emily sees Victoria, she whisks Victor back to the underworld.
As Victoria then sets out to help rescue Victor while being unaware that family friend Barkis Bittern (voice of RICHARD E. GRANT) has set his sights on her, her dowry and the family fortune that he's unaware no longer exists, Victor must choose between the two women, both of whom he's only just met.