I'm into theater. Most people(if not everyone) who read this know that. I first got a taste of Sweeney back when they did the concert version which I still love to this day. It was around that time when Burton was first attached to this project. Even then I thought that it would be a wonderful matchup between director and material. Then Burton left and returned to the project with post-Pirates of the Carribean Johnny Depp attached. I have lost a lot of respect for Depp after the last 2 Pirate movies, but this would be his next project and I was hoping that he would live up to when he was once great.
The story is about Sweeney Todd (Depp) who once went by the name Benjamin Barker. He used to have a beautiful wife and baby daughter, until a jealous judge (Alan Rickman) send Barker away and took on Barker's daughter as his own. Todd returns with one thing on his mind: revenege. He uses his old profession of a Barber to exact his revenge. He rents a room from Mrs. Lovitz (Helen Bonaman Carter). She loves Todd and will do anything for him, like bake his victims into pies.
Some people feel that Burton hasn't made a good movie for a very long time, I happen to disagree and really liked his "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and "Corpse Bride" but I believe he still hadn't reached the level of genious as Ed Wood all those years ago. For all those doubters, Burton has made his best film and it is a wonderful film. He uses every trick he has in his hat in this one. Great opening titles, witty dark humor, crazy blood, symbolism and a very dreary almost black and white look. It has his fingerprint all over it, but it has something that most of his movies don't: real emotion. The characters are not quirky for quirky's sake. In fact, there are really no quirky characters.
In fact, every actor has nailed down their character. Now, none of the adults are very good singers and being an actor and not singer, this doesn't bother me. Mainly because everybody is either good to great except Anthony. While, the kid playing Anthony has a great voice when they cut the song "Kiss Me" where he an Johana meet (Sweeney's daughter who gets almost no screen time in this), his eyebrows make the great love songs he sings somewhat creepy. That and he looks like a girl. Carter is very good as Mrs. Lovitz she plays up the fact that she is in love with Todd much more than any of the performances and it works very well. She isn't too funny and her british accent is impecible. Depp's performance is not the angry Todd that most poeple are used to on stage but it is a great performance. The sorrow that lies in his eyes is so powerful that you know why he is insane and you feel greatly for him. The way he does each song, how he bites each words. One moment that is so tiny that always fills me with his sorrow is the end of "No Place Like London" at the beginning of the movie. His voice cracks off and it is so sad and great. I would say that this is his best performance other than Gilbert Grape (Ed Wood might be better, I still haven't decided). The real stand out performance of this is Alan Rickman. He is creepy and very unsettling as Judge Turpin. He is a sexual beast and his duet with Todd, "Pretty Women" is probably the vocal highlight of the movie. Rickman better get an Oscar nom for this.
Now, be forewarned as I have seen people walk out of the movie for this reason: it is very bloody. When I say very bloody, I mean that there are only 3 or 4 parts that are bloody but when the blood flows it rushes like a river. The blood isn't very realistic though, so it never gets too crazy. Another thing is that when the blood flows, it flows differently depending on the person and is a character in itself. While it is very bloody, it is tastefully bloodsoaked because it serves as another character...sort of.
Other than my one problem of "Kiss Me" being cut, I loved this movie. In fact, I'm writing this after my second viewing. It is a excellent musical that has been worked into a very excellent movie that holds its ranking above the best of a very distinctive filmmaker (love him or hate him, everyone knows Burton). Definately one of my favorite films of the year.
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4 comments:
It is funny that it seemed like only yesterday we were talking about how similar our movie tastes were and yet we continue to disagree at the end of the year here.
The blood being fake was the problem. The movie is so dark and grimy grounded in this dark world and then he give sus this huge over the top blood that comes from an entirely different movie (Kill Bill). It just doesn't add up. Timothy Spall is horrid as well.
And what about the cutting of the Ballads? That was unexpected, although understandable, since it wasnt much of a singing cast.
Worth seeing, for sure, but it is much better live.
And Anthony very much looked like a woman.
It was VERY much expected that they would cut out the ballads.
It was stated by Burton that they were cutting out all ensemble parts because it wouldn't work in the film. The film was a very personal movie and I couldn't imagine seeing the Ballad's performed in the movie. It is a very stage thing where you can't show a passage of time.
Anthony did look like a woman and cutting out "Kiss Me" was a bad idea.
I wouldn't say it is much better live. I would say it is better on stage only because they have Kiss Me in there which makes the relationship between Anthony and Joanna less creepy.
In fact, there are things that they cut out which made me enjoy certain aspects of the story much more. The performances are the best I've seen for the show. Much more understated and much more deep.
Pluses that it didn't have from the show:
Parlour songs - crappy song.
Mea Coupla (or however you spell it) - another crappy song and strange staging. Plus, Turpin is much scarier without that song. (Rickman rocked it).
Things you can't do on stage that they did in the movie:
The last shot. It was beautiful.
One character finally didn't feel cheap and contrived to me either and actually felt like a great piece of the show.
I might take back my statement about Depp being the best Sweeney because of how much I love Hearn in the role but they play it so differently, and I like understated acting more. I will not say that Carter isn't the best Lovitz (doesn't have the best voice, but has the best acting) nor Rickman isn't the best Turpin (made me actually afraid of the role and finally totally repulsed).
Sorry dude, even the obvious symbolism of the final moment doesn't save the over the top ridiculous amount of blood coming out of Depp. I thought I about going swimming in it. I am glad your audience was in awe of that shot, but me and all the people I saw it with were laughing our asses off. Sorry, your entire movie can't be so dark and gloomy but have this awful looking blood and expect to be taken seriously.
That being said, I agree that it actualy felt staged like amovie and not a stage musical, which is a problem that plauges movie musicals, big time.
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