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MOVIE
REVIEW: SWEENEY TODD

12/19/07

SYNOPSIS: JOHNNY DEPP and Tim Burton join
forces again in a big-screen adaptation of Stephen
Sondheim’s award-winning musical thriller “Sweeney Todd: The
Demon Barber of Fleet Street.” DEPP stars in the title role
as a man unjustly sent to prison who vows revenge, not only
for that cruel punishment, but for the devastating
consequences of what happened to his wife and daughter. When
he returns to reopen his barber shop, Sweeney Todd becomes
the Demon Barber of Fleet Street who “shaved the faces of
gentlemen who never thereafter were heard of again.” Joining
Depp is HELENA BONHAM CARTER as Mrs. Lovett, Sweeney’s
amorous accomplice, who creates diabolical meat pies. The
cast also includes ALAN RICKMAN, who portrays the evil Judge
Turpin, who sends Sweeney to prison, TIMOTHY SPALL as the
Judge’s wicked associate Beadle Bamford and SACHA BARON
COHEN as a rival barber, the flamboyant Signor Adolfo
Pirelli. © Paramount Pcitures. All
rights reserved
REVIEW: Blood . . .
lots and lots of blood. The very beginning of this picture,
during the opening credits, has blood flowing through the
streets of London representing the passionate acts of
revenge to come. Benjamin Barker returns to London as
Sweeney Todd (Johnny Depp), the talented barber of Fleet
Street who wants revenge for being wrongly imprisoned and
separated from his family. He wants revenge and he wants
blood to an obsessive degree. His drive and obsession takes
him to the point of becoming the demon of Fleet Street. The
subtitle could not be more accurate. The role of Sweeney
Todd could not be better cast. As a matter fact, everybody
in this film was perfectly cast, and I mean everybody. Now I
know you might have read that same phrase, perfectly cast,
in either some of my other reviews or others’ reviews but
believe me when I say that this one takes that phrase to a
new level. Johnny Depp was born to play Sweeney, Helena
Bonham Carter was meant to play Mrs. Lovett, Alan Rickman
was perfect for Judge Turpin, and Tim Burton should have
been the only choice for Director of this project. This
story lends itself to Burton’s masterful style of gloom and
darkness and this movie oozes it. The movie is visually and
audibly stirring. It will entertain you, move you, disturb
you, and just plain gross you out . . . it’s great!
As I mentioned before, this film is dark, sinister, and very
pale. It is what revenge would look like if converted into a
visual form. The music is powerful and it’s the backbone of
the story. By the way, did I mention that this is a musical,
in case you didn’t know? Yeah, can you believe it? This
story was adapted to be a Broadway show. That really leaves
me astonished to think that this bloody story was done on
stage. So the music is not only powerful, it is very
important to the plot, so pay attention to the lyrics for
most of the songs. Another by the way, these guys can sing
and sing well. The three big stars in this picture, Depp,
Carter, and Rickman, do a pretty good job of singing and
most of you have probably never heard them sing before. Well
I can tell you that they won’t let you down. Another
pleasant surprise is the presence of Sacha Baron Cohen
playing the role of Signor Adolfo Pirelli, a rival barber.
There is a pro and con to his inclusion in this production.
The pro is that I truly believe that he is a talented actor
that has only skimmed his potential, as is evident in his
performance in this film. It is a small role but very well
done by Sacha. The con lies in the fact that his recent and
major claim to fame as the character Borat distracted
moviegoers. As soon as he appeared, many viewers started
cracking up because he’s using an accent and people
immediately associated him with Borat. Don’t get me wrong, I
loved the movie Borat, but I say give Sacha a chance to show
you what he’s got.
Sometimes watching a movie with a relatively simple plot is
beneficial in allowing you to focus on the acting, the
cinematography, and in this case, the music. This story is a
simple one of revenge for an immeasurable amount of
injustice done to an innocent man and his family. The
simplicity is turned into complexity as the story is laid
out in music and visuals. Even the costumes and the general
look of London adds to the effect. This movie in my opinion
fell slightly short of a perfect score because of its
goriness and blood flow which might turn many of you off.
However, the quality of this production is evident in every
facet. This is not your average holiday movie but in the
words of Sweeney Todd, "I can guarantee the closest shave
you'll ever know."
Review By Cine Marcos
cinemarcos@smartcine.com
MORE MOVIE REVIEWS
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People Movie Review
Sweeney Todd
Michaela |
100 |
Blood is a major part of
this movie but other than the blood it
is a terific movie.The songs are kewl
they flow right into the movie
perfectly. This movie I THink is
beautifully cast. Everyone who was in
this movie was born to play their roll.
They all did a wonderfull job with thier
parts.
THIS MOVIE IS KRAZY,KEWL,GROSS,SAD,AND
ENTERTAINING!
YOU'LL LOVE IT!!!
|
Amber |
100 |
I thought this was a
great movie, but for a very specific
kind of audience. Those of you who think
you might be interested should
definitely go see it. |
Chyna Doll |
100 |
thought this movie was
excellent. Johnny Depp played a terrific
job being Sweeney Todd. The songs are
cool except for one where they kept
singing Johanna.....that started to get
on my nerves but other than that. It's a
classic for those of you who love
musicals. Oh yeah and the blood scenes
are crazy..... |
Chris M |
100 |
Amazing film!! Great
music, perfect casting and solid acting
from both lead and supporting actors. A
very twisted story, very dark, very
sinister and very bloody! But I loved
every minute of this sublime musical.. |
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Director: Tim Burton
Writer: John Logan
Genre:
Crime Musical Thriller
Duration: 1hr 56mins
Staring: Johnny Depp
Helena Bonham Carter
Alan Rickman
Timothy Spall
Sacha Baron Cohen
Producer: Richard
D. Zanuck
Walter Parkes
Laurie MacDonald
John Logan
Distributor:
DREAMWORKS PICTURES
Rating:
R for graphic bloody violence.
Release Date: December 21, 2007
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