 Johnny Depp and Tim Burton join forces again in a big-screen adaptation of Stephen Sondheim's award-winning musical thriller Sweeney Todd. 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 heads of gentlemen who never thereafter were heard from 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 and Timothy Spall as the Judge's wicked associate Beadle Bamford and Sacha Baron Cohen is a rival barber, the flamboyant Signor Adolfo Pirelli. Storyline: In the Victorian London, the barber Benjamin Barker is married to the gorgeous Lucy and they have a lovely child, Johanna. The beauty of Lucy attracts the attention of the corrupt Judge Turpin, who falsely accuses the barber of a crime that he did not commit and abuses Lucy later after gaining custody of her. After fifteen years in exile, Benjamin returns to London under the new identity of Sweeney Todd, seeking revenge against Turpin. He meets the widow Mrs. Lovett who is the owner of a meat pie shop who tells him that Lucy swallowed arsenic many years ago, and Turpin assigned himself tutor of Johanna. He opens a barber shop above her store, initiating a crime rampage against those who made him suffer and lose his beloved family. Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Casey Broadwater, June 16, 2009 -- After Planet of the Apes I was worried that I might never like Tim Burton again. Then came Big Fish, his tall-tale ode to storytelling, and I was hooked once more, happy with his bright, mythic, but still undeniably Burton-esque new direction. His last two films, Corpse Bride and now Sweeney Todd are a return his pre-Planet of the Apes form, and while detractors may view the two as more of the same, Sweeney Todd in particular shows the director working some new motifs and methods into his familiar dark and comic themes. Based on the 1979 musical by Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler, Sweeney Todd is a dark revenge story in the tradition of France's Le Grande Guignol, a theater of the horrifically absurd that reveled in the blood and guts of human longing and dispair. Revenge—as Frenchmen and Klingons have both claimed—is a dish best served cold, and Sweeney Todd's plot revolves around chilly, calculated retribution. The titular character, played by Burton-standby Johnny Depp, has just returned to Victorian London after a long, unjust banishment in Australia's penal colony. Before his forced exile, Sweeney Todd, then known as Benjamin Barker, was a successful barber with a beautiful wife and newborn baby. In a story as old as King David's, Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman) lusts after Benjamin's wife, has him thrown out of the country, and then takes the woman—and the little girl—as his own. Benjamin's wife drinks poison to escape the situation, leaving baby Johanna (Jayne Wisener) to grow up under the watchful eye of the leering and lecherous Judge. When Benjamin returns to London, newly christened as Sweeney Todd, he sets up shop in his old flat above Mrs. Lovett's (Helana Bonham Carter) humble pie emporium, and awaits the day that he can exact razor-edged revenge on Judge Turpin. After killing a rival barber (Sasha Baron Cohen) who knows his secret past, Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett come up with an ingenious way of disposing the body—as the new secret ingredient of her soggy meat pies. This leads to a strait-blade killing spree that serves as practice for Sweeny and better business for Mrs. Lovett, who also harbors feelings for the demonic barber. In the end, as always, revenge is bittersweet. Retribution plots rely on the audience's empathy for the wronged, and, failing that, must make up for the lack of compassion with spectacle—the least important dramatic principle, according to Aristotle's Poetics anyway. Since the revenge tale is a Hollywood staple, this reliance on style over substance is apparent in a number of films. Where would Kill Bill be, for example, without its wire-fu acrobatics or arterial bloodletting? Sweeney Todd follows a similar compromise, in that its relatively thin plot and the unlikable nature of its morally dubious protagonist are supported by ever-present musical numbers and a healthy dose of gore. And, for the most part, it works. The movie is entertaining and self-assured, but after the spectacle is over, there's really not much left to digest. I was impressed, however, by the confidence in Tim Burton's directing. Shots are framed with architectural precision, and he reigns in the rampant melodrama with a significant amount of his characteristically black and visual humor. The performances too—vocally and otherwise—are bold and memorable. Depp's Sweeney is like a razor-wielding Mozart on meth—and his untrained Bowie-esque voice brings an individuality to the songs that would get lost in the American Idol blandness of a more professional singer's take. Helena Bonham Carter is somehow witchy and tender, like a gothic Eliza Doolittle, and Sasha Baron Cohen's brief role as Señor Pirelli —who, my wife pointed out, looks like a bizarro version of Strawberry Shortcake's Purple Pie Man—is hilariously over-the-top. I'd also be remiss not to mention the fantastic costume work, make-up, and Academy Award- winning Best Art Direction that fills out Sweeney Todd's well-realized universe. I was living in Japan when Sweeney Todd came out, and it was interesting for me to see how Mrs. Lovett's wardrobe and make-up seemed inspired by Japan's EGL (elegant gothic Lolita) subculture, which itself has been largely influenced by the creepy/cute dichotomy seen in Burton's earlier works. Overall, if you like musicals, you'll probably find a lot to love in Sweeney Todd, and even the less theatrically-inclined among you may become at least momentarily entranced by the demon barber of Fleet Street. Musicals aren't for everyone, and when DreamWorks neglected to mention in promoting Sweeney Todd that most of the dialogue was sung, not spoken, there were more than a few disgruntled theatergoers on opening night. For those that can suspend their disbelief and let the songs tell the story, however, Sweeney Todd is a fun, well-made, if somewhat forgettable watch. Blu-ray aficionados will also find much to love with this disc, as it boasts some incredible visuals, a boisterous and involving score, and plenty of supplements to boot. Recommended. Cast Notes: Johnny Depp (Sweeney Todd), Helena Bonham Carter (Mrs. Lovett), Alan Rickman (Judge Turpin), Timothy Spall (Beadle), Sacha Baron Cohen (Pirelli), Jamie Campbell Bower (Anthony), Laura Michelle Kelly (Beggar Woman), Jayne Wisener (Johanna), Ed Sanders (Toby [as Edward Sanders]), Gracie May (Baby Johanna), Ava May (Baby Johanna), Gabriella Freeman (Baby Johanna), Jody Halse (Policeman), Aron Paramor (Policeman), Lee Whitlock (Policeman). User Comment: Michele Adams (ShellyA227) from Cleveland, Ohio, 5 December 2007 • Despite the grim expectations from the story synopsis, the film delivers gore in a surprisingly tasteful way. There are no screaming teenagers running from a lunatic; instead we get a somewhat British blend of satire, slapstick and just "wrong" humor. Although I'm not much of a Johnny Depp fan, I enjoyed his performance as well as Helena Bonham Carter's. Even the portrayal of the common clients was stunning. Despite being generally familiar with the story, I fell into some traps expecting specific twists, yet something different (and better) being delivered. This is a model of how to do dark humor that filmmakers should and probably will follow. It is most refreshing. Don't read the story and don't read any spoilers until you've seen it. Summary: Dark Humor Done Right. IMDb Rating (11/22/09): 7.8/10 from 94,678 users
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