Blood, some blood, a bit more blood and some singing...

Rating: 7/10 (23 January 2008)

Sweeny Todd is a musical. I know that may seem an obvious statement to make given the years it has been on Broadway (and my school theatre when I was 13) but I think some people in the audience hadn't quite realised that. It reminded me of the time I went to see the South Park film a group of kids kept tutting all the way through when the songs started. Singing a story is a bit too high-brow for some people.
Another obvious statement to make is that this is a Tim Burton film. So naturally it has to have Johnny Depp in it, which is fortuitous as he makes the perfect Sweeny Todd - anger, despair, hatred with a very small slice of humour on the side of the glass. And it also has to have Helena Bonham Carter too, and again, she's perfectly cast as the loopy, rampantly amorous Mrs. Lovett.
Other fantastic performances grace the film. The excellent Sasha Baron Cohen plays 'Signor Adolfo Pirelli', a rival to Sweeny Todd. His performance is flawless and his foreign accent so much more convincing than 'Talladaga Nights'. One of my favourite actors, Alan Rickman alongside Timothy Spall, who must be best buddies by now from Harry Potter, cast a perfect target as the menacing and corrupt duo who destroyed Sweeny Todd's former life.
And then back to Burton. Sure, it's a Burton film and by now, we should all know what to expect. He doesn't let you down. The scenes are sinister and dark, the sets are brutal and unforgiving and the images of London and its surroundings are relentlessly depressing. Even when Sweeny whips out his blade and carves his victims across the neck, Burton makes sure we bare the brunt of the shock with oodles of oozing blood. The Mrs. Lovett dream sequence about marrying Sweeny is just classic Burton in every aspect.
The only things that let this film down is the score, and the singing. Yes, Sondheim's music is renown, but the film lacks the punch of one or two blockbusting and memorable songs - something that could bring a climax or two to a scene, and really illustrate the emotion in the characters. And unlike a musical like Moulin Rouge, Depp, Carter, Spall, Rickman and even Cohen, are not the strongest of singers by any means necessary - a fact that really stands out when child actor Ed Saunders, playing Toby, opens his gob and starts a duet with Carter, blowing her off set.
But you can get over this because the film is so visually stunning, and to be honest, you'd rather have Depp in this role with a so-so singing voice than seeing someone else who can sing cock the whole character up.
2010 is the estimated release date for one of Burton's next projects - Alice in Wonderland. Hopefully, it'll be as warped and disturbing as Sweeny Todd's world. Although, obviously with less blood...