A gorgeous and cold monster's story

Rating: 7/10 (22 December 2007)

Before I start writing about this film, I have to admit that I have a bias against musicals. Granted, this doesn't include all musicals and there are plenty that has slipped past my bias. I suppose the musicals that I have the greatest issues with are the ones that hold most dearly to the comedy offshoot tradition, including a number of classics.
That said, I have no problem with Sweeney Todd as a musical. The musical element isn't actually very compelling as I don't remember a single song from the show. What I do remember is the story and the visuals. First of all, this is clearly an excellent piece for Tim Burton to helm as his odd dark way of seeing things melts very well with the wicked version of London present in Sweeney Todd. From the very opening of the film, you know that you're in for a grisly tale.
Burton doesn't pull any punches and almost matter-of-factly treats the series of murders that occur with gross detail. Not a pleasant sight, but certainly in line with the spirit o the work. If you've seen previous Burton works, you'll immediately recognize the almost-Gothic tone that all of his works contain. In terms of production, the film is spectacularly lensed, marvelous in its grotesqueness. The acting and casting are right on the spot.
The story is rather simple, a man, falsely accused and sent away for a decade and a half by a lecherous judge returns and exacts his revenge. He was a barber before and now he's a barber again, but he does a little more bloodletting than he used to in the past. He's aided by a woman who sells the worst meat pies in London. And there's a side story about Todd's daughter and a sailor who loves her (and also happened to have rescued Todd at sea).
Broken down, this is a tale that focuses on how obsession with revenge leads to tragic consequences as well as a narrow field of vision where mistakes can be make. On top of the emptiness of the act. In some ways, it's similar to Park Chan-Wook's revenge trilogy, being visually stunning and focused on the problems of revenge.
I suppose, I have to admit, the mystery elements are telegraphed a little too early (if you want enough mysteries and revenge films), but I suppose it would remain well obfuscated for those less experienced with such genres. Although, I'm aware that the blood and guts are part of the story, I was very discomforted by the quantity of up-close dissections witnessed, but this is appropriate to its new medium.
One quibble that I had with the film was in no way its fault. For parts of the show, I kept having flashbacks to Kevin Smith's less than spectacular Jersey Girl, as the musical also appears in that film. And trust me, you don't want Jersey Girl in your head when you're watching another film. The other quibble that is a little more serious for me, is that it was very difficult for me to sympathize with Benjamin Barker. The only points where we see him as human is the little wistful moment at the beginning of the film that sets up his revenge and then at the end of the film when he realizes the cost of his obsession. Unfortunately, with so little humanizing, I could only see him as a monster and found myself unable to root for him. And since I couldn't sympathize with the central character, I found myself rather detached from the work and thus more aware of how the film was made. The spell failed to cast on me.
Ultimately, that weakness really threw the experience for me. As such, it's an extremely potent vision realized with all the powers of artistry, but for me, even a human monster's tale needs to connect with the human part of us. Failing this for me leaves Sweeney Todd a gorgeous but distant work. One that I admire but cannot love. It's good though and you might likely enjoy it more than me, if you can take all the blood, guts, revenge and violence. 7/10.