a fine story, a fine cast ...

Rating: 6/10 (12 January 2008)

so, why only seven stars?
this cast is excellent. a combination of surprising newcomers and reliable "old-timers" upon whom one can count.
in the future, watch the newcomers to see how they fare. keep watching the established actors, they haven't lost a step.
so, why only seven stars?
these are personal tastes, so forgive me. i, like many other reviewers here, have seen and loved this story in times past:
cutting 'the ballad of sweeney todd' ...
*** Attend the tale of Sweeney Todd His skin was pale and his eye was odd He shaved the faces of gentlemen Who never thereafter were heard of again He trod a path that few have trod Did Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. ***
took away from impact ... cut out the chorus of aeschylus. and set me to look for what would take its place in the story.
more substantive to me was the over-digitization of the production. i think we are in a stage in movie-making a bit like the era of transition from silent to "talkies." i much prefer real people in real settings with real smoke coming from real chimneys with real buildings, etc. if a movie is to be animated, then animate it. it seems to me that our movie-makers do not quite know how to intelligently incorporate this new technology. but, perhaps my age is showing ...
then, the gratuitous blood. i know, i know, that is what the story is about. that is what modern cinema is about, again i show my age. why, for example, in 'the departed' must we see absolutely everyone's brains splattered on the screen? is it absolutely necessary for me to see in glorious color, and in striking close view, the slitting of each of these throats? stay with me on this one ... the stage productions, or productions that dare to suggest rather than splash are, to me, much more powerful. i'm fine with gore (i guess) but when it is gratuitous, with no return benefit, no compensation in plot, emotion, feeling, or meaning ... then why?
and finally, as has been noted before, there is a diminution of the comedy in the story. there are many places where a chuckle could have replaced a groan.
if you've only seen the movie and if you can, get a copy of 'sweeney' starring angela lansbury (http://imdb.com/title/tt0084747/) in the stage production. reevaluate the story and see if you might not enjoy it even more than this good attempt.