The cleanest shave you'll ever know

Rating: 10/10 (13 March 2008)

This is the third musical by Burton I've seen, and I've thoroughly enjoyed all three. This is the first live-action(I shall leave you in suspense no longer: the other two are The Nightmare Before Christmas(granted, he didn't direct it, but still) and The Corpse Bride(which may be the only other two musicals he's done) of his I've seen, and it's by far the best(but all three are of high quality, and very much worth watching). The themes are interesting and there is food for thought(meanwhile, you may not want to eat close to your viewing of this, in fact, you probably shouldn't). The plot is well-written and well-told. I'm not usually up for musicals, and had Tim's name not been attached to this, I doubt I would have granted it a second glance. I cannot deny that this was spectacular. The trademarks, his style, are very much present: the Gothic visuals, the stylized and at times comical violence, the grotesque, the macabre, and so forth. There is little, if any, gore, but there are bucket-loads of blood... it is too red and doesn't come off as horrifying as that of other films(this would appear to be entirely intentional). The pacing is marvelous. The acting is flawless, as is the singing... in both cases, the performances are quite simply excellent for every actor-singer. The characters are fleshed out expertly. The songs are well-written, and composed well. The cinematography and effects are magnificent, and the editing is as sharp and effective as one of Todd's razors. As the FAQ suggests, pay attention to the lyrics, not only will you miss out on delightful word-play, but important, perhaps crucial, details will also evade your attention if you do not. The humor is black, at times pitch black, and any potential viewer should consider if they can take all the contents. There's no actual sexuality, but some is implied. Language is not pervasive, and what little there is really isn't as strong as it easily could be. I recommend this to any fan of Tim Burton, Johnny Depp, and possibly of the play(I haven't watched it, but hey, the composer of it not only was involved with this, he's since said that he likes the movie, a lot, even). 10/10