Attend the tale of Sweeney Todd

Rating: 10/10 (27 January 2013)

"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 had trod, Did Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street."
Those are the opening lyrics to the 1979 Broadway production with Angela Lansbury and Len Cariou. The movie version, made 28 years later with Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter, will blow you away. The entire film is so unique and so strange that you can't help but take in the awe of it. It is the story of a troubled barber who was imprisoned after a judge took his wife away. Years later, he returns to London where there is no sign of his wife and now his daughter is locked away in the Judge's house. His goal now, is to bring in customers, primarily the Judge, and slit their throats so that his new friend, Mrs. Lovett can make them into delectable "meat pies". And the best part of it all is that it is a musical and all of the actors, never previously singers, have unbelievable good voices that are very enjoyable to listen to and fit the story. The majority of musical films seem to be quite upbeat and contain large amounts of dancing, but this has neither. I prefer dark musicals such as this and also "Les Miserables", because I think it is harder to bring those emotions out in song and this kind of musical has much more meaning to me. Every actor in this picture does an incredible job in their individual role and I don't believe that a single actor was miscast. What's more, the writer of the stage musical, Stephen Sondheim, approved which he often doesn't do with movie adaptations. Tim Burton really scores on this one.