The Connoisseurs

Sweeney Todd

All the connoisseurs except for me have some education in musical theater, so I find it odd that I ended up being the one to review Sweeney Todd. Honestly I have never seen the play and everything I knew about it came from a sub plot in the film Jersey Girl. Still as a big fan of the director and all those involved I couldn’t miss its premiere.

Adapted from a darkly humorous and long running play, Tim Burton’s interpretation is undeniably cinematic and not stagy at all. It actually opens with CG rubies of blood falling from the London sky amidst the rain, lubricating the cogs of some evil machinery. Not the best introduction I’ve seen, but certainly flashier than the simple rise of a curtain.

Johnny Depp plays the demon barber Sweeney Todd, a once respectable gentleman looking to avenge the disgrace of his family and his own imprisonment under false chargers. Sweeney Todd is a tragic anti-hero, only destitute and mad. His partner in crime (Mrs. Lovett) is played by Helena Bonham Carter, and she too balances beauty with the desperate ugliness of one who has nothing of value left in their life. Together they hatch a scheme to murder Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman), the author of Sweeney Todd’s misery. The first step is to establish Todd as a renowned barber, which they accomplish by defeating the flamboyant Signor Adolfo Pirelli (Sacha Baron Cohen in a hilarious cameo). Unfortunately Signor Pirelli doesn’t take the defeat lightly and confronts Todd about it, becoming his first victim. As a means to dispose of the body Mrs. Lovett bakes his remains into meat pies, and a successful business partnership is born.

Even though the film doesn’t lack any comedic relief or musical performances, you won’t confuse it with a lighthearted piece of entertainment. As soon as the pace picks up expect to see throats slit and bones crunched with an unsettling frequency. While stylized, it is a far cry from the ethereal arterial spray in 300. This blood, ketchup red, is abundant and permanent, bubbling as it emerges from a gurgling mouth. All but the most squeamish viewer will get used to the violence but it takes somebody with a subscription to Fangoria to be completely unaffected by it. Also the movie works hard to create a tense atmosphere, littering its scenes with needles and cleavers. Everywhere you look people are wielding dangerous implements, and this is just a fact of life. The horror of this movie is that of a betrayal of trust, that the people we depend on might harm us at our most vulnerable.

To round out all this bloody business is a beautiful score; filled with clever lyrics and emotive performances. While I don’t know anything about the stage version, I am surprised to see the films songs push the story forward instead of stopping it in its tracks like many other musicals do. Johnny Depp’s voice is that of a pop performer (maybe a little bit of Bowie) tainted by the darkness of his characters madness. Helena compliments his performance with her sweet and playful soprano. It is also surprising to listen to Alan Rickman and Timothy Spall sing along quite competently. Still the films highlight is Ed Sanders as Toby, casting a child lends the movie a certain credibility, reminding us how terrible that part of London history could be for an orphan. I’m not calling this late comer the best movie of 2007 but at least it sends the year off with a bang and cleanses the palate for 2008.