Sweeney Todd Slashed His Own Throat

[dotinthesky]

2008, you are letting me down. The first film I watched on TV was the disastrous Catacombs; and now I've got my disappointing visit to the cinema to see Sweeney Todd: The Demon of Barber Street to add to the list. I'm starting to wonder if Tim Burton has ever made a good film. Sure, there are some decent, entertaining stuff out there; but I don't think he's actually done anything great. This one will certainly not change the stagnant patch his career has hit.

The best word to describe Sweeney Todd, as Kevin said last night, is trite. Whoever had the godawful idea of filming it as a musical deserves to have their necks slashed and their innards turned into pie. To take a "penny dreadful" such as Sweeney Todd and turn it into a musical is the equivalent of building a Disney resort right in the middle of London, and having a Coca-Cola branded Jack the Ripper greet its visitors. It's wrong. The musical aspect takes away from its grand guignol, its dark humour. It's as if Tim Burton doesn't have the guts (so to speak) to go all the way with his vision. Film execs, rejoice in all the musical lovers who will fill your theatres. Too bad so many people will leave the theatre not wanting to learn more thanks to the film's disposable nature.

I don't mean to say that the film should have been devoid of music. It could have worked if, for example, each character sang in a style fitting his station, his background. Operas, sailor songs, folk music from the period. Anything would have been better than the insipid, horrid musical numbers that lumber the film like rocks. Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter and Alan Rickman - three actors getting better in what they do as they grow older - are thrown away in a visually beautiful but forgettable film.

God, I hate musicals.

Comments

[frankeecymraeg.livejournal.com]

Saw it with Marcus and John while they were here. I couldn't wait for it to be over. We wee going to see I Am Legend, but Will Smith is a Nazi so we decided against it. The only reason I didn't walk out was because Helena was fucking amazing in it.

[live-life-like.livejournal.com]

i'm going to watch it tonight.....

watched Cloverfield last night and ..eeek....such a poor film!!!!
hated it!!!

[moral-vacuum.livejournal.com]

You hate musicals. Well, a) then going to see a musical might not have been such a good idea, and b) Call yourself a gay man?

[dilvsy.livejournal.com]

I don't like musicals either, but I love Tim Burton, AND...I loved Sweeney Todd.

[deathrockboy.livejournal.com]

HERE, HERE! I liked Big Fish, but that's cause I got Daddy issues. Other than that, I don't understand the appeal of Tim Burton. Wife loves the guy. So I'll have to watch this movie soon. Not so happy about that.

[olamina.livejournal.com]

Thanks for confirming what I already suspected. I listened to a review on BBC and though the reviewer was trying his hardest to be nice he could hardly find a nice way to say that Tim Burton had bit off more than he could chew with this one....and just hearing the clips of the singing made me cringe.

Also, I never stopped to think of it, but the only Tim Burton film I really like is Beetlejuice. Generally I think he is pandering to a particular small demographic and I am not in said demographic so I just don't get overly excited after watching any of his films. Most of them aren't bad, they're just...um....middleaged goth fun time?

[beeorkendurkey.livejournal.com]

i just watched sweeney two nights ago. effing hated it. i really love the original sondheim work; read the play, seen several staged versions, even enjoy the occasionally painful soundtrack. this movie was awful. and i'm really sorry, but i thought helena bonham carter was the worst mrs. lovett i've ever seen. miserable. i'm going to watch it again before i give my review, but dammit. i was really disappointed. i knew i would be, but then i kept hearing people rave about it, and now... *sigh* doubly let down.

[sublimevisions.livejournal.com]

love the visceral comment... there's your passion!

the movie was destroyed by Sondheim. He wrote/arranged/adapted [word choice?] the original performance.

i disliked the movie for two reasons... Depp needed more singing parts that weren't of a rock style. They turned him into a tragic hero. lies lies lies! The real Todd was just villainous and vile! oh well.

[electric-pages.livejournal.com]

I'm starting to wonder if Tim Burton has ever made a good film.

I feel the same way, though I haven't seen this latest one. He's had a real string of unremarkable films. On the other hand, I still think Ed Wood was magnificent.

[phyrephly.livejournal.com]

Musicals tend so often to be trash. I refuse to hate the genre only because of great kids movies like The Music Man and Mary Poppins. But if it aims above the age ten mark, stay far away.

[naturalbornkaos.livejournal.com]

I saw the stage version of the musical a few years ago in a really 'small' production and thought it was amazing. What puts me off seeing the film is Burton's typically indulgent, OTT visuals. Still, I want to see it. I just need to find time somehow. :/

[amberholic.livejournal.com]

I have to admit that the fact that it's a musical is the only thing putting me off from wanting to watch it. I usually quite enjoy Tim Burton's films, more for their style than substance, but I never thought he was well suited for musicals. The Corpse Bride would also have benefitted from not being a musical, and at least the story and setting was a bit more appropriate for a musical than Sweeney Todd.

That said, I do think he's done some pretty good films. Edward Scissorhands, Beetlejuice, The Nightmare Before Christmas... but I guess none of them were masterpieces.

[oatmeal-texas.livejournal.com]

Boo! The stage musical is both devastatingly sad and hilariously macabre. I actually enjoyed the movie, but it did feel a little more sacharine than the stage show.

[amanda-mary.livejournal.com]

I liked the little Giallo-inspired touches, I have to admit. But I agree that it could have done without ascribing so many of the characters' actions to motivation that is even remotely "virtuous."

Maybe a non-Tim-Burton affiliated film adaptation of The Threepenny Opera (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Threepenny_Opera) would suit your tastes? Maybe?

[llivejournal.livejournal.com]

I actually loved the fucking shit out the movie. I don't have any experience at all with prior versions of it, so nothing was tainted. And I have no capacity for judging singing ability, so it all sounds pretty good to me. I have no issues with musicals, either. So I thought the story was great, the songs were decent, the actors were great, the look of it was great, and most importantly, it was gory as fuck, which is admittedly pretty much the only thing a movie needs to charm me.

As for Tim Burton, how do you feel about Pee-wee's Big Adventure?

And as for musicals, maybe you should watch Forbidden Zone? It's definitely the most atypical musical I've seen, and it's pretty impossible to not have a lot of fun with.