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Product Description: SWEENEY TODD-SPECIAL COLLECTOR'S EDITION (DVD MOVIE)Amazon.com: After years of rumors, it turns out that Tim Burton was the perfect visionary to film Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Stephen Sondheim's Broadway masterpiece, and the result is a macabre and moving musical movie as enthralling as anything Burton has ever done. The show's mix of gothic horror, Grand Guignol, very dark humor, and witty and beautiful music never was the stuff of traditional musical comedy, but it's a powerful work, and perhaps the richest of the late 20th century. In the movie, Burton's frequent collaborator, Johnny Depp, plays Todd, a wronged man whose lust for revenge drives him to murder (an 19th-century legend who has been traced to a real-life barber). Helena Bonham Carter, another Burton mainstay, is Mrs. Lovett, the barber's partner-in-unspeakable-crime. It's no surprise that Depp is an excellent choice to convey Todd's brooding intensity and volcanic rage, but he can also sing a score that is so challenging it has often played in opera houses (though not with the same style as the Broadway original, Len Cariou, and he occasionally lapses into pop style). Bonham Carter is small of voice and lacks the humor of the original Broadway Lovett, Angela Lansbury, but she sings on pitch, in rhythm, and in character at the same time, which is no small feat for a Sondheim show. Aficionados will regret the loss of certain musical passages--"The Ballad of Sweeney Todd" is just an instrumental overture and the chorus is gone altogether, among others--but the reassuring presence of orchestrator Jonathan Tunick and conductor Paul Gemignani ensures that the music feels right and sounds great. And the film's depiction of a Victorian London hellhole--with cinematography by Dariusz Wolski and costumes by Colleen Atwood--also looks and feels right. The excellent cast is filled out by Alan Rickman as the villainous Judge Turpin, Timothy Spall as his seedy Beadle, Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat) as a rival barber, Jamie Campbell Bower as the young lover Anthony, Jayne Wisener as his object of affection, and Ed Sanders as the young Toby. For fans of Tim Burton and Johnny Depp who don't think they like musicals, Sweeney Todd should be a revelation (though not for the squeamish, as the gore is intense and completely appropriate). For fans of Broadway and Sondheim, it's hard to imagine getting a better adaptation than this. The fact that there's no newly composed Oscar-bait song sung by a Josh Groban-type over the end credits only makes it better. --David Horiuchi
Customer Reviews:
- Lush. Dark. Intense.: I'm not a big fan of musicals, but I've figured out that I am a huge fan of Sondheim. His signature progressions, wit and intelligent story lines have won me over. I thought the economy of John Doyle's Broadway production was brilliant--the austere instrumentation threw the best of Sondheim into blazing relief. This version operates in diametric contrast. Gemignani's sumptuous orchestration enfolds the listener. The sinuousness of the track belies an unblinking stare at anguished souls. Johnny Depp colors every note he sings with some shade of torment. Alan Rickman plies the sonorous tones of practiced debauchery. Helena Bonham Carter is adequate, and the rest of the cast is very good. But for me the music, the music and Depp abide.
- Imperfect, but Johnny Depp's Singing Serial Killer Is Worth the Price of Admission.: Director Tim Burton brings his own gloomy aesthetic to Stephen Sondheim's 1979 musical "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" in this cinematic adaptation. Sweeney Todd (Johnny Depp) returns to 19th century London with a deep bitterness toward his forced exile. Fifteen years ago, Todd was prosperous barber and happy family man. Prominent Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman) coveted his wife and so sent Todd to prison on false charges. Now a defeated man, Todd wanders into the pie shop beneath his old barber shop, where the proprietress Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham-Carter) recognizes him and offers her assistance in plotting revenge...and hiding the bodies.
As if a musical about a serial killer weren't odd enough, Burton has cast it with actors who normally don't sing. Nevertheless, Johnny Depp's punkish baritone impressed me. Helena Bonham-Carter is adequate. Sacha Baron Cohen is fun as a flamboyant rival barber. Jayne Wisener is far to shrill as Todd's long lost daughter Johanna. The film's aesthetic is too gray for its own good at times, and Mrs. Lovett's ghoulishness is overdone. But this macabre spectacle manages to be both comic and ultimately tragic. Todd's deathtrap of a barber chair is suspenseful as well as gratuitously gory. And Johnny Depp's interpretation of the tormented, unhinged Sweeney Todd is something to see.
The DVD (Warner Brothers 2008 single disc): The single disc edition has only one bonus feature, a making-of documentary called "Burton + Depp + Carter = Todd" (26 min). Director Tim Burton, Stephen Sondheim, and the producers talk about the genesis of the project, casting and making a musical. The cast is interviewed about their roles and preparation. Subtitles are available for the film in English, French, and Spanish. Dubbing available in French and Spanish. - WHAT A MOVIE!: If you missed this movie while it was in theatres, don't miss it on DVD.
Don't miss all the behind the scenes features, either. In fact, watch them first and it will make the movie even better. - AMAZING BURTON/DEPP FILM!: Burton/Depp have done it again! Now I have never seen the broadway show, but I have the soundtrack to it, and Depp does a good job. So does Helena Bonham Carter. But Burton is a movie genius and got the gothic/dark/macbre feeling down pretty well. From what I have seen of the show, it seems Burton has hit the nail right on the head. The blood is comical at times, yet still amazing and just adds to the movie's dark essence. Great film by Burton, and great job from Depp working with Burton
- Bloody, Brutal and Brilliant: If you can stand the violence of this film (which, to be honest, is more theatrical than realistically done) this is a fun movie. The music is very intricately orchestrated and sung and the look is very Burton-esque in it's stylized appearance. Johnny Depp brings some real gravitas to his role as a barber who has had everything taken from him that he has ever loved.
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