SWEENEY TODD -- THE MOVIE MUSICAL

Or, "Harry Potter Makes The Worst Pies in London".

This movie is rated R. After seeing it I can honestly say that the "R" stands for RRRRGGHGHRRHGHH!. That is the sound that Sweeney's victims make after he slits their throats in bleeding Technicolor. There was a surprising amount of blood, even for a musical.
 
Going into this movie I was skeptical. After all I had read that Tim Burton who directed the movie, doesn't actually like musicals. Go figure. And I was suspicious of the casting -- mostly amateur singers. But the call of Johnny Depp on screen for two hours was like a siren song, so off we went. Yes, I took my daughters, thereby solidifying my position as "Bad Mother of the Year".
 
Johnny Depp plays Sweeney Todd and Helena Bonham Carter plays Mrs Lovett. She played the bad witch Bellatrix Lestrange in the Harry Potter movies (in what appeared to be very similar make up), and is joined by other Potter alumni -- Alan Rickman (Snape) as Judge Turpin, and Timothy Spall (Peter Pettigrew) as Beadle Bamford.

Despite not having the pipes of a George Hearn or Michael Cerveris, Johnny Depp delivers a great Sweeney. I can't say the same for Mrs Lovett. Athough I love Helena Bonham-Carter's acting, her singing just sucked the life out of her role. I couldn't help but hear Angela Lansbury and Patti Lupone's voices in my head. The other "non-singers" deliver fine performances, I guess, but I wasn't moved by any of them. Perhaps "doesn't suck" is the new goal of movie musical performances.
 
Strangely enough, I ended up liking this film. Not nearly as much as when I've seen it on stage, but it felt like a fun movie that was enhanced by some music, as opposed to a movie musical. I never got swept away emotionally by a musical performance. I enjoyed the visuals, the Burton-esque "by the sea" shots of Sweeney and Mrs Lovett. I also appreciated the way the characters just burst out into song -- nobody was "imagining" their musical number. But I never got scared or moved the way I do watching the Lansbury / Hearn DVD version. But I certainly was grossed out!
 
So, let's summarize. I would watch the movie again, but I will never buy the CD cast recording.
 
What's next? Ah yes, Penelope Cruz in the upcoming movie of the musical NINE…

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