I am now going to review "Sweeney Todd". I saw it at the first showing today at 10:40 in the morning!
Anyone who knows me knows that my 2 big obsessions are the musicals "The Phantom of the Opera" and "Sweeney Todd". Well, I have also seen both shows performed in the theater. So, I am very hesitant when it comes to film adaptations. Now I am probably the one person who really liked the film of "Phantom" (it has a few flaws, though). Stiil, it absolutely does
NOT compare to the original stage show. That made me a little worried about "Sweeney". Well, I will be honest.
I ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT!!!!!
It has some things that are negative.
* Helena Bonham Carter - she is OK in it (she was the one thing that I was afraid of), but her voice is a little weak sometimes.
* They shortened the story from approximately 3 hours to only 2 on film, but I can live with that. They cut out songs that aren't "major" to me. They did shorten "A Little Priest", though.
* They cut out "The Ballad of Sweeney Todd"!!!! That was my
major issue. They cut one of the
greatest songs in musical theater history!
BUT the "background" music to that song is what plays throughout the opening credits and in different parts of the film. So I will have to be satisfied with that.
* It wasn't nearly as bloody as people made it out to be. Let's just say what was worse was when the bodies fell through the chute! And the rats. Rats are
always bad (even if they are in a film for a few seconds like with this one).
Johnny Depp was a very pleasant surprise, vocally. Actually, other than HBC's thin voice every now and then, they were all OK. My mother went to see it with me and in the middle of the film she leaned over and said "If Johnny Depp deserves an award for anything in his whole careeer, it is definitely this film". He was
SO good! I am not one who goes ga-ga over him! So, yes, he impressed me
very much so!!
I love the overall look of the film. I am not trying to be biased, but it is definitely Burton's
BEST film!!!
Now I do
NOT recommend this film to just anyone. My mother and I saw it on stage about 11 years ago. A couple left during intermission and
never came back. I guarantee they won't be seeing the movie! If you don't know what this is about, or you do and it really doesn't sound like something you'd like, don't see it. For all the other people out there who are willing to be open-minded, have a wicked sense of humor and really enjoy music (remember that this is basically more like an opera rather than a musical),
GO SEE IT!!!! The man behind me, and his mother who had to be at least 80,
LOVED it!! They laughed and had a good time with it! My mother just loved it! She kept talking about it the rest of the day.
I liked the stage version of "Phantom" more than the film (though, like I said, I liked the film). I like "Phantom" more than "Sweeney". The film that I saw today, though, is better than the stage "Sweeney". Now I will admit to the fact that I liked "Sweeney" the film
better than "Phantom" the film!!! It is a
billion times better!
Because films call for so much more acting than on stage (mainly due to close-ups and the more "intimate" feeling they project), this helps to prove my point that Sweeney Todd really isn't an evil man. He is a pathetic character! I just wanted to bring that up.
So, in closing to my ridiculously long review, I give "Sweeney Todd" a 10/10. If it is possible to give it a 1,000/1,000, I will do that then!! Absolutely
FANTASTIC film!
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Originally Posted by Janine
"It's so mysterious, the land of tears." 
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