Movie Review: Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Title: Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet StreetStarring: Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Sacha Baron Cohen, Alan Rickman, Timothy Spall
Directed By: Tim Burton
Produced By: Patrick McCormick, Laurie MacDonald, Walter F. Parkes
Genre: Drama, Musical/Performing Arts, Thriller and Adaptation
Running Time: 1 hr. 57 min.
Release Date: December 21st, 2007 (wide)
MPAA Rating: R for graphic bloody violence.
Distributors: DreamWorks SKG, Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros. Pictures International
My rating: 6/10
Sweeney Todd a.k.a Benjamin Barker (Johnny Depp) returns to London after being sent away by Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman) with the help of a sailor, Anthony Hope (Jamie Campbell Bower). He opens a barber shop above Mrs. Lovett's Meat Pie Shop were she sells "the worst pies in London." With the help of Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter), Todd tries to get rid of all the people who have ever done him wrong and hopes to be reunited with his daughter, Johanna (Jayne Wisener), who is now Judge Turpin's ward.
I really must insist on telling you a few details about myself before continuing on to the review. And yes, it is pertinent information so don't skip ahead. First, I do not really like musicals. There are a few that I can stand like The Wizard of Oz and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. The only one that I have actually liked is Across The Universe and that was more for the music than anything else. The key is that those are all contemporary musicals with either rock and roll or at least modern song structures as in the case with The Wizard Of Oz. The second thing is that the only knowledge of Sweeney Todd that I had before seeing the film was what I had gleaned from Kevin Smith's Jersey Girl. Not the best place to learn about musicals, am I right?That being said I am of two minds about Sweeney Todd. On one hand I loved the story, but there was too much music. I know, I know it's a musical, but it is my review. I can handle musicals if there is decent ratio of dialogue to musical numbers and unfortunately, there is much more of the latter. Not only is there a ton of music but for the most part it is almost overpowering and most definitely over the top. Many repeat themes and numbers make the musical portion of Sweeney Todd a chore to really get into at times.
On the other hand, the performances and production values almost make up for the amount of music in the film. Depp is at the top of his game and mesh's very well with Helena Bonham Carter's Mrs. Lovett. Both play their parts to the brink of being over the top without following the music over the edge. Alan Rickman and Timothy Spall are delightfully creepy as Judge Turpin and his assistant Beadle Bamford. Sascha Baron Cohen really stole the show during his short appearance in the film though. His Signor Adolfo Pirelli was absolutely the most fun performance. Burton really should have kept him around longer.
In a nutshell, Tim Burton is the master at creating dark films and when you team him with Johnny Depp you know that you will get your moneys worth. Thus far Sweeney Todd is Depp and Burton's sixth collaboration together and they seem to have found their stride. And yet while Sweeney Todd worked for me on a story-telling level, the over abundance of music turned me off. I would say that Sweeney Todd is not for casual movie fans, you really should be either a real big fan of musicals or Tim Burton's biggest fan to truly appreciate Sweeney Todd.Until Johnny Depp and Tim Burton stop making films together,
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Mitch Emerson
mitchemerson@hotmail.com
Title: Juno
Following up 2005's Thank You For Smoking, Jason Reitman, son of director Ivan Reitman, shows that he has inherited his father's talent for comedy. A rather quirky film that should appeal to todays audiences with it's wit, likeable if not lovable characters portrayed by a perfect cast, and way too many comedic verbal fusillades to count, Reitman and Cody surely have a hit with Juno.
Ellen Page will be a star in the near future. After the cult hit Hard Candy and her small role in the mainstream X-Men 3: The Last Stand, Page comes through once again as a talent to be reckoned with. Perfect comedic delivery and the ability to turn serious without being melodramatic is one of her key talents. Michael Cera still bugs me a bit, the kid seriously needs to man up a little. I have only seen him in Superbad and Juno but there is basically no difference in either character. Sure he's funny in these situations, but he's going to be pigeon holed if he doesn't show some variety soon. J.K. Simmons and Alison Janney almost steal a few scenes away from Page as her parents. The best way to describe them is the most realistic version of a teens fantasy parents. Simmons is great in every scene but watch for Janney's tirade against a snobbish ultrasound technician, it's one of the best scenes in the movie. Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner are great as the proposed adoptive parents. They don't seem to fit together perfectly, which may have been done on purpose, but Bateman plays the slightly whipped husband perfectly. I know a few guys whose stuff has been relegated to one room in the house and can feel for Bateman. Garner, having just had a child in real life with husband Ben Affleck, probably didn't need to dig too deep for motivation in this film, which makes her performance that much better. Last mention is a quick cameo by Rainn Wilson of The Office, who has one of the best lines in the film as a lowly convenience store clerk.
Even though I haven't given many reasons to see Juno, I can only say that it is a package deal. The closest thing I can even consider a flaw is the dialogue. I don't think that many teens actually speak the way these characters do, but if you can get around that, then Juno is for you. Aside from that, Juno is by far one of the best comedies I have seen in a long time that doesn't feature gross out humor. It has already become one of my favorite films and will be a welcome addition to my collection.
Title: National Treasure: Book of Secrets
This time around Ben Gates (Nicolas Cage) is ostensibly seeking to clear Thomas Gates (his great-grandfather) name in the conspiracy to assassinate Abraham Lincoln, but it always boils down to the treasure. Mitch Wilkinson (Ed Harris) is the man who brought these accusations against Thomas Gates in order to manipulate Ben into doing all of the work for him. Of course Riley (Justin Bartha), Abigail (Diane Kruger) and Ben's father Patrick (Jon Voight) are along for the ride.
Nicolas Cage reprises his role as Benjamin Gates just the same as before, no real growth for him and his character. The real let down though is Justin Bartha's Riley. In the first film he was a semi-clueless tech expert who delivered his sarcastic lines with a timing that made him second only to Cage. In BOS, he has matured a little which means some of the humor is gone. Diane Kruger returns as Abigail Chase and just like the first film, is dragged along for the ride. Jon Voight chews up the scenery with a performance that at time reminded me heavily of Sean Connery's Dr. Jones Sr. in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade while new addition Helen Mirren knocks what little screen time she has out of the park. Lastly is Ed Harris as Mitch Wilkerson. A great actor who has played heroic roles in The Abyss and Needful Things, and as a good/bad government agent in A Beautiful Mind brings elements of all of these to Mitch. He wants the Wilkerson family name to go down in history and is willing to do anything to do it.
National Treasure: Book of Secrets doesn't quite live up to it's potential but it is a fine family alternative to seeing whatever cutesy animated film that is releasing this week.
Title: Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
Sounds like a biopic like Walk The Line doesn't it? Well, if you have been hiding under a rock the last few weeks and haven't seen any of the ads for Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, then let me tell you, it isn't. Walk Hard parodies Walk The Line and many other biopics. With sight gags that go beyond the crowning scene in Knocked Up to witty phrasings in song, Walk Hard is a solid effort that falls just shy of the mark made by Team Apatow's earlier efforts. That's not to say that it isn't a funny film, but it lacks the heart of Superbad, Knocked Up and The 40 Year Old Virgin. 
Maybe I am putting too much blame on Apatow. Jake Kasdan, the director, could still be considered a little wet behind the ears with only Walk Hard, The TV Set, Orange County and Zero Effect under his belt film wise. To give him credit where deserved, he also directed a few episodes of Freaks and Geeks, the cult classic TV show that was the launching point for many of Apatow's regulars.
Final thoughts – While not one I would buy for my collection, Walk Hard is, at it's core, a funny movie that delivers the laughs, but falls short in character development. And I must warn you, there are a few shots of male full frontal nudity along with very suggestive, but very funny, lyrics in a few of the songs.
Title: I Am Legend
