I am ashamed to say I haven't seen a production of this before, read it or seen any filmed version so I was going in cold - but I was blown away. I am now curious to see how others stage it (and I am kicking myself that I probably could have seen Cate Blanchett in the role but never went) - I suspect like Cabaret this is a very heavy-handed directorial take on the material so you have to be comfortable with that. But the overall effect is that the tone of the show is very dark, uncomfortable, creepy and Paul is absolutely terrifying. As in, give you nightmares in your sleep kind of terrifying. It's almost relentless.
I wonder what a Rebecca Frecknall directed SWEENEY TODD with Paul Mescal would be like (if he had the voice).
Give me claws and a hunch, just away from this bunch.