#1
Posted: 8/6/07 at 11:09am
Taken from IMDB board: Sondheim appeared on an Aussie TV show last night to promote Company. He talked a little about the Sweeney film...
Host: And it's now translated to film, I believe, Tim Burton has just directed Johnny Depp?
SS: Yes, indeed, filming was finished just... two weeks ago.
Host: And what sort of imput did you have into that process?
SS: Well, the screen-writer John Logan came to me, he'd done his adaptation of it, and I put in my two cents worth. Obviuosly you can't do the full piece because it would take too long, and so you have to do some - I hope - judicious cutting, and so he'd done some of that. I thought some of that was too judicious, and some of it not enough and so there are songs that have been cut and there are cuts within songs. But generally it's pretty much the score. The plot is very little changed - there are details of the plot which have been changed, but it's pretty faithful to the piece. Now, the whole style in which it's being told and the acting style is different than a stage acting style, it's much more of a film noir, low-key acting style, but the transition into the music seems to me to work. Now, it hasn't been put together, yet, so I've only seen, you know, seen it in - no pun intended - slices, and it's got a lot of blood in it, and that's fine by me, it's a very bloody movie.
Host: And I didn't realise Johnny Depp could sing...?
SS: Everybody forgets he started in a band. He was a band singer before he became a tv star. He was not the lead singer, but he was a backing singer, he was very musical, and he sings too.
Host: And it's now translated to film, I believe, Tim Burton has just directed Johnny Depp?
SS: Yes, indeed, filming was finished just... two weeks ago.
Host: And what sort of imput did you have into that process?
SS: Well, the screen-writer John Logan came to me, he'd done his adaptation of it, and I put in my two cents worth. Obviuosly you can't do the full piece because it would take too long, and so you have to do some - I hope - judicious cutting, and so he'd done some of that. I thought some of that was too judicious, and some of it not enough and so there are songs that have been cut and there are cuts within songs. But generally it's pretty much the score. The plot is very little changed - there are details of the plot which have been changed, but it's pretty faithful to the piece. Now, the whole style in which it's being told and the acting style is different than a stage acting style, it's much more of a film noir, low-key acting style, but the transition into the music seems to me to work. Now, it hasn't been put together, yet, so I've only seen, you know, seen it in - no pun intended - slices, and it's got a lot of blood in it, and that's fine by me, it's a very bloody movie.
Host: And I didn't realise Johnny Depp could sing...?
SS: Everybody forgets he started in a band. He was a band singer before he became a tv star. He was not the lead singer, but he was a backing singer, he was very musical, and he sings too.
Updated On: 8/6/07 at 11:09 AM
