Sweeney Todd Movie Review Thread- Page 9

[SueleenGay]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 12:34am

artsamore,I know what you are saying and in theory I agree, but I am glad that at least the orchestra/arrangements were perfect.I would rather have that imbalance than have both that AND the singing be sub-par.
Besides, I really doubt Sondheim, Tunick and Gemignani would allow the music to sound crappy.

[Parks]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 1:02am

Just got in from seeing it in Dallas--


********SPOILER!!!!!!!!*****


I don't know if any other audiences have had this happen or if it's just Texas audiences... but in the scene where the judge orders the little boy to be hanged, about 1/3 of the people in the theater started laughing for a good 10 seconds or so. I must admit--I joined in, I guess because it was just SO uncomfortable.

The cast was truly amazing. Helena Bonham Carter may be my favorite actress now. I teared up twice in the movie--once right when Tobias started singing to HBC and again when HBC locked Tobias in the dungeon and she came out crying. I was so upset just by that one part. I left the theater NOT scared, but very upset. It really depressed me...

It was such an amazing movie--probably the best I have seen this year, but I will not see it again. It was kind of slow, but absolutely incredible. I got lost in the story and forgot that I knew the ending for a little bit.

There was definitely too much blood though. I was covering my eyes for about half the movie.

[Mythus]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 1:09am

My audience awwed in sympathy and - shock, I suppose, when they saw it was a little boy. Like, "oh, god, I can't believe it's a little boy...poor thing."

[Eos]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 1:11am

I got back a couple of hours ago, and things are still sinking in.

I REALLY missed all of the chorus bits - "The Ballad...", God, That's Good", and I really wished they could have worked "City On Fire" in somehow. I missed the factory whistles, too.

Artsamore, I couldn't agree more with you about Carter's impassive delivery. I didn't mind her voice, I think it's ridiculous to expect these film people to be quality singers, but I thought "Worst Pies in London" could have been more entertaining if her expressions had been more animated. That whole "Mrs. Mooney has a pie shop.." verse is so funny, and I thought it was kind of lost in her deadpan rendition.

Enough quibble though. I thought it was a tough job well done.

[Wayman_Wong]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 1:24am

I've enjoyed reading the different reactions of BWW posters to 'Sweeney,' but didn't this thread start off as a place to find the published reviews of the film? ... At any rate, 'Sweeney' rates a 87% Fresh rating at RottenTomatoes; out of 131 reviews, 114 of them were positive and only 17 were negative.

[jspaeth87]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 1:35am

i enjoyed the movie quite a bit. and i was pleasantly surprised by bonham carter. although i was quite underwhelmed by "worst pies in london" which had me worried, but i really liked her character choices w/ the role and they suited her lack of vocal abilities. But acting-wise...i'd say that she was the stand out for me in the movie. I enjoyed depp, but he seemed to be missing something and as was mentioned before, he had his moments where he took sweeney a bit too rocker.

Toby had a great voice, but wasn't the greatest actor. Although, it still worked out. And although i personally missed toby going crazy at the end, it gave the character a whole new feel, which i kind of liked. and it made sense since he was so young....that is what he learned from his surroundings...vengeance...it made things creepy in a whole different way.

I do agree with others that said they missed the Antony/Johanna development, especially "kiss me"

[SueleenGay]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 1:38am

Wayman, yes, I do believe that is how this thread started. However, one thing you need to know about BWW posters, we are not really interested in anyone's opinion but our own.

[jewishboy]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 1:47am

I would go as far as to say the best movie musical ever. Only two moments that I missed from the stage show (spoilers).
1. When Lovett and Todd do the Executioner lines in "Priest"
2. Extended "Lucy time" in the shop footage before she dies

I think that the main reason I loved it so much was because it had the same impact (in various ways) that the stage production had on me. For example, when Todd reveals himself to the Judge I grinned like a fool, the same thing that happened when I first saw the show at the NYCO. Also, Sondheim's music was a huge part of the film, I'm guessing mainly due to Jonathan Tunick.

[JulianHookbucks]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 1:47am

*Spoliers*

I was absolutely in love with it, until the very end... which felt unfinished... I wish they had found a way to theatricize the "ballad.." I read somewhere that they were going to have the ghosts of his victims sing it... and I realize that could have gotten campy... but... they made SO MUCH work... the ending just seemed so... abrupt... and I realize it was it's own thing... but Toby didn't go crazy, The Antony and Johanna story was left totally open, and it feels like the story was left ultimately with the conclusion that Benjamin and Lucy were back together once again... no matter how tragic and pathetic was their story... but... there was so much more that they set up from the musical that left things open ended and unfinished at the end... if they wanted that to be the ultimate point at the end... they would have had to do serious plot re-tooling... The point of the end of the stage musical is that Sweeney could be anybody... I don't know... the end just totally left me hanging... I felt like there was more of the story to be finished... the musical ended so perfectly... I just wished for that satisfaction in the film, even though it was meant to be different.

Helena's death was absolutely terrifying... but totally perfect...

The transition into "By The Sea" was awkward...

and I wondered why only the Beadle's brains were smashed against the floor when he went down the chute... maybe because he said that Antony's brains would be smashed out on the ground if he caught him around Johanna again...

I thought it was absolutely brilliant that Lucy and Sweeney's blood just kind of... fell out of their necks when everyone else's just... spurted out like mad... to show that they were no longer living inside...

I thought it was perfect... save for the too-CGI beginning and the... abrupt ending...

[gertiecummings]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 3:37am

Did anyone else on here mention Alan Rickman's and Sasha Baron Cohen's packages in this movie? I almost burst out laughing in the theatre. During The Contest my eyes weren't exactly on Pirelli's face if you know what I mean.

With that aside, this movie is f*cking incredible!!! Johnny Depp had better win that Oscar this time or there's gonna be hell to pay.

My friend and I wore our hair a.l.a Mrs. Lovett to the midnight showing last night :)

[buffyactsing]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 3:52am

Likes:

Pretty much the entire cast, acting and singing. I thought Sasha Baron Cohen was delightful....and oddly very sexy and Daniel Connor...and you, know Pierelli.

I'm not a Burton fan, his movies to be are often beautiful but ultimately vapid. Luckily he had such strong source material. This is indeed a beautiful movie...though I wished he let his actors go at it just a little more.

At first I was upset that Sweeney didn't seem to have any significant emotional reaction to finding out about Lucy and Lovett. He seemed so still. I wished there was a bit more of a release until *SPOILERS*

Toby slits Sweeney's throat, and the blood drips almost as though it's the tears Sweeney cannot bring himself to cry...the blood is his catharsis, his tears...and it poors out of him until there is no more. It was really beautiful. I do wish Depp had been just a little more vulnerable at parts...though at the same time, given what Sweeney's been through I understand his motivation.

Some of the line changes that allowed Lovett to show her maternal instincts even more than in the stage musical. I actually think Lovett is very maternal...in a sick and twisted way. I always wondered why she and Albert never had kids. She needs to care for someone...for Sweeney...for Toby...I kind of thought Sweeney was like her husband and Toby like her beloved dog that Sweeney bit Sweeney...no matter how much she loves the dog, Sweeney is her first dedication and thus he needs to be put to sleep....that sounded weird, but I loved how much she was allowed to care for Toby.

Dislikes:

While I thought HBC was BRILLIANT during Not While I'm Around, I was let down by her in most other scenes. There were certain choices such as nudging into Sweeney's neck/hair that I loved. Sure, I wish her voice was stronger too, but that was a minor quibble for me in comparison to the acting. I felt it lacking a certain energy and, sometimes, nuance. Now granted, I'm not a huge fan of the Angela Lansbury music hall style Lovett. I like a more layed Lovett but I still would have liked a little humor and pizazz. Half the time I forgot Mrs. Lovett was there. Most frustrating to me of all is that I cannot understand HBC's motivation for her Lovett, why she played the character the way she did. I hope it'll click upon repeated viewing. Most of her choices didn't work for me aside from the aformentioned (and Stunning) turn of vulnerability shown during Not While I'm Around.

I was bored during A Little Priest...for the first time...ever. There is downplaying and then there is this. I mean, the revival was certainly downplayed from how it is usually performed and it still found the humor...there was just little joy in the number. While I enjoyed the window shopping idea...it's matter of factness didn't work...it somehow needed to be MORE deadpan if they were going for that...they either need to take it TOO seriously or not take it serious at all and have a laugh riot. I know I'm not making sense, but it just didn't work for me.

I wish there were more of the Beggar woman. The more we see of her, especially interacting with Sweeney, the more tragic the ending...the more we wish "if only he'd seen..." I know it's more difficult on film...but I wish there were just some more.

While I didn't miss the Ballads, I do wish the chorus would have chimed in during Pirelli's Miracle Elixer and God That's Good.

The random Toby coming out of the gutter and slitting Sweeney's throat. I'm not saying that he needed to be OBC grey-haired crazy...but I fell like there should have been something for him to say.

Though I loved how the split up Johanna and gave Anthony motivation for the second part, I felt like there wasn't enough interaction between the lovers. I missed Kiss Me even though I didn't think I would.

This is a minor thing, but I think even locked away in a madhouse Turpin would have assured Johanna a private cell. Wouldn't want her dirty icky mad probably disease ridden people.

Sweeney letting Johanna go didn't ring true for me. It is so easy to slash their throats...it didn't make sense he would just let her be.

The blood, while didn't distub be as much as I though it wouldn't wasn't really needed.

Toby in the beginning of Miracle Elixer and the middle of Not While I'm Around. He looked blank as though he didn't know what he was singing about. They were only part of the songs, but they bothered me.

I'd give it a B+, an A- comparing it to the usual fare I've seen this year. While some people claim it's the best screen adaptation that could have been made from Sweeney, I would say it's ALMOST the best. If only there was just a little more emotion and energy, I may have been completely satisfied.

Updated On: 12/22/07 at 03:52 AM

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 4:46am

I think it is--along with MOULIN ROUGE--the best movie musical of the past ten years.
As I said earlier, I don't think Burton knew what to do with the young couple (which I had read in one of the official reviews posted on this thread). "Kiss Me" should have been kept to let Anthony and Johanna interact at some point. Otherwise, a fascinating film.

[Rosalind]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 11:38am

I just saw it yesterday.

First of all, the movie looks fantastic. It follows a complete design, and mood. Every song, every costume, every character, looked as if it lived within a completely new London. Nothing was out of place. Even Pirelli's costume, though colourful, had a certain darkness to it. Something sadistic; which might have been the tight outlining of his pants.

The performances were beautiful. Johnny was the biggest surprise to me. I knew he was singing it well from listening to the recording, but he completely served the songs as an actor as well. Some accomplished singers have tendencies to over embellish notes and ignore lyrics and meaning. But Johnny, mostly because he's an actor first, did what the song required him to do: tell a story, and be his character, and change. Helena was beautiful; it was a completely new Mrs. Lovett. Mrs. Lovett is one of the most beloved of musical theatre characters, and played to almost perfection by Anglea; so the fact Helena did something completely new with it was wonderful.

Sacha Baren Cohen however was the biggest surprise to me. I knew he would be hilarious, because we've all known he was hilarious since the Ali G show. But when it came time for his somewhat sinister moment, blackmailing Sweeney, even he was very scary, and threatening, and you could believe Sweeney found him dangerous to keep around. It was wise of Sacha not be amusing in that scene.

I also loved how all the singers were subtle and low key; even the better of them. Hearing Green Finch and Linnet Bird quiet and subdued and repressed was also BETTER for Johanna's character. It was so quiet and depressing. It was nice to see a beautiful ingenue with so much weight on her shoulders. Even when she was rescued by Anthony, she seemed deeply disturbed, it didn't just go away because she had a man.

And by god.
It was bloody.

[ggersten]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 12:33pm

Poor HBC. People all over the board about her. I thought she was brilliant - She was just so "off" all the time - her innate evilness came so naturally. Her longing for Sweeney was the first time I believed it. Yes, Worst Pies In London wasn't as funny as it could be, but overall, I was very impressed.

I thought the two youngsters for Johanna and Antony were both excellent. Their eyes were very expressive.

Sasha Baron Cohen was great. But, I didn't like Alan Rickman. I didn't understand him at all - he seemed neither evil nor conflicted. He was just there. I really expected more.

I thought Depp was great - but that said, he starts off so vacant, that finding out he's lost his wife and child should put him over the edge, but he's already there. So, the cathartic energy is missing.

It wasn't as bloody as I thought it was going to be. Very very stylized, and the final shots of Sweeney and Lucy were tragic.

I too would have liked something at the end - the Ballad, at least to play over the closing credits. But, it is a tough show to end.

Lastly, I thought the music was incredible. It was so clear - I don't think I've ever heard Sondheim's music, so, well musical. On stage, ST was more discordant, more harsh. In the film, it rose (and I could hear every word!).

Posted: 12/22/07 at 12:52pm

Honestly...anyone who has a real problem with this movie is most likely doing it just for the sake of disagreeing.

I think it's clearly one of the best movies of the decade...yes, it's a different take than the stage play, but I feel a lot of theatre fanatics just don't want to look at it that way.

There were 15 year old Rentheads (literally...they had Rent shirts on) behind me walking out of the theatre last night, and they were like 'eh, it was pretty good...' Seriously? I don't know how anyone can think this movie is just pretty good, WHETHER someone thinks there's too much blood in it or the voices aren't PATTI LUPONE-esque, or even if you have an un-developed 15 year old mind (and I don't mean that in a negative way) - you still HAVE to admit it's an extremely well done film.

The production values and everything that was put into it is WAY BEYOND exceptional, and it's really more than anyone could ask for with a film adapation of Sweeney Todd.

I can't wait to see it again.
Updated On: 12/22/07 at 12:52 PM

Posted: 12/22/07 at 12:59pm

i thought it was fantastic, but personally, i dont need all the violence articulated!

i had to keep my eyes closed for a lot of it, & just the audio was grisly enough.

but thats more about me than the film itself!

i saw it @ the Ziegfeld & it was one of the best-behaved & enthusiastic audiences iv had the pleasure to share a theater with!

except for the queen who yelled to people in the three rows around him, "DAT'S DA MUDDAH! DAT'S DA MUDDAH!!!" when The Beggarwoman first appeared.

Posted: 12/22/07 at 1:29pm

what im most excited about is how SWEENEY will reverberate creatively; how the world of musicals is going to open up for people who wouldve otherwise never had the chance to experience it or the interest...& seeing how that inspiration will manifest itself in future generations of creative people.

[mateo]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 1:37pm

Exactly Norn!

and the better movie musicals do - the more will go into production. Its a beautiful thing.

[James885]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 2:39pm

One more little thing I wasn't real clear about - During the scene where Johanna is packing to leave and Turpin enters her room, she tells him that it isn't polite to enter a lady's room without knocking. He then replies " I see no lady here". Was he implying that he thought that Johanna and Anthony had slept together? My girlfriend thought that he was essentialy calling her a tramp. I just thought it was meant as a harsh insult. Did anyone else catch this?

Updated On: 12/22/07 at 02:39 PM

[Rosalind]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 2:44pm

Well he's catching her packing up to leave with Anthony, so yeah, I think he's accusing her of 'trysting about' with Anthony.

[singingwendy]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 3:08pm

I just figured he was mad at her for wanting to leave and what he saw as sneaking around his back. I don't think he thought they'd actually had any physical contact yet (and goodness knows, the film didn't hint that they had! )

Another thing to think about.......how does having the inmates in the asylum kill Fogg rather than Johanna do it change her character? I really think Burton was trying to keep Anthony and Johanna completly innocent in this version, but to me the result is a completely boring and spineless Johanna.

[Roninjoey]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 3:45pm

It was a more cinematic ending for that character. In the stage show it's really weird... she shoots him and runs off. It's a moment of melodrama and I think Burton was trying to take out the sour note of melodrama (I've never understood why those two characters are played so sarcastically in the stage version when everything else is taken so realistically).

Also, it would have been balls to the walls silly for Toby to do his monologue before killing Sweeney. I've always thought it was a silly monologue anyway. The ending was totally appropriate and Burton made incredible adjustments to make the show filmable. We already have a very good video of the stage version.

I mean, it's not perfect. They should have retained more of A Little Priest and they REALLY should have had "Ah, Miss" (the bit at the beginning and the bit at the end). Oh well.

[SueleenGay]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 4:07pm

anyone who has a real problem with this movie is most likely doing it just for the sake of disagreeing.

I think it's clearly one of the best movies of the decade...yes, it's a different take than the stage play, but I feel a lot of theatre fanatics just don't want to look at it that way.

Give me a break. Just because YOU think it is the best blah blah blah doesn't mean that anyone who does NOT think that is just being argumentative. You really can't be serious. What an ass.

[Eos]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 4:19pm

Roninjoey-

While it may have come off as silly for Toby to do his entire monologue at the end, I think a little, "You've harmed her too, have you? You shouldn't harm no one..." wouldn't have hurt. I was kind of waiting for Depp to lean his head back, loosen his collar, and surrender. I don't really think Toby needed to come off as crazy, but I would have liked seeing a little more intent from Toby at the end.

Geez, I seem to keep finding the negatives. I really did think everyone did an amazing job. It's just really hard for me to keep the stage versions out of my head!

[COOOOLkid]

Posted: 12/22/07 at 4:46pm

*****SPOILER*****



Was anybody else disturbed by the scene where Mrs. Lovett is burning in the oven? Her face and the scream with her arms going crazy, it was just so disturbing and scary.