Sweeney Todd - The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (DVD)

...he returns to London as Sweeney Todd, only to find out that his wife poisoned herself shortly after he left, and his daughter is now the ward of the very man who incarcerated him - Judge Turpin. Setting himself up as a barber again, he takes premises above Mrs Lovett's Pie Shop and turns his attention to revenge. He goes on a mad killing spree, killing any man who comes to his barbers. But can he persuade Judge Turpin to sit in his barber chair? ...
...gives a great performance as Sweeney Todd, and I think that it is testament to his skills as an actor that I felt sorry for him despite his evil crimes. I was impressed by his London accent - on occasion, it felt a little forced, but he is ten times better than most American actors. Most of the time, he sounded like a combination of Michael Caine and David Bowie, even maintaining the accent while singing. He is plastered in white make-up throughout ... more

Benjamin Barker is a wronged man. Fifteen years before, he was accused of a crime he didn't commit and thrown out of London, forced to leave his wife, Lucy, and daughter Johanna, behind. As soon as he is set free, he returns to London as Sweeney Todd, only to find out that his wife poisoned herself shortly after he left, and his daughter is now the ward of the very man who incarcerated him - Judge Turpin. Setting himself up as a barber again, he takes premises above Mrs Lovett's Pie Shop and turns his attention to revenge. He goes on a mad killing spree, killing any man who comes to his barbers. But can he persuade Judge Turpin to sit in his barber chair? Can he or someone else rescue Johanna? Or will his crimes be discovered before his revenge is complete?

I've put off watching this film for quite some time, simply because, although I love a good tale of revenge, I didn't like the idea of it being set to music - somehow manic killing and haunting music don't sit too well with me. And although I like a good musical, knowing the songs beforehand usually increase my enjoyment - in the case of Mamma Mia, I think the well-known music actually made the film. However, I'm glad that I went to the trouble of watching after all - it is a really well-made film with some great performances, topped off by a fascinating story.

I think Johnny Depp gives a great performance as Sweeney Todd, and I think that it is testament to his skills as an actor that I felt sorry for him despite his evil crimes. I was impressed by his London accent - on occasion, it felt a little forced, but he is ten times better than most American actors. Most of the time, he sounded like a combination of Michael Caine and David Bowie, even maintaining the accent while singing. He is plastered in white make-up throughout the film, but this doesn't hide his facial expressions and the quirky nature of his appearance suits him right down to the ground. Helena Bonham Carter's appearance matches his - the pair of them together create a really magical atmosphere that makes the killings a little bit more palatable. Bonham Carter is wonderful as Mrs Lovett, a real mixture of yin and yang in that she is as evil as Sweeney Todd in turning the dead bodies into meat for her pies, while showing her softer side in her feelings for Todd and Toby, a boy who helps out in her shop.

Alan Rickman, as always, gives a fabulous performance as Judge Turpin - he does evil so very well. Turpin doesn't appear all that much in the film, but his nastiness pervades the entire film as he tries to prevent Johanna's escape. Timothy Spall is suitably ugly as the Beadle, Turpin's right-hand man. And Sacha Baron Cohen brings a touch of humour to the proceedings as Pirelli, a rival hairdresser, who likes exceptionally tight trousers - I thought I'd seen my fill of men's dangly bits after watching I'm a Celebrity, but this is something else...!

Jamie Campbell Bower, a relative newcomer to acting in movies, plays Anthony, who meets and falls in love with Johanna. He doesn't have much screen-time, but he is more than adequate for the role. Johanna is played by Jayne Wisener and is good, but to be honest, any attractive actress could have taken on the role. Ed Sanders gives a very 'Oliver Twist' performance as Toby, who has a key part in the story, although we don't know it until right at the end. For a young boy, he is excellent, and I hope to see more of him in the future.

I was quite surprised to find that there isn't that much in the way of talking in the film - most of the story is told via the songs, which were written for a stage version of Sweeney Todd by Stephen Sondheim back in 1979. I actually really enjoyed this - although I didn't know any of the songs beforehand, they are repeated throughout the film without being too repetitive and so I soon picked them up. I liked different tones of the songs, some gentle love stories, others much darker and very well suited to the general atmosphere of the film. And whereas in Mamma Mia, the characters suddenly burst into song in a way that often felt false (not surprising as the songs came first and were forced to fit the story), there was none of this in Sweeney Todd - the songs fitted into the story well and were often so unobtrusive that I almost didn't notice the story was being told by the medium of song.

Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter aren't exactly known for their singing, so I was a bit concerned that they would be rubbish - they aren't however. Depp is surprisingly good - perhaps not professional level, but certainly good enough for this film. Bonham Carter is less skilled as a singer, but she pulled it off really well. Actually I'm glad that these actors were chosen for the main roles rather than giving them to professional singers - a more polished singing performance would have detracted from the storyline. Jamie Campbell Bower and Jayne Wisener sounded like trained singers, and were good to listen to, but I preferred the rawer edge that Depp and Bonham Carter had.

I thought Tim Burton, the director, did a really fabulous job of ensuring that the pacing was even throughout the film - although it is quite a long film at nearly two hours, I never once got bored - there just isn't the opportunity. I also loved his set - he did a great job of recreating Victorian England, or at least the Victorian England that most people who have read Dickens or Peter Ackroyd will have in their mind - lots of fog and dirt and scruffy people. Best of all though was the atmosphere he established - it was a brilliant mixture of sorrow, happiness, evil and downright revenge, and is both beautiful and chilling to watch.

There is a lot of violence in the film, and parents shouldn't be persuaded that this is a children's film because of its magical fairytale atmosphere - there is a lot of very graphic throat slashing, followed by blood spurting all over the place. Not for the faint-hearted. At the same time, I didn't think the blood looked all that realistic - it was a bit too red and viscous (not that I know what blood spurting from a slashed neck looks like of course!), and that did make me able to watch the murders without flinching too much. Having said that, I am used to watching gorier horrors than this, so if you think you will be upset by it, don't take any notice of me! Personally, I found the disgusting meat mixture that Mrs Lovett puts in her pies scarier than anything else - and that was before she starts using human flesh!

Apologies for the length of this review, but I was really surprised by this film. I loved it from start to finish. I had expected to be disappointed and a bit bemused by the production, but I wasn't - I thought it was brilliant. So much so that as soon as it had finished, I put it on again - and it isn't often that I do that. If you haven't already seen it, possibly because you think it won't be your cup of tea, I recommend that you give it a go, I think you will be surprised. Just be aware that it is an 18, and will certainly scare children. Definitely recommended.

The DVD is available from play.com for £6.99. This version has no special features other than a choice of languages and scene selection. There is a two disc version available for £8.99, which comes with a selection of documentaries for those who want it.

Classification: 18

Running time: 116 minutes 

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