Sweeney Todd - The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (Blu-ray)

**This review is also featured on DooYoo, under my username "MonsoonBaby"**

There have been many, many adaptations of the tale of Sweeney Todd, which originated in an 1846 penny dreadful. It tells the story of Benjamin Barker, a man who has been transported away for 15 years on the back of a crime he did not commit. Meanwhile, Barker's wife and daughter have been stolen away by the evil Judge Turpin, who has made his affections for Barker's wife, Lucy, known very clearly for a long period of time. Skip forward 15 years and Benjamin Barker is back in London, under the alias "Sweeney Todd", and he must get his revenge...one throat at a time.

The story itself has gone through many different variations over the years, and this film favours the Stephen Sondheim penned Broadway musical version. Directed by Tim Burton, the man behind such films as "Beetlejuice" and "Edward Scissorhands", it is evident that Burton has enjoyed creating this sinister tale all over again from the start. Burton's "re-imagining" of Sweeney Todd is shot in the streets of London, and there is nothing attractive about their appearance. Burton has favoured to shoot the film in dark black and greys, which not only convey a very bleak feel, but also create the illusion that the film is almost shot in black and white.

It did not surprise me to find out that Tim Burton was to direct an adaptation of Sweeney Todd. The subject matter is darkly humorous, pretty grim, and in places, a little gothic. Tim Burton has littered his first ever live-action musical with plenty of his auteur traits. Main characters Sweeney Todd (Johnny Depp) and Helena Bonham Carter (Mrs. Lovett) are adorned with blacks and whites, with the odd typical stripes thrown in for good measure. The eccentric main characters that Burton usually favours are not missing either. Depp's look even resembles a bit of an older Edward Scissorhands (minus the scissors, of course) at times. For example, watch the scene in which Sweeney is first reunited with his beloved razors. "At last, my arm is complete again!" Mr Todd cries, whilst extending his arm out towards the bay window. A very Scissorhands pose is adopted here, and it feels quite comforting to know that Burton is still harking back to his earlier work.
It also did not come as a surprise to me to learn that this film carries an 18 certificate. Watch the film and you'll notice that there is a lot of blood. Burton is not afraid to cover his cast in it, or splatter the set with the crimson stuff, but although it may come across as a little gory, and squeamish film-watchers may want to turn away at the sight of it, the blood doesn't look real enough. In fact, it has the texture of red paint, and if you were to look deeper into it, you would find out that this was probably intentional. Burton is a huge fan of the old Hammer and 50's horrors, where blood would never look incredibly realistic. Any Burton fan who knows this fact will probably see Burton's adopting of a very fake looking substance for the blood was homage to these early days of horror cinema. Therefore, knowing that the blood does not really share the same consistency as the real thing helps to remind you that this is cinema. A Broadway musical adaptation that focuses more on the big numbers rather than how real everything appears.

The performances in Burton's film are excellent, with a largely British cast taking the helm. Burton's best buddy and resident eccentric Johnny Depp is back here again, playing the lead character, Benjamin Barker/Sweeney Todd. Close your eyes and you will be mistaken for Depp’s famous pirate, Captain Jack Sparrow, for the accent is almost exactly the same in Sweeney Todd. However, Depp successfully manages to convey the troubled Sweeney Todd as a man hell-bent on revenge. Perhaps the best performance in the film comes from Helena Bonham Carter, who plays the scene-stealing pie maker, Mrs. Lovett. Helena Bonham Carter brings out the devious side of the leading lady, but also emphasises that deep down under it all, there is a good heart there hiding. I found it impossible not to like Mrs. Lovett, despite how cruel she has played her sinister partner in the pie business, Sweeney Todd. Alan Rickman stars as Judge Turpin, and plays him as a slimy, creepy and utterly dislikeable character-something Rickman is well known for, and does best. The supporting actors are brilliant, especially the brief role from Sasha Baron Cohen (Borat, Ali. G), who plays Sweeney’s razorblade welding rival, Pirelli. Baron Cohen is hilarious, and also manages to nail his one and only song. His stay in the film may be brief, but it is well worth checking out Sweeney Todd to see his performance.

It is to be noted that the actors (except for the actors playing Joanna or Anthony) are not professional singers. This was the first film that many of them had even dared to sing in, especially Johnny Depp, but really, they do not do such a bad effort. Depp ‘s singing voice sounds a little like David Bowie at times, but his vocals really do the job, often emphasising the anger and sadness that Sweeney Todd is feeling. The song “My Friends”, in which Todd is reunited with his razors is perhaps Johnny Depp’s best vocal moment in the film. Helena Bonham Carter displays some East London cockney spirit in her vocals, often nailing some of the trickier songs brilliantly, such as, perhaps the hardest of them all, “By The Sea”, in which Mrs. Lovett tells Sweeney Todd about her dream of eloping with him down to the beautiful seaside. This happens to be one of the funniest, brightest moments in the film, where perhaps Burton’s typical style is found most. Alan Rickman (Judge Turpin) sings with a real baritone voice, which compliments Depp’s vocals in their somewhat beautiful sounding duet, “Pretty Women.” The more professional singers are clearly the two actors who play Joanna and Anthony, who really show a lot of power behind their songs. The songs themselves are memorable, and after a viewing or two, are hard not to sing along to. I highly recommend picking up the soundtrack to the film. If you are not a fan of musicals though, it’s probably best you steer clear from this film. A large chunk of the film is made up of songs, with a lot of the narrative being explained through the use of the songs, rather than having the characters talk it through. I only ever found myself getting fed up once throughout the film, and that was during the “Joanna” song, which crops up several times throughout the film. I found that this song got a little tired by the third time around, and was grateful when it was not used again.

Now, is it worth picking up the blu-ray version? Yes, definitely. The crisp high definition picture that blu-ray discs present brings out the darker tones in the film, which further make the setting look even more bleak and sinister. I have watched it on both DVD and blu-ray now, and I can honestly say that the film slightly changes when you watch it on the latter. The characters look more defined, and with the wonders of high definition, you get to see every wrinkle and imperfection that adorns their faces. I felt that this helped to make the characters look more sinister, especially the lead character, Sweeney Todd. The only thing that suffers a little is the CGI. The blu-ray version highlights how unreal the portions of CGI look in the film, which, to be honest, is only a very small imperfection. The CGI is very brief in this film, so you won’t be left dwelling on it.

So, should you see Sweeney Todd? Yes and no. Tim Burton fans will definitely relish in this Broadway adaptation, as there is plenty of the typical Burton design found in this film. Musical fans will probably enjoy the songs, especially the darkly humorous numbers, such as “A Little Priest.” However, this is not a film that will cater for everyone. Those who are a little squeamish will probably want to avoid this, due to the huge amounts of blood that gushes out of each of Sweeney’s victims, and the general dark subject matter. Obviously, people who dislike musicals will also have no interest. Sorry guys, but most of this film is made up of songs, so go find something that caters more for you to watch. Burton’s adaptation of Sweeney Todd is darkly funny, grim, tense and at times, perhaps strangely beautiful. The film won several awards, and has gained a lot of critical praise, so it is definitely worth watching to see what the hype is about. This is a definite winner from Tim Burton, who proves that he can conquer the musical market as well as his usual brand of film-making.