Ummm, yeah, like most of my journals, this is a really long and opinionated rant. A Sweeney Todd movie review rant, since I didn't feel like leaving a proper rant the other day.
So!
If you've seen the movie and are as opinionated as I am, feel free to reply with your opinions. I like having fantarded discussions of stuff that I like, because I'm a nerd with few IRL friends that share my eccentric interests.
If you haven't seen the movie and plan on seeing it in the future, skip this journal, come back to it later, and *then* tell me what you think.
If you don't give two shits, skip this journal. God knows you need a break from my journal rants -.-;;
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OKAY! My thoughts...
Characters
Sweeney Todd Himself:
GOD, he was GORGEOUS
(I'm such a Deppfag
).
A lot of the Broadwayfags were bitching about him playing the part because he's not a trained singer and they didn't think he can sing, but he can. True, he's not perfect. He's no Len Cariou or Michael Ceveris. He's not a trained singer and his voice was a bit choppy on some songs, but I think he has a very nice singing voice (and I'm
not just saying that on behalf of my Deppfaggotry).
The main problem that I had with him was that other than the scenes where he was supposed to show a great deal of emotion (like "Epiphany" or whenever he was killing a victim), he was like an emotionless zombie throughout most of the movie. I understand that Sweeney is a grim character that was in prison for 15 years and is pissed of at the world and shit because his family was taken away, but
good lord. Even George Hearn's Sweeney wasn't
that zombie-like.
However, that attitude was PERFECT for the "By the Sea" scene. That was one of the few funny parts in the whole movie.
Mrs. Lovett:
Another target of the Broadwayfags. "Carter only got this part because she's sleeping with Burton!"
Ehh. She was aiight.
Her singing could've been better and could've used more emotion, but it was okay.
I didn't hate her, but I didn't love her either. She was okay. I personally like Patti LuPone's Mrs. Lovett more.
I loved her little outfits though.
Judge Turpin
ALANRICKMANHOSHITOMGWTFSPLODE
Um, yeah, that.
I may be letting my Rickmania influence my opinion a little too much, but I think he did a wonderful job portraying Turpin. His singing's certainly not half-bad, either.
He did seem kinda Snape-ish in some parts of this movie to me, though. Then again, if you're stuck playing a character for God knows how long, I imagine it would rub off on the rest of your acting.
Anthony/Antony/However-the-hell-you-spell-his-name:
Oh man, he was gorgeous, too.
Jamie Campbell Bower's singing was very nice. Overall, I think he did a good job of playing
that effeminate stalker kid Anthony.
I kinda thought it was hilarious that even after the Beadle beat the living shit out of him, he's still limping around Turpin's house all bloody and bruised singing, "I'LL STEEEEEEAAAALLL YOOOOOUUUU JOOOHAAAAAAAAANNNAAAAAA!!!" XDDDD
Johanna:
Jayne Wisener had to be the best singer out of the whole cast, and probably my favorite Johanna (the Johanna in the 1980 musical freaked me out). Her voice was absolutely stunning. I don't know why the
hell they cut her part out of the "Johanna" reprise. I guess it might've had something to do with "Kiss Me/Ah, Miss" being cut.
I was unhappy with the lack of AnthonyxJohanna in this movie.
Tobias/Toby
I was used to teenage/young adult Tobys, so I was thrown off by a kid Toby at first. But he was SO CUTE!!!!
He didn't move around very much, but he could sing very well.
Even though he killed Sweeney in the end, he didn't become mad in the movie like the older Toby did in the play (if he did, the movie didn't show it). I'm actually kinda glad that he didn't, since he was so young.
The Beggar Woman/Lucy
Not very happy with the lack of Beggar Woman. Movie needed moar Beggar Woman bigtime.
Pirelli:
LOL, BORAT SINGING!
I've never seen Borat and I don't plan on ever seeing it anytime soon, but that's pretty much what I think of when I think of Pirelli in this movie. I can't help it.
I think Sacha Baron Cohen could've made Pirelli a tad funnier, but I still think he did a great job.
Beadle Bamford
Whenever I saw him, I wanted to bash him over the head with that cane of his. In other words, Timothy Spall did an excellent job portraying him.
Problems I Had With This Movie
I know I said that I loved this movie, and I did. I loved it to death, it's one of my favorite movies, and I can't wait for it to come out on DVD. However, to me, it had a TON of flaws. And I don't want to sound like one of those obnoxious "it's-not-the-original-cast-so-it-automatically-sucks" Broadway snobs and I know that the film makers had to cut a lot out for time constraints, but my main problem with the movie was that lacked
so much stuff that was in the musical...
The Music:
Not only did the film makers cut out a couple of songs for time limit, but they cut out a LOT of lyrics and dialogue from most of the songs that they did keep because "Burton didn't want patches of dialogue interrupted by song". What the hell, man? A lot of those little dialogues were what made the songs so good! "A Little Priest" was supposed to be one of the funniest songs in the whole movie, but the dialogue between the lyrics was cut and that made most of the song unfunny.
I've seen a few people complain about the Ballad being cut. I'm not too happy with that, either, but I can understand why it was cut. I think one of the reasons was because Johnny Depp's daughter was rushed into the hospital around the time they were going to film it. Besides, the Ballad is sort of a "play" thing. I'm not sure if it would look right in a movie.
I wasn't too happy about "Kiss Me/Ah, Miss" being cut, either, but I guess they had to cut
something.
I seriously wouldn't mind watching a three-hour long movie if they would've kept all the songs and lyrics, but that's just me.
The Lack of Humor
Even though the musical was very dark and had a tragic ending, it also had a sort of macabre sense of humor to it. However, mainly due to a lot of the dialogue being cut (*cough*"A Little Priest"*cough*), there were very few funny parts in that movie...I dunno, I miss the dark comedy that the musical had.
Blood
The blood looked extremely fake. Like melted candy or something. Then again, Blakeley told me that the blood was like that in a lot of Burton's films. I don't really care that much, I'm just sayin'.
Whether you agree or disagree with me, feel free to reply and give me your thoughts.
Rant
Devious Comments
and yeah, depp was pretty emotionless....but he REALLY can sing....and i loved rickman....
the blood looked totally fake.
i hated beadle bamford
but i still loved "a little priest" without seeing the musical first, the song was hilarious to me
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"O Mater Luna, Regina nocis, adiuvo me nunc..."
Yeah, "A Little Priest" was one of my faves ^^ I hate that they cut so much out. I did like the part when they saw that man that was wearing ridiculous clothes and flirting with a few women. "What is that?" "Iiiiiit's fop...finest in the shop."
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"If you can't dazzle people with your knowledge, then baffle them with your bullshit."
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My thoughts on the Sweeney Todd movie = [link]
--
"If you can't dazzle people with your knowledge, then baffle them with your bullshit."
--
My thoughts on the Sweeney Todd movie = [link]
--
"O Mater Luna, Regina nocis, adiuvo me nunc..."
Overall, I would give it a 4.25-4.5/5 stars.
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Avatar found online... I don't own this, just thought it was awesome!
Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus!
Depp: I think that after 15 years of being locked away, your gonna get a little zombie like. I think he was pretty good for the part. Kinda like a Zombie Jack. and I'm really not that big on Depp. But the scene during the By the Sea song, i just love his stripes! And its amazing that all those scenes in that song were digital!
Carter: I just like that way she left. I'm sorry. But Sweeny is your friend, unless you do any of the following 3:
1. You lie to him the way Mrs.Lovett did.
2. You take him away from his Happy PLace(Epiphany song)
or 3. You go get a shave.
and Mrs.Lovette did all of those. she was asking for it. but i think Carter was the right one... to me she is kinda a crazy baker in real life.
Johanna: I have one thing to say about her: EMO. She was a good singer, and pretty to look at, but after Anthony saves her and tells her that they are gonna run off and their dreams will come true! Johanna totally ruins the happiness with her 'I've never had dreams before'! WTF!! HE WAS ALL HAPPY AND STUFF AND YOU THREW HIM ON THE FLOOR! I bet that when he left, he ditched her.
My favorite song(3) was probably
1. Epiphany
2.My Friends
3.Johanna(2)
I like when he kills in the Johanna song.
And the blood wast supposed to look real. Its poetic blood, not SAW blood. I heard it was tasty though.
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"If you can't dazzle people with your knowledge, then baffle them with your bullshit."
--
My thoughts on the Sweeney Todd movie = [link]
I guess I was just used to the musical, since I saw it first. But like I said, I loved the movie.
Glad you enjoyed it ^^
--
"If you can't dazzle people with your knowledge, then baffle them with your bullshit."
--
My thoughts on the Sweeney Todd movie = [link]
Oh God, I loved his bathing suit
I think Carter did a pretty good job playing Mrs. Lovett, I just personally like Patti Lupone's version more. But Helena's cool ^^
Yeah, I WTFed at that "dream" part, too. It wasn't in the original. I was like, "Whoa, Jo, where did THAT come from?" Poor Antony...
That version of "Johanna" is my favorite song in the whole musical/movie. It's sweet, sad, and hilarious at the same time.
--
"If you can't dazzle people with your knowledge, then baffle them with your bullshit."
--
My thoughts on the Sweeney Todd movie = [link]
Now, that being said, I have not seen the movie, but I'm a big fan of the musical. From the previews I've seen (and trust me, I have seen a lot), however, the movie looks very visually-engaging. Depp's singing is, by far, the best from the movie's cast (then again, I've not heard Johanna or Anthony yet...). Helena Bonham-Carter's singing, though...gets on my nerves, as I'm used to the LuPone Mrs. Lovett. The same goes for Rickman - for, from the previews, it looked as if they gave him songs beyond his range (sadly).
Anthony and Johanna both look absolutely gorgeous, and I'm sad to hear they were given such a limited part in the movie ;__;. The same goes to the Beggar Woman/Lucy.
But I think my biggest complain goes towards the fact that they made Tobias a little boy (being used to the "teenage/young adult" Toby, as you yourself said, that seemed weird).
Now, being so musical-oriented (*coughobsessedcough*), I compared the movie Toby's "Not While I'm Around" ([link]) with the Concert's one ([link]).
Although I really do like the movie Toby's voice, whilst singing, he most definitely lacks the emotion needed (especially when compared to the Concert Toby's rendition of this song).
Ah, and one last complain: I was very much disappointed to hear that Sweeney Todd, a 2/4 dark comedy, 1/4 classic melodrama/thriller, 1/4 tragedy, was turned into something of a horror film O.o;. What happened to all that fantastic Sondheim humour?!
Now for the pro's of this movie :3.
Firstly, the overall look is fantastic. The costumes, make-up, sets and props (blood being counted as a prop), do in fact give it a very creepy, Burton-feel to it. As it has been said numerous times, this movie is highly stylised (which could probably account for Depp's zombified acting as Mr. Todd and Tobias' 'not-too-emotive' singing). Also, from what I've seen, the acting from most characters is thoroughly satisfying, even if the singing could be better. And, as Sondheim himself commented, the difference between most musicals which are made into movies is that, in them, they first film the scene and then add the music. In this version of Sweeney Todd the camera itself moves as if driven by the music, so there is an immediate connection between what you are seeing and what you are hearing. This, in my opinion, is an immediate asset.
Aaaand I should probably stop myself from any more ranting before I fill up your whole page. Ehe.
And thank you for your informative review - it was highly appreciated
--
i want to see thirst
IN THE SYLLABLES,
t o u c h f i r e
in the sound;
feel through the dark
for the scream.
P. Neruda; 'Word'
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