The Bullet Music Reviews

Film review: Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Tagline

Never Forget. Never Forgive.

Plot

Fifteen years ago, Benjamin Barker (Johnny Depp) was deported to Australia for a crime he did not commit. His wife Lucy (Laura Michelle Kelly) was raped by the judge who sentenced him and poisoned herself. His daughter Johanna (Jayne Wisener) became the ward of this Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman). Now Benjamin Barker is back and vows to have his revenge, not only on Judge Turpin but on the whole of London. He is confident no one will recognize his appearance after he has been in exile for fifteen years, so all he needs to do is change his name. Benjamin Barker becomes Sweeny Todd. Some people, however, do recognize him and they are swiftly silenced with the help of Todd’s razors, kept safe for him by Mrs Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter) who becomes Todd’s accomplice, because she has her own sinister reasons for wanting the body count in London to rise...

Chances are that you already know how this horrible tale ends. Chances are you saw the Stephen Sondheim musical on which this movie was based. Chances are you read the book on which that musical was based. Do not let that stop you from seeing this movie. Director Tim Burton made the decision to incorporate Sondheim’s score and lyrics, which adds more black humour and sheer drama than a ‘bare’ adaptation of the legend would have been able to do. This is such a flawless adaptation that it seems as if Burton and his cast (especially Burton regulars Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter) have been working towards this movie for their entire career; Sweeney Todd is truly the pinnacle of their many collaborations.

Acting

The supporting cast could not have been better chosen: Alan Rickman is every director’s first choice to play the icy villain, because he never descends into parody or pantomime leering and growling. He understands that every villain has a heart. It is this peep into Judge Turpin’s inner life that makes his encounter with Todd so poignant and horrific. Timothy Spall is one of the best actors on the planet and the movie would have been a lot worse without his preening and glib Beadle Bamford. The most surprising addition to the cast is surely Sacha Baron Cohen, the British comedian who is best known for his one-joke creations Ali G and Borat Sagdiyev. Who knew that Cohen could act? I certainly didn’t. Whereas the appearance of fellow-comedian Ricky Gervais in Matthew Vaughn’s Stardust was unnecessary, detracted from the storytelling and was clearly a piece of comedy casting, Cohen’s Signor Adolfo Pirelli blends with the tone of the film and never stands out like a sore thumb.

Verdict: It was only a matter of time before Tim Burton would make this film. He is truly the only one who could do the legend justice. The courage it took to adapt the musical and not the book paid off tenfold. All the actors shine like rubies in their all-singing, all-dancing perfection.

Patty