Pop Culture Buzz

*** STARS

Movie musicals have been evolving more and more over the past decade. Lars Von Trier’s dark “Dancer In The Dark” and John Cameron Mitchell’s twisted “Hedwig & The Angry Inch” started a trend in musicals that has left an impression on the modern day musical genre. Those films contained a darker tone that provides richer more realistic cinematic results.

The same is true of Tim Burton’s macabre and creepy “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street”. On it’s surface “Sweeney Todd” is a frothy movie musical with all the comforts of a Broadway show. But at it’s core this is a horror film and a revenge flick that just happens to contain singing. This twisted mix of traditional musical styles and horror movie elements makes “Sweeney Todd” a fun ride.

Tim Burton and Johnny Depp have become one of the most reliable brands to come out of Hollywood in many years. “Sweeney Todd” marks their fifth collaboration on the big screen together. We can always expect movie magic when the creative pair come together in front of and behind the camera.

Johnny Depp has become America’s favorite Hollywood A-list actor and for good reason, his dedication to his characters is unparalleled. In “Sweeney Todd” Depp has come even closer to winning his much delayed Oscar, and Burton should get his due once again with a nomination for his crisp, moody direction.

“Sweeney Todd” is not for the faint of heart, if you don’t like razors or cutting and slicing in slasher movies then you might want to stay away from this movie. But if you can get into the tongue in cheek nature of the fresh and witty script then you will find yourself enamored with this movie like I was when the credits started to roll.

Burton is the master of creating creepy, mysterious moody films. The gloomy cinematography and pitch perfect score in “Sweeney Todd” give this movie a rich feel and round out this tale of revenge and lost love. Expect to see a lot of nominations for “Sweeney Todd” when the Academy Award nominations come out this year.

Helen Bonham-Carter, Sacha Baron Cohen and Alan Rickman round out a talented and hilarious cast which keeps the film going at a fast pace (and for a 2 hour long musical that is a great thing!). The set design and costumes are dead on and give the film a depth of realism that most musicals do not have. Long gone are the Disney-esque singing lyrics and sweet as pie family film moments, this film has guts (literally)!

“Sweeney Todd” is that enjoyable weird little film that many musical fans will fall in love with because it is different then anything they have seen ever before. It is due to Johnny Depp and Tim Burton that “Sweeney Todd” is such an technical and artistic cinematic achievement. And once again it makes me look forward to their next big screen collaboration with frenzied anticipation.