Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)

"Never Forget. Never Forgive."

Directed by Tim Burton
Produced by Walter Parkes, Laurie MacDonald, John Logan, Richard D. Zanuck
Screenplay by John Logan
Based on "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" by Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler
Starring: Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Timothy Spall, Sacha Baron Cohen
Music by Stephen Sondheim
Cinematography: Dariusz Wolski
Edited by Chris Lebenzon
Production companies: Parkes/MacDonald Productions, The Zanuck Company, Neal Street Productions
Distributed by DreamWorks Pictures, Warner Bros. Pictures (International)
Release date: 21 December 2007 (Canada)
Running time: 116 minutes
Country: United Kingdom, United States
Budget: $50 million
Box office: $152.5 million

"Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" is a musical horror drama film directed by Tim Burton and adapted from Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler's musical of the same name. It tells the story of Sweeney Todd, an English barber and serial killer who murders his customers with a straight razor and, with the help of his accomplice, Mrs. Lovett, processes their corpses into meat pies.

Cast

• Johnny Depp as Benjamin Barker / Sweeney Todd
• Helena Bonham Carter as Mrs. Lovett
• Alan Rickman as Judge Turpin
• Timothy Spall as Beadle Bamford
• Jayne Wisener as Johanna Barker
• Sacha Baron Cohen as Adolfo Pirelli
• Laura Michelle Kelly as Lucy Barker / Beggar Woman
• Jamie Campbell Bower as Anthony Hope
• Ed Sanders as Tobias Ragg

This picture has become my favourite since the first minutes because of two reasons: firstly, I'm keen on Tim Burton's style and secondly - the film reminds me a little "Alice: Madness Returns", of which I'm a big, big fan. And the dim atmosphere only assists in it.

Voices of the cast are wonderful and make the film even more attractive to me as I'm a musical lover. Moreover, performances are also excellent: Johnny Depp as a manic barber, Helena Bonham Carter as a baker with a secret, Alan Rickman as a sinful rich man, Sacha Baron Cohen as an eccentric charlatan.

Advantages

• Johnny Depp as Benjamin Barker / Sweeney Todd
• Helena Bonham Carter as Mrs. Lovett
• Sacha Baron Cohen as Adolfo Pirelli
• Tim Burton
• The film is dark and has an unexpected twist
• Musical

Disadvantages

• Not fully discovered characters

"Strangenesses"

• When your job is your sin...

Clue Moments

• Patties from people
• Finding the wife

Revenge drives crazy and obnubilates the mind, but it's sweet. However if a person live many years only with one purpose to take vengeance, it just kill himself or herself without noting that. So it's better to start a new life than to live to revenge.

Soundtracks

1. Stephen Sondheim - No Place Like London (Anthony & Sweeney Todd)
2. Stephen Sondheim - My Friends (Sweeney Todd & Mrs. Lovett)
3. Stephen Sondheim - Green Finch And Linnet Bird (Johanna)
4. Stephen Sondheim - Pretty Women (Judge Turpin & Sweeney Todd)
5. Stephen Sondheim - A Little Priest (Mrs. Lovett & Sweeney Todd)
6. Stephen Sondheim - Johanna (Anthony, Sweeney Todd & Beggar Woman)
7. Stephen Sondheim - Opening Title
8. Stephen Sondheim - The Worst Pies In London (Mrs. Lovett)
9. Stephen Sondheim - Poor Thing (Mrs. Lovett)
10. Stephen Sondheim - Alms! Alms! (Beggar Woman)
11. Stephen Sondheim - Johanna (Anthony)
12. Stephen Sondheim - Pirelli's Miracle Elixir (Tobias, Sweeney Todd & Mrs. Lovett)
13. Stephen Sondheim - The Contest (Pirelli)
14. Stephen Sondheim - Wait (Mrs. Lovett)
15. Stephen Sondheim - Ladies In Their Sensitivities (Beadle)
16. Stephen Sondheim - Epiphany (Sweeney Todd)
17. Stephen Sondheim - God, That's Good! (Tobias & Mrs. Lovett)
18. Stephen Sondheim - By The Sea (Mrs. Lovett & Sweeney Todd)
19. Stephen Sondheim - Not While I'm Around (Tobias & Mrs. Lovett)
20. Stephen Sondheim - Final Scene (Mrs. Lovett, Sweeney Todd, Beggar Woman & Judge Turpin)

Quotations

* * *

Sweeney Todd: They all deserve to die. Tell you why, Mrs. Lovett, tell you why! Because in all of the whole human race, Mrs. Lovett, there are two kinds of men and only two. There's the one staying put in his proper place and one with his foot in the other one's face. Look at me, Mrs Lovett! Look at you! No, we all deserve to die... Even you, Mrs Lovett, even I! Because the lives of the wicked should be made brief. For the rest of us death will be a relief. We all deserve to die... And I'll never see Johanna, no I'll never hug my girl to me... FINISHED!

* * *

Anthony Hope: Is everything alright, Mister Todd?
Sweeney Todd: I beg your indulgence, Anthony. My mind is far from easy. In these once familiar streets I feel shadows... everywhere...
Anthony Hope: Shadows?
Sweeney Todd: ...Ghosts.

* * *

Sweeney Todd: And I will get him back even as he gloats in the mean time I'll practice on less honorable throats, and my Lucy lies in ashes and I'll never see my girl again!

* * *

Mrs. Lovett: We could have a life, us two. Maybe not like I dreamed. Maybe not like you remember. But we could get by.

* * *

Sweeney Todd: And though I'll think of you, I guess, until the day I die, I think I miss you less and less as every day goes by!

* * *

You may see the trailer here.

Plot: 9/10

Entertainment: 9/10

Acting: 8/10

Originality: 8/10

Music and Sound: 8/10

8/10