Sweeney Todd

This is one of those times when I struggle to describe what was essentially a perfectly serviceable film that fulfilled my expectations completely without exceeding them by an inch. Perhaps I'm not qualified to judge this film, having no familiarity with the source material and no comparisons for the singing and performances in this one. But assuming the film stands alone, it repeats but does not elaborate upon themes that Tim Burton fans will greet with familiar pleasure and non-fans will find repetitive and off-putting.

Johnny Depp gives a solid lead performance in the title role, courageously performing all of his own songs despite having no formal vocal training. His character at times seems an outgrowth of the miscellany of tormented adolescents-in-adult-bodies that he has played for Burton over the years. This comparison is practically invited by the filmmaker when he stands Depp alone in the frame beneath a slanted pane window and has him reflect on how his hands are now complete with blades in them again. Burton's partner Helena Bonham Carter gives a more musically rounded performance that is on par with Depp's in general acting ability. Together they are Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett, he a barber out for revenge on the judge who stole his wife and she the maker of meat pies who sees business opportunities behind Sweeney's body count. In a reversal of the general feeling that the rich were feeding on the poor in 19th-century London, our lead couple bake the best meat pies in town from Sweeney's victims.

The plot and tone of the musical have always seemed baffling to me. Perhaps if I'd seen it performed I would feel differently; the Blue Man Group's shows don't read well on the page either. But a dark and violent musical about a murderous barber seemed like a mishmash of elements each chosen for their dark whimsy which together added up to something labored and unnatural. The songs are of higher quality than can usually be found in musicals, but the story seems simplistic and melodramatic. These flaws are not entirely Burton's fault, but he did choose this material to adapt and that forces us to search the film for his motivations.

I was tantalized throughout the film by the thought of what Burton could have done with another adaptation: the Patrick Suskind novel "Perfume: The Story of a Murderer". At one point he was apparently attached to the project, and it fascinates me to think what he might have done with a story set in a similar milieu, with a similarly driven and haunted protagonist, but with a denouement so much more fraught and satisfying than "Sweeney Todd"'s ending. Alas, we will never know. Here we have the typical Burton protagonist, doing the typical man-child acting out on a typical expressionist set. A fine way to pass the time, perhaps, but enough to make one long even for the misbegotten thematic variation provided by "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory".

I recommend this one for Burton completists, Depp fans, and those who admire the original material. If this doesn't describe you, try "Edward Scissorhands", "The Libertine", or "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari".