Sweeney Todd: The Best Damn Film of 2007

“There’s a hole in the world like a great black pit/ and it’s filled with people who are filled with shit.” ~ Epiphany sung by Sweeney Todd.

Indeed.
The Golden Globes came, and though I never thought the Hollywood Foreign Press would be so kind, they named Sweeney Todd Best Musical or Comedy, and rightfully awarded Johnny Depp as best actor. I was squealing with delight at this because, even though it was my favourite movie of 2007, Sweeney wouldn’t win Best Picture at the Oscars because…well, quite often the Academy seems to pick movies that make people “think” rather than entertain (with the exception this year of Juno, which was the cutest movie I’ve seen in a long time). However, never did my blonde little brain ever imagine that this would hold so true that they WOULDN”T EVEN NOMINATE IT. Merciful Zeus! I am tickled-pink that Mr. Depp got a spot for Best Actor, but from what I hear, Daniel Day-Lewis has got that sewn up. So, this film; this glorious, magnificent combination of blood, singing and general creepiness ever so artfully done, has no shot at any of the major awards this Oscar season. Fuck.

The only thing I can think to compensate for is this; I award Tim Burton’s Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street as Carpe Noctem’s 2007 Best Damn Film. I also award Johnny Depp with Carpe Noctem’s 2007 Best Damn Actor for his joint work in Sweeney Todd and Pirates of the Caribbean 3 (an excellent and overlooked film, far superior to its predecessor [but doesn't rival the first]). Helena Bohnam Carter gets Carpe Noctem’s 2007 Hottest Creepy Babe award, acknowledging her new emotional take on Mrs. Lovett and her wicked portrayal as Bellatrix Lestrange. Tim Burton, of course, wins Carpe Noctem’s Lifetime Achievement Award for not only being able to create a creepy yet interesting style that allows the viewer to immediately identify a movie as his, but also find a way to keep it fresh and wondrous every time.

There you go, ensemble; you’ve cleaned up the first Carpe Noctem Awards. I’m sure they’re all very tearful and appreciate how much I care.

On to the #1 reasons why Sweeney was my #1 in 2007.

#1. The Music: Well, OK, I do have the 2005 Broadway Cast recording as well as the movie soundtrack, and as technicality goes, I have to hand it to the singers, not the actors. But here’s the thing; none of the actors in this movie could do a Broadway show of this and pull it off, but the way that the movie is set up, they don’t need to. Everybody pulls it off quite well, most notably Johnny (of course). Shouldn’t the fact that a cast of non-singers still sing perfectly fine count for something? Bah! The cuts to most of the songs were well placed; I hardly missed “The Ballad of Sweeney Todd” lyrics, or “Kiss Me.” My only complaints is a verse change in “Poor Thing” was completely unnecessary, but who cares? Overall, My Friends and Joanna (2) were done better than the stage version, in my opinion. “Pretty Women” is as suspenseful as “Epiphany” is chilling. I do wish they kept a bit of the humour in “A Little Priest” and “God, That’s Good”, but I think “By the Sea” more than makes up for it. Overall, I was very much impressed and felt everybody stepped up to the plate.

#1. The Blood: Holy crap! You hear that this film is bloody, and you get a taste of it with the opening credits, but you have no idea until Sweeney starts shaving away. Some people complained that the blood was too fake and took away from the movie, others bitch about why there needs to be blood in this movie at all? To the latter; what the hell, you’re seeing a movie about a serial killer who slits throats! Do you expect butterflies to soar out of their necks? Get a grip. Anyway, the stylized blood in this movie I felt was completely perfect; very much Kill Bill in the sense that it sprays across the room in a way that no real arterial fluid ever would. It keeps with the tone of the film; utterly unrealistic but entertaining in its way. During one scene, every time Sweeney sings “Joaaaaannnaa,” he slits another throat. Priceless.

#1. The Cinematography: Everything about this movie felt intimate and chilling. With the close-ups, the complete lack of colour save for blood red, and the lighting; this movie sucks you in. Beautiful and haunting all at once; brilliant. Did I also mention that, even though I knew the entire story, every note, before I went into the theater, there were still parts I nearly jumped out of my seat for fear? Johnny does a VERY good job of scaring the shit out of you in some parts.

#1. The Casting: I’m sorry, but who else today would come to your mind as the two main roles in Tim Burton’s Sweeney Todd? Johnny was perfect, Helena was fantastic. Alan Rickman did what he does best; creeps up the screen. Sasha Baren Cohen as Pirelli, though a small part, is very colourful and funny, and completely far away from Borat. So much so, my friend who loves Borat was shocked after the film when we were talking about that part; “Wait; THAT was Borat! How’d I miss it?” Timothy Spall as Beadle Bamford is so greasy he makes you through up a bit, but thats the mark of great casting. Toby was adorable and funny; a good choice to cast younger than normal. I can’t say too much about Joanna, but she definitely looked the part; almost like a porcelain doll. The only one I could have skipped was Anthony; I would have preferred it if he looked more like the knight in shining armour he was always portrayed as on stage.

#1. The Ending: MUCH more effective on screen than on stage. Brilliant. That’s all I will say.

So, all in all, it may be a niche genre; the combination of stylized horror and music, but that’s a genre made perfectly for me. A gagillion thumbs up.

~ by carpe on February 2, 2008.