Waiting outside the AMC/Loews Lincoln Square 12 for Sweeney Todd for a couple of hours in the cold rain was worth it. I just couldn't wait for release date, even if it was only 2 days away! Yeah, okay, I've taken things to a whole new level (you decide, either completely insane or just over the top dedication). First the only bad news - Jamie Campbell Bower as Anthony Hope and Jayne Wisener are completely disappointing. Bower looks like Claire Danes, which grossed me, and mostly he just had a blank look on his face. Their voices are unacceptably weak, which is maybe one reason "Kiss Me" has been cut from the film. Otherwise, the casting is perfect. While Helena Bonham Carter's voice is not a Broadway voice, it works for Mrs. Lovett. The "Worst Pies" and "By the Sea" sequences are completely riotous and had the audience, many of whom were NYU students, in stitches. I found her completely humorous and sympathetic. I loved Helena's take on her. Ed Sanders as Toby is unbelievably good. I completely fell in love with him. Laura Michelle Kelley as the Beggar Woman is fine, although the contact between her and Sweeney is very reduced, which shouldn't have been because there is not lead up to the discovery and then finality of that relationship. Sacha Baron Cohen is funny as Pirelli. His character is more ridiculous than ever. Alan Rickman as Judge Turpin (No Mea Culpa scene for the Judge) and Timothy Spall as Beadle Bamford are terrific. Rickman's voice is great and they are both deliciously villainous. Who's left? Oh yes! JOHNNY DEPP! My text message to my peeps last night: "OMG! Depp is beyond fucking great." Yes, it's true. He was so sad, brooding, obsessed, scary...everything, he was everything. And his voice is terrific. It's not huge like Cariou or Hearn, but it's just as good as Cerveris in conveying Sweeney's pathos. The story is beautifully adapted to the screen. It has everything - humor, horror, beauty. It is gory and disgusting and so funny and even sad. I did cry and I did applaud. Best of all? The SOUND! That overture is just rapturously chilling, in fact, the score and orchestrations throughout are beautiful. Bottom line? I can't wait to see it again!
3 comments:
score!
glad you liked it
You do know that the original poster for Sweeney Todd was scraped because it had Big Ben in it, and the story is set two years before BB was built.
I'm really glad you liked Helena's performance. Timothy Spall is an acting genius.
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