Review of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007) by Thomas D — 29 Sep 2016

Do serial kills start singing after they murder their victims? Most likely not, but Sweeney Todd tackles that very premise as Tim Burton directs his bloodiest film to date.

When musicals are done right, I'll be one of the first in line to see them. Much like Westerns, they are rare to come by these days so I'm always down to go back and check out one that I hadn't previously seen. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street was one of those musicals, but sadly I don't think it lived up to the hype for me.

To have a cohesive character arc, you need obstacles or just something significant a character goes through so that the ending feels justified and earned. In my opinion, there is no real character arc for Todd. Sure, he begins as a normal man starting a life with his wife and daughter, but this is done in a brief flashback. I never once felt attached to this character or really cared at all. The wrongs that were done to him and his family are bad, but again, it wasn't like we see a lot of this on screen, we are told about it. For as much bad as we see Todd do, it just would have been nice to have some material balance it out the other way.

As for the musical aspects go, it's pretty paint by numbers. Perhaps, if I were into the story a little bit more and cared about what the characters were doing, I would have gotten into the songs they were singing. I really tried, but I just couldn't. It's also worth noting that because this film does have a fair amount of dialogue as well, the transitions to song weren't as smooth as they could have been. I love me some Alan Rickman, but when he breaks out into song at the barbershop, it feels pretty dang awkward.

I'm in the minority here though, this musical is beloved by many people, and at first glance it seems like Burton did a nice job of adapting the musical to screen. So perhaps it's just me. I just feel that in order to make a good film about someone who says "we'll not discriminate who we kill", I have to believe that what he or she is doing is warranted, and I didn't. Of course, these aren't just regular murders. These are bloody and premeditated murders in which the victims get baked into pies and fed to the town. Brutal. Just brutal.

+Burton was the right man for the job.

-Never felt connected to the story or characters.

-Pretty gratuitous if you ask me.

-Song transitions are rough.

4.5/10.