A close shave indeed
No
doubt Tim Burton’s hard bitten by German Expressionism if
Sweeney Todd is anything to go by. Burton’s gothic
London is a chilling blend of Charles Dickens and Jack the Ripper
seen through a glass darkly by Dr. Caligari. In fact the opening
shot could well be from Nosferatu, the German silent
horror classic. We’re treated to a grisly blood splattered
version of the 1979 Broadway musical by Stephen Sondheim in turn
based on a play by Christopher Bond. The actual Sweeney Todd seems
an urban legend of the 19th century, appearing originally in a
penny dreadful of 1846.
Returning to London illegally from transportation
in Australia for a crime he didn’t commit, Benjamin Barker
(Johny Depp) one time popular barber takes the name of Sweeney
Todd. He’s a full-out nutcase seeking revenge on evil Judge
Turpin (Alan Rickman) who sentenced him in order to seduce Barker’s
lovely wife. Todd teams up with seedy Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham
Carter) a pie maker of lowly circumstances in Fleet Street. He
sets up his barber shop again over her premises. They make a ghastly
team as lunatic Todd cuts the throats of his customers while he
shaves them. Not good for business, one might think. However there
is profit in using the bodies in the basement to make Mrs. Lovett’s
now famous tasty pies. Things get complicated when Anthony Hope
(Jamie Campbell Bower), an acquaintance of Barker/Todd, takes
a shine to Barker’s daughter Joanna (Jayne Wisener) keep
isolated in his house by the Judge and smarmy cohort Beadle Bamford
(Timothy Spall). Making Jack the Ripper look a wimp, Sweeney Todd
embarks on a serial killing spree second to none, developing a
mechanical masterpiece barber chair that dumps his victims down
to the cellar in one quick movement. Todd is now hoping against
hope that the Judge will fall into his grasp.
These nefarious goings-on are fully depicted on
the screen with relish by Burton. Like his previous essay into
the gothic Sleepy Hollow with Johnny Depp he makes the
most of dark fantasy sets, deep shadows, ridiculous black eye
makeup and hairstyles inspired by Elsa Lanchester (Bride of
Frankenstein). The debt to the German silent Cinema is obvious.
Some might be confronted by copious blood letting to impassioned
music and lyrics of Sondheim, but frankly because it’s all
so over the top it’s less disturbing than you imagine. Although
not for the feint hearted, Burton plays this one with tongue in
cheek. The opening credits appear over closeups of the mechanics
of the infamous barber’s chair. Blood slowly flows down
the cogs, but Burton clearly lets us see it’s red paint.
The
lighting, cinematography and sets impeccably keep the nightmarish
mood. The music starts right off with some deep organ notes that
would wake the Phantom of the Opera. Overall the music isn’t
the sort that you start whistling on the way home, but its very
much Sondheim and with his lyrics it all comes together in classic
Grand Guignol. Johnny Depp (Pirates of the Carribean)
is startling as the demonic barber mostly featuring a brooding
“Beethoven” look but bursting into wild manic rages
with eye bulging enthusiasm. Helena Bonham Carter (Big Fish)
as Mrs. Lovett is no less fearsome, for better or worse reminiscent
of The Bride of Frankenstein. Both Depp and Carter are
in good voice here in what is a demanding score.
Alan Rickman (Harry Potter) is at his malevolent
best as the devious Judge manages a delivery full of menace; while
as Beadle, Timothy Spall (Enchanted) in a wheedling yet
brutal role seems to have modeled his act on David Lean's Oliver
Twist in which Francis L. Sullivan played the unpleasant
Beadle. Chewing the scenery in a show stopper is Sacha Baron Cohen
(Borat) popular with the audience as soon as he makes
an appearance as the ludicrous rival barber Signor Adolfo Pirelli.
While Jamie Campbell Bower and Edward Sanders do good service
in supporting roles.
Finally however Sweeney Todd belongs to
Tim Burton, his extraordinary vision remains indelible on this
adaptation of the demon barber in his house of horrors. Images
and direction really can’t be faulted. It’s a brilliant
film by a man who knows what he’s about - only Tim Burton
could have made this picture. Full marks then to an adult horror
movie for the musically inclined. It's a rare thing indeed, possibly
the most extraordinary film you’ll see on DVD this year.
Footnote:
While Sweeney Todd is likely an imaginary character,
there was a truly unpleasant “pieman” by the name
of Alexander Pearce in Tasmanian history. He was a convict who
escaped Macquarie Island and in the wilderness, unable to find
food, ate his companions. He was indeed a pie seller convicted
in Hobart of unwholesome meat.
John Bale
