Sweeney Todd

[dalekboy]

Watched Tim Burton's Sweeney Todd tonight, based on the Stephen Sondheim musical. This is the sort of movie that is made just for me. Tim Burton, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter (who I'm pretty sure wants to have my babies), Timothy Spall, and Alan Rickman, working together on a dark musical.

As a film it was ok, but as a musical it didn't work. Which means essentially that as a film it didn't work. Now I'm left to wonder whether the musical was always bad, or whether Burton's adaptation of it is rubbish.

For me, if I don't come away humming a single song, or even remembering them, it's a failure. And if Sharon, who is a song-stuck-in-the-head magnet, isn't caught by any of them, then that's badness times two!

I just watched Deep Roy's songs from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to get the taste out of my mouth.

Comments

[andrewdaley.livejournal.com]

It looked good and it was gory to boot, but the music was the big let down. If it had just been a straight-out drama without the musical bit it would have been perfect. Shame about that.

Deep Roy rocks my socks. I can't believe you met him. I loved his turn in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He must have had so much fun making that film.

[dalekboy.livejournal.com]

If it had been a straight drama, I think it would have been awesome. But I actually like a good musical, and sadly this wasn't one, though by Terry's comment, that comes down to the casting/singing. So at some point I'll have to check out the stageplay in some form, so long as they haven't taken their cue from this film.

I didn't meet Deep Roy, it was only a dream I had, sadly. He is someone I'd like to meet though. His turn as the Oompa Loompas was really hard work. Having to film every dancing Oompa Loompa separately, learn all the choreography, try to sing (he discovered he couldn't actually sing)... it was a big, hard role. But he got well paid, at least.

Michael Anderson, the dwarf from Twin Peaks, is another. I remember a mate of mine did meet him, and then started to talk to me about how at the same event he met some other 'name' actor or director, and I told him to shut up and go back to Anderson. Apparently the backwards dialogue thing had been his party piece for years, and Lynch didn't know about it when he cast him. Lynch was so impressed at how easily he could do the lines backwards, he gave the actor a lot more lines to read.

I've always wanted to write a script casting a small person in an important role, and never once referencing their height.