Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)
Directed by Tim Burton
The infamous story of Benjamin Barker, a.k.a Sweeney Todd, who sets up a barber shop down in London which is the basis for a sinister partnership with his fellow tenant, Mrs. Lovett. Based on the hit Broadway musical.
2 connections found
View:
2 connections, in both directions
What critics compared Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street to
No platoons of dancers in London squares, as in "Oliver!"
There are reminders of Edward Scissorhands , Beetlejuice , Sleepy Hollow and Sweeney Todd in the film, along with many hat tips to the fantasy tales Burton has long admired: The Wizard of Oz , The Lord of The Rings , The Chronicles of Narnia and many others.
For every grand success he has more recently had (2007's " Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street "), there seems to also be a cinematic miscalculation (2005's " Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ") or an outright failure (2001's " Planet of the Apes ") in his repertoire.
While 1989’s “Batman” and 2007’s “Sweeney Todd” were huge critical and commercial successes, 2005’s “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” was rather weak, while 2001’s “Planet of the Apes” was, well, the less said about that travesty, the better.
But I never expected that to be the strongest part of the film, considering this is Tim Burton we're talking about — director of "Ed Wood," "Beetle Juice," "Edward Scissorhands," "Corpse Bride" and "Sweeney Todd," and writer/producer of "The Nightmare Before Christmas."
Since Tim Burton peaked in the early 90?s with Edward Scissorhands and Ed Wood—and, to a lesser extent, the wildly creative Beetlejuice—he’s been mostly on auto-pilot, save for 2007?s excellent Sweeney Todd.
The middling results are especially puzzling since, like Sondheims blood-splattered arias in Sweeney Todd , Lewis Carrolls topsy-turvy dreamscapes would appear to be a perfect fit for Burtons own phantasmagoric gifts.