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Sweeney Todd. The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
When watching a movie there are two questions you should ask yourself at the end. This first and least important is “How dodgy was that movie?” In this case, the answer was supremely. The second, and really the only question that matters “Did I enjoy that?” For Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street, the answer was a resounding No.
Normally, a collaboration between Tim Burton and Johnny Depp has my dodgy sense tingling, and when I first saw this film advertising it rang like a fire bell. The opening sequence had me a little concerned, but it is Tim Burton and I was kind of expecting what was delivered. Then the singing started, which, I was also expecting. What I wasn’t expecting was how repetitive it would be. Needless to say, this was more than a little offputting.
Now, I was vaguely familiar with the source material and the storyline, so I wasn’t expecting a whole lot. After all, it’s about a barber who kills his clients, and then disposes of the bodies by turning them into meat pies through Mrs Lovett’s Meat Pie Emporium. I was expecting a fairly dark musical with some humor, instead of a dark repetitive tune with different words.
Dodginess
This was supremely dodgy and would have gotten a high rating just based on the Burton/Depp collaboration. Throw in the throat slashing barber and you have a 5 on the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man scale. It’s kind of hard to single out the dodgiest moment with the whole film attaining a pretty constant level, but the opening sequence showing the bloody path through the mincing machinery sets the stage and makes you wonder just what you’ve got yourself in for.
Rewatchability Rating
While rating very high on the dodgy stakes, I found myself wondering on more than one occasion why I was continuing to subject myself to this. The answer, I did it, so you won’t have to. This one ranks right up there with Aeon Flux and Catwoman as far as whether or not you should watch it. Don’t!
Most Memorable Quote
It was a musical, so not much dialogue. Even the lyrics weren’t all that memorable. Or they may have been and I’ve just tried to block them all out in an effort to forget I ever watched this.
Final Thoughts
When not even Alan Rickman can save a movie, you know it shouldn’t have been made. Don’t waste valuable hours of your time watching this one.