Sweeney Todd - The Demon Barber of Fleet Street [2007] | ![Sweeney Todd - The Demon Barber of Fleet Street [2007]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51dAILiRq1L._SL160_.jpg)
 enlarge | Director: Tim Burton
Actors: Johnny Depp, Sacha Baron Cohen, Helena Bonham-carter, Alan Rickman, Timothy Spall
Studio: Warner Home Video
Category: DVD
List Price: £23.99
Buy New: £11.98
You Save: £12.01 (50%)
New (21) Used (7) from £8.43
Rating:  79 reviews
Sales Rank: 173
Format: Box Set, Pal
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
Region: 2
Number Of Discs: 2
Running Time: 111 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.4 x 0.7
EAN: 7321902211756
ASIN: B0012YG7R8
Release Date: May 19, 2008
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Condition: Brand New & Sealed, Shipped From The UK
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Amazon.co.uk Review
After years of rumours, it turns out that Tim Burton was the perfect visionary to film Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Stephen Sondheim's Broadway masterpiece, and the result is a macabre and moving musical movie as enthralling as anything Burton has ever done. The show's mix of gothic horror, Grand Guignol, very dark humor, and witty and beautiful music never was the stuff of traditional musical comedy, but it's a powerful work, and perhaps the richest of the late 20th century. In the movie, Burton's frequent collaborator, Johnny Depp, plays Todd, a wronged man whose lust for revenge drives him to murder (an 19th-century legend who has been traced to a real-life barber). Helena Bonham Carter, another Burton mainstay, is Mrs. Lovett, the barber's partner-in-unspeakable-crime. It's no surprise that Depp is an excellent choice to convey Todd's brooding intensity and volcanic rage, but he can also sing a score that is so challenging it has often played in opera houses (though not with the same style as the Broadway original, Len Cariou, and he occasionally lapses into pop style). Bonham Carter is small of voice and lacks the humour of the original Broadway Lovett, Angela Lansbury, but she sings on pitch, in rhythm, and in character at the same time, which is no small feat for a Sondheim show. Aficionados will regret the loss of certain musical passages--"The Ballad of Sweeney Todd" is just an instrumental overture and the chorus is gone altogether, among others, but the reassuring presence of orchestrator Jonathan Tunick and conductor Paul Gemignani ensures that the music feels right and sounds great. And the film's depiction of a Victorian London hellhole, with cinematography by Dariusz Wolski and costumes by Colleen Atwood, also looks and feels right. The excellent cast is filled out by Alan Rickman as the villainous Judge Turpin, Timothy Spall as his seedy Beadle, Sacha Baron Cohen as a rival barber, Jamie Campbell Bower as the young lover Anthony, Jayne Wisener as his object of affection, and Ed Sanders as the young Toby. For fans of Tim Burton and Johnny Depp who don't think they like musicals, Sweeney Todd should be a revelation (though not for the squeamish, as the gore is intense and completely appropriate). For fans of Broadway and Sondheim, it's hard to imagine getting a better adaptation than this. The fact that there's no newly composed Oscar-bait song sung by a Josh Groban-type over the end credits only makes it better. --David Horiuchi
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| Customer Reviews: Read 74 more reviews...
 The first film of Burton's I disliked August 9, 2008
Mrs. K. Salter (Surrey, UK)
I have to say I normally love Tim Burton's films - even the ones for kids such as Nightmare Before Christmas and Corpse Bride. I also adore Depp so I was eager to get my hands on this DVD. What a total disappointment. I found the whole film tedious - from start to finish, and it was a chore to watch it but I was determined to see it all in case it improved as it went along. It didn't. I'm afraid this is likely to stay on my DVD shelf gathering dust or appear on Marketplace at a cut price! As I said, the first ever bad film I think Tim Burton has made which is such a shame.
 Superb Film Adaptation of Sondheim's Musical From Tim Burton August 9, 2008
John Kwok (New York, NY USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Much to my amazement, Tim Burton has crafted a well-realized adaptation of this classic Stephen Sondheim musical. He has paid ample attention to Sweeney Todd's dark, despicable turn-of-the-century (19th Century) London, and to its denizens, as though this was a film adaptation of the Brecht-Weill opera, "Threepenny Opera". This film adaptation is a worthy addition to all of the great Broadway musicals that have been translated successfully into film, most notably for the brilliantly acted - and well sung - performance of Sweeney Todd by Johnny Depp (I also recommend it for the lush, well-played orchestral score by an orchestra of British musicians.). Depp's intensely vivid portrayal is truly mesmerizing, and his superb acting is effectively demonstrated too in his untrained, but emotionally intense, singing. Other excellent singers include both the surprising Alan Rickman and Sacha Baron Cohen. Even Helena Bonham Carter - whose voice isn't nearly as strong as Depp's - is quite convincing as Mrs. Lovett. However, in spite of this, I believe that this excellent film adaptation of "Sweeney Todd" will be long remembered as the best one ever made from a Stephen Sondheim musical.
Cutting Edge! July 30, 2008
Mr. Michael Heron
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
When I went to see this movie at the cinema, I wasn't expecting a musical. However, from the first sinister intonation of 'There's no place like London' from Johnny Depp's Sweeney Todd, I was hooked.
Depp's portrayal of the Demon Barber is superb - although he is not a 'classically' good singer, he puts the songs across exactly as I would imagine Sweeney Todd doing so - in short, his interpretation of the songs is far more effective than it would have been if he was a 'better' singer. Helena Bonham Carter excels as always, giving a distinctly sinister appeal to Mrs. Lovett - the change in presentation from Angela Lansbury in the stage adaptation is striking. Finally Alan Rickman is - well, he's Alan Rickman. That's enough of an endorsement for anyone, surely!
The songs are beautifully presented, poignant and filled with irrepressible dark humour, and the gore is - well, it's so ludicrously over the top you can't take it seriously.
This is easily the best film about a psychotic singing barber that I have ever seen! However, I would advise caution for those who find musicals not to their taste - I doubt it would convert the hardest sceptics.
How bad was this? July 18, 2008
C. ARNOLD (London)
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
What a terrible film. Burton can't do musicals. No one can sing properly. The lyrics are dire and it was such a drag to watch. Stuck half way between a stage musical and a film. The movie has those great indulgent Tim Burton touches but even Depp and Carter can't save it. Rickman was good though. Thought it a bit too blood lust in places. Not his best effort.
Great Sweeney but too bad about Mrs Lovitt July 7, 2008
Lady Chatterbox (London)
This is a triumph for Burton and Depp but too bad about Mrs Lovitt. The direction is tight as a drum, and, although I am a fan of the full stage production, I didn't miss the music that was cut because it was not necessary for a film. Depp executes a role-defining characterisation and sings excellently giving the music a modern feel through his pop/rock style. Sacha Baron-Cohen was also nothing short of fabulous as was the young boy.
For the most part the acting is right on the money. The biggest exception was, unfortunately, the character of Mrs Lovitt. Mrs Lovitt is a pivotal character and her part requires an actor/singer who can act the songs using her voice, which requires some experience and technique. It isn't really a character to do for one's first musical. Unfortunately Ms Bonham-Carter does not generally sing everything in tune. The 'Poor Thing' scene is beautifully shot but difficult to listen to.
Some of the extras on the DVD are quite good, particularly Sweeney's London. The 'making of ...' sections (Usually my favourite) are chock full of Burton rationalising his choice of non-singers - although the major singing parts, apart from Mrs Lovitt, ARE primarily actor/singers.
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