Saturday, July 16, 2011

Sondheim’s ‘Sweeney Todd’ bloodies its way to big screen

By TERRY R. CASSREINO
SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON
 BARBER OF FLEET STREET (2007)

From the minute Johnny Depp appears on screen, gazes toward the distant skyline and sings in a deep voice “No, there’s no place like London,” the movie had me hopelessly hooked.

For two hours, “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” didn’t let go. The acting, the direction from Tim Burton, the music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim – all were perfect.

I sat in the Grandview Theater in Madison, Miss., with my wife one night in January 2009 glued to the seat and screen watching what she and I knew instantly was one of the greatest and strangest filmed musicals ever made.

Last week, I wrote about my love of movie musicals [click here], about how they often touch deep emotional chords as the story’s characters suddenly burst into song to express feelings they might not be able to otherwise.