Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)

Featured Audience Ratings

• John M

  
  A musical slasher flick that is just beyond fun. This is Tim Burton and if you dont care for him dont watch but if you do this is a good one.

• Bob S

  
  ennui - i'm done with the burton / depp show. just another vehicle for same - albeit a witty tuneful one.

• Samuel R

  
  I was never the biggest musical fan,I had very little interest in the genre.However, when I saw this film, it was incredible.A strong story fused with the amazing talents of Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter. With powerful yet touching music, this is quite possible Tim… More
  I was never the biggest musical fan,I had very little interest in the genre.However, when I saw this film, it was incredible.A strong story fused with the amazing talents of Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter. With powerful yet touching music, this is quite possible Tim Burton's greatest film.

• paul o

  
  Probably one of the few musicals that I didn't hate. Its plot is dark and the singing augments it. A fun watch for the older audience.

• Dead A

  
  It's an odd musical movie. Some songs were really catchy. I wouldn't say I liked it a lot but it wasn't that bad.

• Melvin W

  
  Sweeney Todd: And I will get him back even as he gloats in the mean time I'll practice on less honorable throats, and my Lucy lies in ashes and I'll never see my girl again!  "Never Forget. Never Forgive." I first may say that I am not an avid fan of musicals.… More
  Sweeney Todd: And I will get him back even as he gloats in the mean time I'll practice on less honorable throats, and my Lucy lies in ashes and I'll never see my girl again!  "Never Forget. Never Forgive." I first may say that I am not an avid fan of musicals. There are a select few I love, others I can appreciate, but for the most part I find most unwatchable. Sweeny Todd is one of the ones I can appreciate. The only reason I like it as much as I do is because it is a Tim Burton-Johnny Depp-Helena Bonham Carter collaboration and when those three get together, it is always special.  The film is wonderfully dark, violent, bloody, bizarre and downright sinister. I love it for that. It is as creative and stylish as any Tim Burton film I have seen. But it is a musical, so the constant stopping of plot progression to have a nice tune is going to annoy me. Except for a few instances; it always does. I loved the direction of the movie, like with just about every other one of Burton's films and of course the dark performances from Depp and Carter are perfect compliments to the dark themes of the film. A barber returns after being imprisoned for many years for a crime he did not commit. A judge sent him away because he loved the barbers wife. When he returns home, he is set on vengeance. He meets a baker who specializes in meat pies and puts his barbershop above her shop. Then the two start slitting throats and making the dead customers into meat pies.  If you don't like blood that projectiles all over the place, is movie isn't for you. The violence and darkness of the film is what kept me watching though. It's so incredibly clever and kind of terrifying in a way. You go into get and shave and the next thing you know your throat has an incision from ear to ear. Burton brings the play to life with amazing detail and makes a one of a kind musical that the whole family can't enjoy. That always makes me happy. God knows I'm sick of seeing musicals where little 7 year old girls are hopping through a meadow singing about flowers and sunshine.

• Daniel P

  
  I had low expectations for Tim Burton's Sweeney Todd, maybe because I saw Alice in Wonderland before it... I forgot how good he can make the classic horror stories look! As with all of his films, this one has a consistent aesthetic, and it's helped along by a great Sondheim… More
  I had low expectations for Tim Burton's Sweeney Todd, maybe because I saw Alice in Wonderland before it... I forgot how good he can make the classic horror stories look! As with all of his films, this one has a consistent aesthetic, and it's helped along by a great Sondheim score (I had actually never seen this show on stage or in any film adaptation before). And though it's a mainstream foray by this otherwise wacky director, where Sleepy Hollow was a little sleepy, Sweeney Todd is tight, always moving. It's a little sentimental and over-acted in places, sure, but what musical isn't? I was thoroughly impressed by Depp, who (for once) ACTUALLY disappeared into his role, without all the stupid costumes, and the British rest of the leads, too, were a delight. (I'm becomming a huge Timothy Spall fan!) Entertaining, touching and... bloody. Great popcorn film.

• Phil H

  
  OK first of I just wanna say that although I like Depp, in this he is simply a cross of Ed Scissorhands and Jack Sparrow haha we have seen and heard it before and its alittle poor really. He looks the part and sings ok but his performance is just like all his others really, and I read… More
  OK first of I just wanna say that although I like Depp, in this he is simply a cross of Ed Scissorhands and Jack Sparrow haha we have seen and heard it before and its alittle poor really. He looks the part and sings ok but his performance is just like all his others really, and I read that this time he based his character around David Bowie of sorts, hmmmm lets just see your take on a character Mr Depp, make it your own not an impression of someone else. Anyway the rest of the cast is fantastic. Carter and Rickman are brilliant, Carter looking like a live action 'Sally' from 'Nightmare Before Xmas'. Rickman is devious and intelligent sounding as usual haha but Tim Spall is absolutely amazing....his performance as Rickmans right hand thug is sooo good and quite scary really. He seems to play him slightly camp almost, he really tries to steal the show and in my opinion does. A gentle voiced, nasty 'Bill Sykes' springs to mind. The young boy in the cast is very good and sings well and Sasha Baron Coen makes a good small role at the begining with his Italian barber. And yes everybody does sing and quite well, nothing remarkable of course but they sound fine for this film, probably some touchup here and there in the edit. The look of the film is grim, dark your basic Burton set up really and suits it perfectly. The colours are dim or faded against a wash of grey scale and black (Burtons trademark black and white hooped clothing pattern evident in one scene) There is a huge amount of blood which is clearly theatrical blood, not your real looking horror pic blood which makes it more manageable (the film being 18 cert) and there is also, of course, alot of music involved.much more than I thought to be honest, its almost continuous throughout which is OK but at times u do wish for alittle more speech, some of the songs do grate somewhat haha. Overall I was surprised, it does work well despite too many musical numbers, its allot more brutal than I expected (you gotta feel for Carter's character at the end, a nasty way to go and she was only in love) it looks gorgeous, as expected though, and the excellent cast keeps you glued to the screen. One bad note, the ending is alittle flat and atad of an anti-climax, you wanted a more intense ending for the anti hero, it fades out too lightly. highly recommended

• BG Movie Reviews 2

  
  Burton/Depp is nothing new in films nowadays, this being the, and I quote from the DVD blurb, "[their] razor-sharp sixth installment...", of their co-elition in films, and it most certainly pleases. Being one of their more menacing and grim films than the likes of Corpse… More
  Burton/Depp is nothing new in films nowadays, this being the, and I quote from the DVD blurb, "[their] razor-sharp sixth installment...", of their co-elition in films, and it most certainly pleases. Being one of their more menacing and grim films than the likes of Corpse Bride or The Nightmare Before Christmas, Sweeney Todd tells the tale of a barber who killed his customers, then turned them into pies for money and to have vengeance for having his daughter taken away from him. And like Corpse Bride and TNBC, it IS a musical! Although designed to be dark, a comical side comes to light a lot of the time, including a sequence where Depp sings a nice little song, and whilst doing so starts killing people. And for those fans of Borat and Bruno, Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat and Bruno) features in the film, singing a ridiculously high part whilst pulling it off brilliantly and giving his part the correct comedic value the part required. On the violent side of the film, the colour of the blood is a very odd choice. To put it into context, ketchup would have been more realistic! Speaking to someone about the odd colour I found out that it was actually to make the colour stand out on the very dark, bleak setting in the background. On the musical side, the singing was good and came across well and as it should have been. The tunes are clever and soon become familiar. Even now I'm still singing the songs from the film! The only thing that bugged me about the film was that it didn't stay true to parts of the original Sondheim musical. Songs were missed out, music was simplified and parts of the story were slightly changed, whilst keeping the amazing and shocking twist at the end the same (it's really good. Unfortunately, I had it spoilt just before watching the film!). If it weren't for these small problems, the film would be getting 100%.

• Matt G

  
  It would be an understatement to call this film great. It's a masterpiece, a totally mesmerizing film with a masterful hand-picked, perfectly cast Johnny Depp, who is unbelievably talented in probably his greatest performance of his life.

• Wildaly M

  
  This is one of those movies that punches in the gut and leaves you out of breath for a great deal of the finale. Sweeney Todd does not disappoint as a great musical about a barber out for revenge. The numbers are great and guess what... Johnny Deep can actually sing! Sacha Baron was… More
  This is one of those movies that punches in the gut and leaves you out of breath for a great deal of the finale. Sweeney Todd does not disappoint as a great musical about a barber out for revenge. The numbers are great and guess what... Johnny Deep can actually sing! Sacha Baron was pretty good in his role too. The "A Little Priest" sequence might be one of the most brilliant musical pieces ever portrayed. I've watched this one several times and have the soundtrack. Excellent musical!!

• Bethany M

  
  Great performance from Johnny Depp and a really creepy film!

• Sophie B

  
  Very good visualy, an interesting style. However the singing seemed to come out of nowhere at times and it was a bit slow at points too. Good performances.

• Steven C

  
  "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" is unmistakably a Tim Burton film. That is an extremely loaded statement, if you ask me. Burton comes with many strengths and weaknesses and they are on rampant display in this goth musical. First, his desire to constantly… More
  "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" is unmistakably a Tim Burton film. That is an extremely loaded statement, if you ask me. Burton comes with many strengths and weaknesses and they are on rampant display in this goth musical. First, his desire to constantly cast Johnny Depp (his admitted muse) and Helena Bonham Carter (his wife) over and over again really gets in the way here. While Depp nor Carter are bad here, they are just miscast. They are obviously doing what they can with the material but their singing voices are clearly not up to par and they generally look uncomfortable with the staging needed for the music. Burton's eye for elaborate set design does remain in tact; he creates a twisty, moody London. "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" has it's charms of production design and gothic splendor, but rocky casting and musical performances took me right out of the story.

• Conner R

  
  I like Sweeney Todd in that it's the most stylishly effective musical. It might not be able to break out of its theatre counterpart, but then again it never intended to. This serves as the greatest version of the show anyone is ever going to see. Johnny Depp obliterates all and… More
  I like Sweeney Todd in that it's the most stylishly effective musical. It might not be able to break out of its theatre counterpart, but then again it never intended to. This serves as the greatest version of the show anyone is ever going to see. Johnny Depp obliterates all and makes the character both realistic and crazy enough to be taken serious as a serial killer barber. His look and presence is a lot different from what you might expect. Much like its star, Tim Burton is able to stay true to the source material and manipulate it in order to fit his bizarre taste. It is quite possibly the epitome of goth/emo culture in that it has pale people dressed in all black going around playing with razors. That isn't to say that Sweeney Todd can't be universally loved and admired. I definitely like it for other reasons than it's been praised for. I'm just not someone who cares for musicals at all. There are very few exceptions where it truly does what it's meant to, at least in my opinion. So in that case, Sweeney Todd's only downside is that it's a Musical. However, the other elements are so strong and completely beautiful to watch that it cancels out.

• Kristijonas F

  
  A very humorous and off-kilter musical filled with creative Gothic imagery and plenty of macabre violence, Sweeney Todd also wins due to Tim Burton's confident, nimble direction and Johnny Depp's singularly impressive performance. The music is also very amusing.

• Brad W

  
  One of the best looking and enjoyable films evwr, Tim Burtons best

• Kevin M

  
  A dark, depressing, but somehow uplifting story with great, enjoyable songs, an impressive thrilling method, and two great actors to play the parts, but seriously, i think tim burton and johnny depp are literally gay

• Emile T

  
  With a sixth cooperation between one of the most talented acotrs of our generation and an imaginative director that brought something new to the cinema, Johnny Depp and Tim Burton surprise once more with something unique. By watching Burton's Sweeney Todd, you don't really… More
  With a sixth cooperation between one of the most talented acotrs of our generation and an imaginative director that brought something new to the cinema, Johnny Depp and Tim Burton surprise once more with something unique. By watching Burton's Sweeney Todd, you don't really know what to think, but what's sure is that you can't resist to letting you go along the songs, sung by great actors that showed us again they still have talents we didn't know about. Johnny Depp is now very far from his legendary Jack Sparrow, darker and scarier, while everyone will see in Helena Bonham Carter's Miss Lovett the surprising Bellatrix Lestrange she recently played in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Which doesn't hide the fact that both of main actors gave huge performances, accompanied with a direction from the most colorful ones. Expect something new from Burton's musical: blood. Blood that could fill an entire river. But you still can't look away while Sweeney Todd is cutting throats by throats, scene by scene. Because Tim Burton and his magistal talent for making special movies found an astonishing way to put a certain - and intriguing - beauty in the very violent scenes of thi new masterpiece. Filled with passion, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street happens to be a very pleasant Christmas gift.

• Jani H

  
  "There's a hole in the world like a great black pit, and it's filled with people who are filled with shit, and the vermin of the world inhabit it, but not for loooong!" Tim Burton is the only director that comes in mind that has his own recognizable unique style.… More
  "There's a hole in the world like a great black pit, and it's filled with people who are filled with shit, and the vermin of the world inhabit it, but not for loooong!" Tim Burton is the only director that comes in mind that has his own recognizable unique style. From the cover poster, the main title credits, it's all 100 percent Burton. His also one of the most successful directors worldwide, so he has he full trust from the production companies. Burton is one of my favourite directors and his imaginative gothic world has never failed (expect 'Planet of the Apes', but that movie really didn't look anything like Burton...). But I'm sure when Burton announced a screen adaptation of a hit musical, some were probably on alert. I wasn't. I was certain that this movie would nail it big time, for me that is. Sweeney Todd (Johnny Depp) has been imprisoned for 15 years. Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman) had set his eyes on Todd's wife, Lucy. One day, when taking a walk with his family on a sunny day, without any warning, Todd is clubbed and put away. When he arrives back to London, there is no sunlight anywhere, the world of Todd is grim and moody. He has only one thing in mind, get it even with Judge Turpin. With the help of Mrs. Lovett, his silver razors and a meat grinder in Lovett's pie shops basement, Todd is a cut away from redemption. And the Londoners stomachs will love every bite of it... "I can guarantee the closest shave you'll ever know." 'Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street' looks amazing. But that doesn't come as a surprise for those who are accustomed to Burton's visions. A beautiful musical for the mature audience, I'd say. Here in Finland, this movie got the highest PG rating possible. There is a lot of throat cutting, blood gushing etc, but it's all taken so over the top that there is zero horror factor in those particular scenes. Burton has almost made it all to a new form of art. The art department in overall, costumes and so on are top notch. This movie won a Academy Award for Best Achievement in Art Direction and was nominated for Costume Design. But there's one thing I want to say about the streets of London. I understand that it's supposed to be dark an all but why are the streets so empty looking. The streets of London should be full of people, even in the darkest alleys. Because of the lack of pedestrians, the darkness of London seems a bit invasive. The musical scenes in the movie work perfectly. The songs in the movie tell the story and makes it go forward. The songs doesn't interrupt the movie, which is like the biggest mistake a musical can do. When words can't explain the people's feelings better, a proper song fits perfectly as a cold razor on a 5 o'clock shadow. There's a lot of tension in the songs, they're not like the the old boring musical scenes were people look into the horizon sobbing like there would be no tomorrow. Or was it yesterday? I'm confused. And then the actors. Tim Burton is famous for his nepotism. 'Sweeney Todd' was the 6th collaboration between them two. And the seventh came out 2 years later. Helena Bonham Carter is the mother of his children and she got the part, like in so many other films before and after this. But there's a reason why these two are in the movie: Depp and Bonham Carter are wonderful performers. I read that Burton wanted Stephen Sondheim, the man behind the stage musical, to approve them two to the roles. Depp hasn't sung in a movie ever and cant recall is she has either. But they auditioned and got the parts. In my opinion, Depp's voice fits perfectly to the part. There's a lot of anger, frustration in his voice and I prefer it so, rather than a high-pitched vocal. At times it feels as if he just speaks the words disguised into singing. Alan Rickman, the ever charismatic actor, is once again perfect. There's not a movie that I can't watch where Rickman performs. He has the thing that most actors lack of. The above mentioned charisma and now mentioned pure talent. Sacha Baron Cohen makes a small part as a hustler barber but he'll meet his match. In a very sharp way... In overall, the cast is perfect. All of the main characters, with the expection of Timothy Spall's Beadle Bamford, gives it a go with the singing and... what can I say? They hit the tones big time. The only glimpses of joy in the movie are either flashbacks of a brighter past or dreams of a sunnier future. But they'll never take control of the movie. It's all supposed to be grim. I've wanted to understand more why the characters did what they did. Like the Anthony character that suddenly falls in love with Johanna, who is Todd's daughter. Why does he fall in love with her? Why is he ready to risk his life? Because her eyes are crying for help? And more importantly, I would've wanted to see more of Todd's brighter past with his wife before he was locked away. There would've probably been more emotion in his doings but now it just feels as if he's determined to get revenge because this is supposed to be done and not because he suffers for the loss. It's not like he's crying about it all the time. Maybe he shed his last tears before he got back? I'm confused, again. Not because of the movie but because of my writings... But to give the film its final words, 'Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street' is my favourite musical. And trust me, I've seen lots of 'em starting from 'The Sound of Music' and ending with 'Chicago'. This just basically is what I want from a musical, a more mature vision of human determination. The cast is perfect, the songs have a meaning and its got Burton pulling the strings. That's all.

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