Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street DVD Review (2008)

Bloody, yes--and also bloody excellent.

Based on Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler's long-running musical, Tim Burton’s excellent film thrums with menace, mischief and malice.

In the title role is Johnny Depp, who gives a meaty performance (sorry) as Todd, the gifted, 19th-century barber who begins the movie armed with revenge against the evil Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman, wonderful), who wanted Barker's wife for himself and who set about getting her by devising a plan that sent Barker to prison.

Fifteen years later, Barker has escaped, assumed the name Sweeney Todd and now is in London, where he meets the not-so-lovely Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter), a glowering frump famous for her meat pies. Together, they make a mutually beneficial pact.

Mrs. Lovett will allow Todd his revenge on Turpin so long as he provides her with a steady supply of meat for her increasingly popular pies. Since Todd has gone mad, let the slicing and dicing begin.

Not to mention the singing, which is good, as is the energy that comes from the film's darkly funny musical numbers. Supporting turns from Timothy Spall, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jamie Campbell Bower and Jayne Wisener are superb, but the movie's real magic is sparked by Depp and Carter, who create something of a bruise onscreen, and whose performances are so intoxicating, they encourage you to enjoy all the sins ground within.

Read the full, unedited review here.

Rated R. Grade: A

View of video review of the movie below: