PERSONAL DNA

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SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET
Directed by Tim Burton
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Adapted for the Screen by John Logan
WITH: Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Timothy Spall, Sasha Baron Cohen, Ed Sanders, Jamie Campbell Bower, Jayne Wisener, Laura Michelle Kelly

Tim Burton's adaption of one of my all-time favorite musicals is excellent. Johnny Depp's stirring performance is the primary reason, but credit also goes to Helena Bonham Carter as Mrs. Lovett and little Ed Sanders as Tobias. The gorgeous art direction, inspired by the Hammer horror factory, and new orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick, nearly steal the show. The film is tense, darkly hilarious, and paced well thanks to some song cuts that initially pissed me off. There must have been extraordinary creative synergy on this project; everyone is on top of their game. For fans of the musical that are pissy about non-operatic singers playing the roles, leave your preconceptions at the door and enjoy this film for what it is: a Grand Guignol masterpiece. Yes, there is BLOOD all over the place, but it has never looked more beautiful. Why is it so good? Johnny Depp dominates the film as the vengeful Sweeney, and his raw but expressive singing voice captures the character well. Helena Bonham Carter's voice leaves something to be desired, and there were times when she downplayed a little too much for my taste, but her "By the Sea" is absolutely brilliant, and her final scenes are gut-wrenching. Alan Rickman is fine as the morally warped Judge Turpin. I was angry that his "Mea Culpa" was cut, but I was delighted with a new scene written for the film that introduced the judge's collection of international erotica. Sasha Baron Cohen is funny and perfectly sleazy as Pirelli, but I must have been the only person in the audience who laughed out loud at his outrageously stuffed pants. Finally, Ed Sanders is moving as Tobias, especially when he sings "Not While I'm Around;" his voice, probably one of the strongest overall, perfectly captures the boy's hopefulness, courage, and fateful naivete.

Besides the performances, the look of the film is absolutely gorgeous, and I applaud director Tim Burton, production designer Dante Feretti, and cinematographer Dariusz Wolski. Inspired by the films of the Hammer horror factory of the 1950s, 60s, and 70s -- I love those films! -- Sweeney's London is perpetually dreary. It is black, white, and shades of gray, a color palette which makes the blood, the streams and streams of bright red blood, all the more vivid. Much has been made of the amount of blood in Sweeney Todd, but it is entirely appropriate for the Grand Guignol style of the work. Stephen Sondheim himself loves the blood, and so do I.

There are some wee complaints. Jamie Campbell Bower and Jayne Wisener barely register as Anthony and Johanna, but that was to be expected with their big duet, "Kiss Me," cut from the film. Ultimately, though, my sheer delight at watching the film made me forget about those tiny glitches. I was very skeptical that Tim Burton could pull off a good adaptation of Sweeney Todd, but I am very happy to say that I was wrong to doubt him. But let's not forget that Stephen Sondheim is the true genius behind everything. It his music, his lyrics, and his idiosyncratic view of the world that forged this masterpiece.

GRADE: A

THE GOLDEN COMPASS

FILM OPINION

Written and Directed by Chris Weitz
Based on the Novel by Philip Pullman
CAST: Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Sam Elliott, Ian McKellen (voice), and Dakota Blue Richards

With the historic success of the Harry Potter books and movies, not to mention the Lord of the Rings and Chronicles of Narnia franchises, Hollywood has predictably saturated the market with film adaptations of popular fantasy novels. While the LOTR trilogy was absolutely stunning and some have been quite entertaining (Harry Potter), most adaptations have been either serviceable (Narnia) or disappointing (Eragon and Series of Unfortunate Events foremost among them) have been disappointing. Coming soon are Holly Black's Spiderwick Chronicles and Cornelia Funke's Inkheart, but kicking off the latest wave is The Golden Compass of Philip Pullman's Dark Materials trilogy. Though such a film would seem to have a built-in audience with fans of the book, blockbuster status can only be attained by seducing the "casual film-goer" into spending ten bucks to see it. How do you do that? Stunning visuals in the trailer, and name stars.

The Golden Compass certainly has both. Some of the visuals are absolutely beautiful, particularly the aerial shots of the College and the alternate version of London. As for stars, they don't come any bigger than Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig. The Golden Compass fares better than your typical fantasy in that it boasts a compelling protagonist, the feisty and resourceful Lyra (Dakota Blue Roberts). It also has the neat conceit of animal "daemons," physical manifestations of human souls. An indicator of the level of talent that the film drew can be found in the voice talents: Ian McKellen, Kristin Scott Thomas, Kathy Bates, and Freddie Highmore. That being said, the film understandably tries to do too much. While it has some very exciting moments (particularly among the bears), it peters out at the end and intentionally leaves the story unresolved. What goes wrong? In short, too much plot involving too many characters in too short a time. It is difficult to care for any of the people involved; in fact, I most identified with Iorek Byrnison, the war bear.

Of course, The Golden Compass is stirring up all sorts of controversy because of author Philip Pullman's avowed atheism. Indeed, the menacing, all-powerful institution is called The Church in the novels, softened as the Magisterium in the film. The heroes are fighting for that greatest of all threats to fundamentalism, FREE WILL, and the villains are trying to brainwash the children into non-questioning believers. While The Golden Compass is not a great one, I can't help but encourage people to see any film that seeks to undermine such controlling paradigms.

GRADE: C

DAFT PUNK'S ELECTROMA

This is where I'm going on Tuesday. It's free, shit.

Teaser for Electroma.