Sweeney heard music that nobody heard...
Dec. 27th, 2007 10:48 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ceebeegeeI talked Mom into going to see Sweeney Todd on Christmas Eve (perfect holiday fare, right?!). I LOVED it! The direction was brooding, thpoooky, perfect, Johnny Depp was just awesome, Helena Bonham Carter was the sexiest cannibal ever, the music was great, everything was just terrific. I really really loved the acting--HBC was perfection and yes, Carlos, her reaction to "Not While I'm Around" was heart-breaking. Mrs. Lovett's such an interesting character, she can be so likeable and approachable with her thoroughly English practicality and yet, she's basically a sociopath. And yet she does it all for love. Depp was mesmerizing as Todd. Unbelievably focused, hardly a flicker of humor even during "A Little Priest," absolutely hell-bent on his purpose.
The only cut I kind of minded was the Judge's "Johanna"--MAN, how awesome would THAT have been. I didn't think Anthony seemed gay at all, just androgynous. (I *did* think he didn't seem much like a sailor though!) I've never seen it on stage though--does Sweeney really tell Lovett to send Toby up (i.e., so he can kill him) before Toby even knows anything? That seems pretty horrific. I was also a little surprised that he didn't seem that torn about killing the Beggar Woman--in my OBC, Sweeney says agonizedly "there's no time!" thus explaining why he kills a helpless beggar.
Another question--it seemed in the movie when Todd hears Lovett screaming down below and goes to help her (at the end), she's struggling with the Judge. I always thought she was struggling with the Beggar Woman--on my recording I believe she's screaming "DIE! God in Heaven, DIE!" as though she's finally putting the ghost of Lucy to rest. In the show is it the Judge or the Beggar Woman? It SHOULD be the latter, IMO!
As I was watching it, I was trying to put it into an historical context--ST takes place during the last few years/decades of the Little Ice Age (as does Christmas Carol) and that plus the heavy smog thanks to all the coalburning would certainly create that miserably dark and brooding atmosphere with all the cloud overhang.
We saw it at a theater near Mom's house and unfortunately the copy was bad in some places. Pops, sound problems and one stretch of about 30 seconds where it was noticeably bad, with lines and everything. I muttered something under my breath--it certainly didn't ruin the movie for me but when you see a movie the first week it opens, you expect a pristine print. So afterwards I asked to speak to the manager and said "just FYI, someone screwed with you on the print, it's not in very good shape. You should have them send you another one." He was very nice about it and offered us our money back--I said no, I didn't need a refund as I loved the movie, but he should say something to his distributor. He insisted, saying now he could tell them he was losing money on it, so I agreed.
The only cut I kind of minded was the Judge's "Johanna"--MAN, how awesome would THAT have been. I didn't think Anthony seemed gay at all, just androgynous. (I *did* think he didn't seem much like a sailor though!) I've never seen it on stage though--does Sweeney really tell Lovett to send Toby up (i.e., so he can kill him) before Toby even knows anything? That seems pretty horrific. I was also a little surprised that he didn't seem that torn about killing the Beggar Woman--in my OBC, Sweeney says agonizedly "there's no time!" thus explaining why he kills a helpless beggar.
Another question--it seemed in the movie when Todd hears Lovett screaming down below and goes to help her (at the end), she's struggling with the Judge. I always thought she was struggling with the Beggar Woman--on my recording I believe she's screaming "DIE! God in Heaven, DIE!" as though she's finally putting the ghost of Lucy to rest. In the show is it the Judge or the Beggar Woman? It SHOULD be the latter, IMO!
As I was watching it, I was trying to put it into an historical context--ST takes place during the last few years/decades of the Little Ice Age (as does Christmas Carol) and that plus the heavy smog thanks to all the coalburning would certainly create that miserably dark and brooding atmosphere with all the cloud overhang.
We saw it at a theater near Mom's house and unfortunately the copy was bad in some places. Pops, sound problems and one stretch of about 30 seconds where it was noticeably bad, with lines and everything. I muttered something under my breath--it certainly didn't ruin the movie for me but when you see a movie the first week it opens, you expect a pristine print. So afterwards I asked to speak to the manager and said "just FYI, someone screwed with you on the print, it's not in very good shape. You should have them send you another one." He was very nice about it and offered us our money back--I said no, I didn't need a refund as I loved the movie, but he should say something to his distributor. He insisted, saying now he could tell them he was losing money on it, so I agreed.
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Date: 2007-12-27 04:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-12-27 04:41 pm (UTC)He's not that torn about killing her, really, because she's just a minor obstacle. It's more his frustration that the judge is finally coming and he is hell-bent.
She is screaming about the judge. If you remember her next line on the OBC is, "He was clutching, holding onto me dress, but now he's finished."
Have you seen the DVD? If you haven't, then we have to have a viewing party, cause I can watch it over and over and over. And I have no problem sitting there and knitting, lol, hint hint.
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Date: 2007-12-27 05:14 pm (UTC)Oh, does Toby drink all that gin in the stage version? THAT was hilarious--my mother loved that! "Leave the bottle."
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Date: 2007-12-27 06:20 pm (UTC)Well, he does have gin, and then knocks out, but the gag about how much and the near-empty bottle is new.
Some of the new stuff does not take away from the main plot. it adds so much color. i loved it.
I think Keith and I might be going to see it again this weekend.
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Date: 2007-12-27 10:56 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-12-28 12:45 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-12-29 06:32 am (UTC)