...a peculiar and highly entertaining film.
The DVD itself is a solid, but not spectacular visual treat. Colors are highly desaturated and much of the hues showcased in this film are steely blues and lifeless grays. There is a solid amount of variance in the cold tones of the film and while there aren´t many golden yellows or luscious greens to be found in the film, blood is bright red and nicely contrasts the foreboding darkness featuring throughout most of the film. Detail is good, but the overly dark colors and apparent black crush does not allow for the most detailed imagery. A thin sheen of film grain is apparent as a result of the heavy darkness, but the source materials are generally clean and devoid of flaws. "Sweeney Todd" is a good looking Tim Burton film, but its overly dark and colorless visuals do not provide for the most stimulating visual experience. I love the look of a Burton film, but I have to be honest and place this along with "Sleepy Hollow" as another slightly disappointing looking Burton film on DVD.
Audio:
"Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" is delivered to DVD with three Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtracks. English, French and Spanish languages are supported with both 5.1 multi-channel mix and subtitles. While the film isn´t as splendid looking as I had hoped, I found the Dolby Digital mix to be very nicely done. The film presents a dark and brooding environment and the six channel mix delivers the necessary sounds to bring Burton´s imagination to life. The busy streets of 1800s London come alive through all channels, with plenty of period ambience coming from every direction. With Stephen Sondheim taking over for Danny Elfman in "Sweeny Todd," the music still feels like something from a Tim Burton film and both the musical score and the singing of Depp, Carter and Rickman sounds quite good. Rear surrounds are active and convey both the music and the ambience of the film. The .1 LFE channel thumps quite heavily at times. Dialogue is clear. Overall, I thought the soundtrack was a very good effort from the Paramount DVD title.
Extras:
The review copy of "Sweeney Todd" arrived in a pie pan. A circular cardboard cutout advertised the film and the DVD case was enclosed inside of the pie with red confetti that loosely reminded one of the blood and gore that was insinuated to be encased in each of Ms. Lovett´s meat pies. While the press packaging may have been deemed a little tacky, the 2-disc special edition of Tim Burton´s musical horror film is a very nice package. The DVD casing itself is a quality plastic case with a cardboard slipcover that stylistically is missing the front of the slipcase to showcase the DVD contained inside. I typically do not spend much time on DVD packaging anymore, but I was tickled pink at the manner in which this title arrived.
The first disc of "Sweeney Todd" contains one special feature, and alas there is no commentary track. The lone supplement on the first disc is called Burton + Depp + Carter = Todd" (26:06). Stephen Sondheim, Tim Burton, Helena Bonham Carter, Johnny Depp and others all lend a little of their time to talk about working with Tim to bring the musical to the big screen. This feature is a slick and nicely produced electronic press kit feature with plenty of clips from the making of the film, some behind-the-scenes moments and lots of talking heads interviews. I found the making of footage to be unique when I realized just how much green screen was used. It was also nice to see the sets and actors in full color. All-in-all, this was a rather good making of feature.
The second disc is where all the raw meat is. Roughly a dozen supplements are contained on this platter and I was more than pleased with the quality of the bonus content. The disc opens with Sweeney Todd Press Conference, November 2007 (19:40). Burton, Depp, Carter, Richard Zanuck, Alan Rickman and Timothy Spall all field questions from the audience. The questions are contained on graphical cards, but the answers are humorous and the group definitely had a fun time fielding the questions and laughing with one another. This is one of the funnier press conferences you will ever pay witness to. The feature Sweeney is Alive: The Real History of the Demon Barber (20:07) has a narrator, Tim Burton and some other personalities look into the possibility that a serial killer reminiscent of Sweeney Todd existed in early London and slashed throats and made meat pies from his victims.
The next few supplements aren´t as entertaining, but still worth checking out. Musical Mayhem: Sondheim´s Sweeney Todd (12:03) looks at how Burton adapted Stephen Sondheim´s musical and finds the renowned composer offering his thoughts on his play and Burton´s adaptation of his musical. A lot of information on the genesis of both versions of "Sweeney Todd" is discussed. Sweeney´s London (16:15) looks around at London during the period when "Sweeney Todd" takes place. It was a depressing place and quite abysmal. Perfect for a Tim Burton film. London was not a very nice place to be back in the Eighteenth Century and this featurette helps paint that ugly picture. The Making of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (23:59) is a more detailed look at the making of the film, but many of the topics were covered in the featurette contained on the first DVD.
The second menu page of the second disc contains a few more supplements. The Grand Guignol: A Theatrical Tradition (19:13) will educate you on what exactly the "Grand Guignol" is, which is a specialized horror theater in French culture. This was a unique little feature that talked about horror productions in Paris, France. Designs for a Demon Barber (8:55) looks at the costumes, visuals and mid-Victorian set design of the film. Bloody Business (8:52) is a short look at the excessive blood featured in the film and focuses on the visual effects of the various deaths in the film. This was short, but fun. Movietone Unscripted with Tim Burton and Johnny Depp (11:35) finds Burton and Depp interviewing themselves on the Movietone show. I always find these to be fun, but far too short. The Razor´s Refrain (8:40) looks at photographs from the making of the film set to music from the picture. A Photo Gallery and the Theatrical Trailer complete the features of this 2-disc set.
Closing Comments:
I´m a Tim Burton fool. I´ll defend both "Planet of the Apes" and "Mars Attacks!" to anybody that doesn´t consider them to be good films. I admit that some of Burton´s stuff isn´t up to par with his masterpieces. "Tim Burton´s The Nightmare Before Christmas" was not directed by Burton, but is one of his most personal projects and my favorite all-time film. "Sleepy Hollow," "Edward Scissorhands" and "Big Fish" are all very good films. "Sweeney Todd" populates the middle ground. It isn´t one of the finest films from Burton, but it is another unique project that finds longtime collaborator and friend Johnny Depp singing his way through the film. I have not seen any part of the Stephen Sondheim musical, but "Sweeney Todd" is a good theatrical musical. I´ve heard that Sondheim was extremely pleased with this film, so I will accept his happiness as my own belief that Burton did the source material justice. The 2-Disc DVD set mixes decent visuals with very good sound and some wonderful supplemental materials. This is one of the finest DVDs from Burton when it comes to supplements and on par with most of his releases in sight and sound. For me, it is a must-have. For most others, it is probably somewhere south of that status.
Audio:
"Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" is delivered to DVD with three Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtracks. English, French and Spanish languages are supported with both 5.1 multi-channel mix and subtitles. While the film isn´t as splendid looking as I had hoped, I found the Dolby Digital mix to be very nicely done. The film presents a dark and brooding environment and the six channel mix delivers the necessary sounds to bring Burton´s imagination to life. The busy streets of 1800s London come alive through all channels, with plenty of period ambience coming from every direction. With Stephen Sondheim taking over for Danny Elfman in "Sweeny Todd," the music still feels like something from a Tim Burton film and both the musical score and the singing of Depp, Carter and Rickman sounds quite good. Rear surrounds are active and convey both the music and the ambience of the film. The .1 LFE channel thumps quite heavily at times. Dialogue is clear. Overall, I thought the soundtrack was a very good effort from the Paramount DVD title.
Extras:
The review copy of "Sweeney Todd" arrived in a pie pan. A circular cardboard cutout advertised the film and the DVD case was enclosed inside of the pie with red confetti that loosely reminded one of the blood and gore that was insinuated to be encased in each of Ms. Lovett´s meat pies. While the press packaging may have been deemed a little tacky, the 2-disc special edition of Tim Burton´s musical horror film is a very nice package. The DVD casing itself is a quality plastic case with a cardboard slipcover that stylistically is missing the front of the slipcase to showcase the DVD contained inside. I typically do not spend much time on DVD packaging anymore, but I was tickled pink at the manner in which this title arrived.
The first disc of "Sweeney Todd" contains one special feature, and alas there is no commentary track. The lone supplement on the first disc is called Burton + Depp + Carter = Todd" (26:06). Stephen Sondheim, Tim Burton, Helena Bonham Carter, Johnny Depp and others all lend a little of their time to talk about working with Tim to bring the musical to the big screen. This feature is a slick and nicely produced electronic press kit feature with plenty of clips from the making of the film, some behind-the-scenes moments and lots of talking heads interviews. I found the making of footage to be unique when I realized just how much green screen was used. It was also nice to see the sets and actors in full color. All-in-all, this was a rather good making of feature.
The second disc is where all the raw meat is. Roughly a dozen supplements are contained on this platter and I was more than pleased with the quality of the bonus content. The disc opens with Sweeney Todd Press Conference, November 2007 (19:40). Burton, Depp, Carter, Richard Zanuck, Alan Rickman and Timothy Spall all field questions from the audience. The questions are contained on graphical cards, but the answers are humorous and the group definitely had a fun time fielding the questions and laughing with one another. This is one of the funnier press conferences you will ever pay witness to. The feature Sweeney is Alive: The Real History of the Demon Barber (20:07) has a narrator, Tim Burton and some other personalities look into the possibility that a serial killer reminiscent of Sweeney Todd existed in early London and slashed throats and made meat pies from his victims.
The next few supplements aren´t as entertaining, but still worth checking out. Musical Mayhem: Sondheim´s Sweeney Todd (12:03) looks at how Burton adapted Stephen Sondheim´s musical and finds the renowned composer offering his thoughts on his play and Burton´s adaptation of his musical. A lot of information on the genesis of both versions of "Sweeney Todd" is discussed. Sweeney´s London (16:15) looks around at London during the period when "Sweeney Todd" takes place. It was a depressing place and quite abysmal. Perfect for a Tim Burton film. London was not a very nice place to be back in the Eighteenth Century and this featurette helps paint that ugly picture. The Making of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (23:59) is a more detailed look at the making of the film, but many of the topics were covered in the featurette contained on the first DVD.
The second menu page of the second disc contains a few more supplements. The Grand Guignol: A Theatrical Tradition (19:13) will educate you on what exactly the "Grand Guignol" is, which is a specialized horror theater in French culture. This was a unique little feature that talked about horror productions in Paris, France. Designs for a Demon Barber (8:55) looks at the costumes, visuals and mid-Victorian set design of the film. Bloody Business (8:52) is a short look at the excessive blood featured in the film and focuses on the visual effects of the various deaths in the film. This was short, but fun. Movietone Unscripted with Tim Burton and Johnny Depp (11:35) finds Burton and Depp interviewing themselves on the Movietone show. I always find these to be fun, but far too short. The Razor´s Refrain (8:40) looks at photographs from the making of the film set to music from the picture. A Photo Gallery and the Theatrical Trailer complete the features of this 2-disc set.
Closing Comments:
I´m a Tim Burton fool. I´ll defend both "Planet of the Apes" and "Mars Attacks!" to anybody that doesn´t consider them to be good films. I admit that some of Burton´s stuff isn´t up to par with his masterpieces. "Tim Burton´s The Nightmare Before Christmas" was not directed by Burton, but is one of his most personal projects and my favorite all-time film. "Sleepy Hollow," "Edward Scissorhands" and "Big Fish" are all very good films. "Sweeney Todd" populates the middle ground. It isn´t one of the finest films from Burton, but it is another unique project that finds longtime collaborator and friend Johnny Depp singing his way through the film. I have not seen any part of the Stephen Sondheim musical, but "Sweeney Todd" is a good theatrical musical. I´ve heard that Sondheim was extremely pleased with this film, so I will accept his happiness as my own belief that Burton did the source material justice. The 2-Disc DVD set mixes decent visuals with very good sound and some wonderful supplemental materials. This is one of the finest DVDs from Burton when it comes to supplements and on par with most of his releases in sight and sound. For me, it is a must-have. For most others, it is probably somewhere south of that status.
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