Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

"Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street," another collaboration of Johnny Depp and Tim Burton, but this time it's a black comedy horror musical. I'm gonna be honest I'm not a big fan of either of these two people. And honestly can't fathom the amount of people that flock to their movies. I'm not saying they're not talented, but I just can't understand the obsession and fascination. Tim Burton is a decent director, but most of his movies are pretty similar in tone and he never really steps out of his comfort zone. I can't judge a director that only does one type of movie, yet people consider him to be a genius in the leagues of Spielberg or Hitchcock. I hardly consider that, he does have some good movies, but I usually grow board of his black comedy/horror movies. I can appreciate him for having a style, but he could put it to use in another genre something out of his comfort zone. Johnny Depp is another person I can't seem to understand the obsession with. People flock to his movies like flies to an apple core. He is a good actor, but he isn't that good. I think he over acts and tries too hard to be corky. I've just never been impressed with him I guess.

However, as much as I don't prefer their movies, I did enjoy this one. It of course had the Tim Burton touch and feel, but I also liked Depp's acting it was solid. I didn't think he over did it and he gave a decent vocal performance.

"Sweeney Todd" is  story about Benjamin Barker aka Sweeney Todd, who's been missing for 15 years returns to London on a boat to find his wife and daughter. He is accompanied by Anthony, who is very excited to come to London. On the other hand Todd is not and he tells Anthony about how he was tragically separated from his wife and daughter by a jealous judge. After telling the story they both separate and go their own way. Todd comes upon a pie shop on fleet street where he meets Mrs. Lovett, who knew his wife and tells him that his wife had taken poison after being raped by Judge Turpin.  Todd becomes angered and wonders what has become of his daughter and Lovett tells him that she is with Judge Turpin. Lovett also returns Todd his old razors with which he plans to get revenge with. Mean while Anthony comes across a beautiful girl who is singing form her window and immediately falls in love with her. He soon finds out that this is the Judge Turpin's home and is beaten by the judge for looking at the girl. After taking a beating he vows to take Joanna, the girl, from her home. The story continues with more deception and twists as Todd tries to get revenge and find his daughter with Lovett. The movie also has romance between Lovett and Todd.

The story was good and interesting, but I thought the dialogue was hard to follow. They are so fast at delivering dialogue that it just sounds like mush. I couldn't make head or tail of what they were saying, which hurt my understanding of the story. I also though the romance between Joanna and Anthony go nowhere. It is underdeveloped and hits a brick wall toward the end. Their love story didn't work for me. Another thing I didn't like was the relationship between Mrs. Lovett and a child worker she takes in, Tobias. They sing a heart touching duet about being there for each other, but throughout the movie mainly towards the end I don't see that song translate into the movie. Lovett does some questionable acts to the boy at the end of the film, I just see that song applied to the film.

On the other hand the music was well intertwined into the film. It didn't seem out of place and they were melodic. The songs fit well with what was happening and had a great operatic feel. They are dark, funny, heart warming, and everything else, except memorable. The songs worked great with the film, but are forgettable outside the context of the story. I can't see these songs part of anything else. The only song that I thought could sort of stand on its own was "Johanna" which melodic and harmonious. It's a song that I can hum and makes me feel. One more problem with the movie was the singing, it wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either. The actors manged to sing decently, but they couldn't hit all the right notes.

Overall "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" is a good movie and musical. It's visuals are great and very unique and it has a good story, which is harmed by poor dialogue delivery and some relationship issues. I give the movie a 4/5, Good story and stunning visuals, but non-memorable songs and poor dialogue delivery. My favorite Tim Burton and Johnny Depp film.

Dreamgirls

So today I watched "Dreamgirls," a musical drama about three young ladies and their journey to stardom. I have to say this is a fantastic film, it has everything from amazing music to beautiful visuals to heart. The movie is about going for your dreams and the sacrifices one has to make to achieve those dreams. And what happens when the rug is pulled from right beneath you. The story starts off light hearted and slowly weaves into the more dramatic aspects. From start to finish we as the audience feel and experience everything the characters feel. It's as if we are following them through this journey every step of the way. However, the movie cuts abruptly in certain scenes and it kind of weakens the overall impact. Certain characters are paid less attention to and when something happens to them we are supposed to care.

The acting in this movie was great, every actor portrayed their character well. However, Jennifer Hudson steals every scene she is in. She plays Effie, the lead singer of the group, but is quickly replaced by her friend Deena, played by Beyonce. She is pretty much a diva in the movie. She wants all of the spot light on her and refuses to see the bigger picture for the group. Years pass and she finally realizes what she had. Hudson played the character so well, giving her power and she handled the emotional scenes well. In my opinion the star of the film was Effie as she was the real heart of the film. And instead I think Hudson should have been nominated for a lead actor award instead of a supporting one.

The songs probably the most important part of a musical. The songs are all great and song to perfection by the cast. "Dreamgirls," the title song is beautifully song and harmonized. It feels like a song that only can be song by angels. "Patients" and "One Night Only"(Effie version) are both great songs that made me really emotional. My favorite number are the ones at the end of Act 1, "It's Over" and "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going," both of which are very dramatic and show the shift in the tone of the film.

Overall I think "Dreamgirls" is a fantastic musical and should have been nominated for Best Picture. It hits all the right notes. The songs are great and the acting is good. The story could have been tweaked a bit more to make it flow better.

I give "Dreamgirls" a solid 4/5, good acting, memorable and amazingly well sung songs, with strong characters, but some minor problems in the whole execution.

P.S. I only have a few more musicals to review and then I will start my general reviews. I have seen so many movies over the summer, some new, some old, some good, some bad.

Enchanted

Okay it's time to get back to doing some reviews. I know I've been gone along time, but I just was feeling lazy, but now I'm back and ready to review another musical. This time it is the amazing "Enchanted." To me I think this film is a tad under appreciated, most people don't remember this film or even consider it a great musical. In my opinion it is the best musical of the last decade.

"Enchanted" is the story of a typical Disney princess, Giselle, who wants nothing more than to find her prince charming and have a happily ever after. She then meets Prince Edward, who saves her from a giant, they quickly fall in love and plan to get married the next day. However, Queen Narissa, Edward's step-mother, hears about the wedding and fells threatened so she dresses as a hag and pushes Giselle down a well into the real world. The princess is lost and scared in New York city where she meets Robert, a divorced divorce lawyer, and his daughter, Morgan. Robert is resistant at first, but his daughter insists and he can't say no. In fairytale land, Edward and Nathaniel, the queens right hand man, go in search for Giselle by jumping through the well to the real world. The movie continues as Edward looks for Giselle in the real world wishing to be together again. While Giselle slowly tries to get Robert to change his mind about love and the complications they have. 

The characters are amazing and fun in "Enchanted," and the actors do a great job of portraying them. 

Giselle, wonderfully acted by Amy Adams, is the typical Disney princess, she's sweet, kind, and has an amazing singing voice. Amy Adams does a great job of bringing this character to life and adding so much likability to a pretty much Snow White like character in this day and age. She truly did and Oscar worthy performance and should have been nominated.

Patrick Dempsey does a good job playing Robert. However his character is a little dull and more realistic to the other colorful cast.

James Marsden, Edward, was another amazing performance. He really captured the clueless prince aspect of the character so well. As always he did a great job playing the deal third wheel we wish the main character will fall for.

Narissa played by Susan Sarandon, is one of the wickedest villains in a Disney movie. She mean, nasty, and quite funny. Susan's performance is great and the ending is battle is just amazing.

Now the most important part of any musical, the songs. The songs are done by the legendary Alan Menken and the amazing lyricist Stephen Schwartz. The music and the songs in "Enchanted" are just amazing some of the finest songs in a musical in a long time. "How do You Know" is the great Broadway spectacular in this film. It's such an amazing toe tapping sing along song that jsut captures the imagination. "Happy Working Song" is another fun song. It has so many fun and intelligent lyrics that are fun for kids and even funnier for adults. It's a tune you will not forget easily and might even hum when doing your own house work. The other songs are fantastic too, but my favorite by far is "True Love's Kiss" the most magical song in the movie. It takes me back to classic Disney love songs and makes you want to fall in love (again).

Overall "Enchanted" is a fantastic musical and movie. It has lovable characters, amazing music, and a engaging story. I personally think the movie should have won for Best Original Song at the Oscars. I also think Amy Adams should have been nominated for Best Actress and the movie Should have been nominated for Best Picture. It is that good. To me this is the modern day "Mary Poppins" and Amy Adam is the modern day Julie Andrews.

"Enchanted is a true classic and I give it a 4.5/5. The movie is engaging, fun, and should be more remembered.

P.S. There is a sequel planned for "Enchanted" I don't know what it could be about, but hopefully it gets made and the characters reprise their roles.

Chicago

It's time to talk about the big musical, the only musical this decade and in nearly 30+ years to win Best Picture, it is non other than the showstopping "Chicago." The movie is about a girl named Roxie who wants nothing more than to be famous. She does anything to make her dream come true even cheating on her own husband with a man who says he can make her dream a reality. Unfortunately the he lies and loses his life to the enraged Roxie. She then goes to jail where her popularity rises and she starts to become more famous. She then enlists a smooth talking lawyer to help her be free again. That's when the star powers clash and the movie becomes more interesting.

Chicago has a very colorful cast of characters from a suave talking lawyer to a bribe taking Matron to a jealous starlet. The cast couldn't have been better. They all have a story to tell and try to take the spot light. I personally think Billy Flynn, the lawyer, steals the show especially in the court scene were he sings "Razzle Dazzle." It's such an intense scene choreographed well.

The director does a great job of incorporating the songs into the scenes. It doesn't feel like the characters are just breaking out into random songs, but the songs are actually part of the story.

Now the most important part of a musical, the music. The songs are pretty good, but aren't memorable aside from a few. The only songs that I found really good were the "Cell Block Tango"  and "Razzle Dazzle." The songs are intense and add a lot of layer to the characters.

Overall I think this movie is a fantastic musical and well deserving of the covenant Oscar, the songs are good, the characters and story are fantastic. I give "Chicago 4/5, well directed and top notch acting.  

Moulin Rouge!

Okay I missed a day since my last review my bad, was felling a bit lazy. Well now it's time to review a musical that was nominated for Best Picture, the first of the last decade and the first in nearly 22 years since "All That Jazz." I'm talking about non other than the great love story known as "Moulin Rouge." I have to say the film was deservedly nominated for Best Picture because it did so many things so well. However "Moulin Rouge" is not a traditional musical, it has no original songs, instead it uses other popular songs, this type of musical is known as a Jukebox. The film itself is set in 1899 in the lovely city of Paris, but the songs are all modern classics.

The movie shines in to places one of which is the story. The story is about love and how it can change and make a person feel. The main character is Christian a aspiring writer, who writes great stories of love even though he has never experienced it. Out of sheer coincidence he winds up writting for a show called "Spectacular Spectacular." Christian and his fellow performers go to the Moulin Rouge were Satine mistakes him for a rich Duke/investor. They unexpectedly fall in love when the real Duke shows up and they are tossed into a forbidden romance. The story of love is so true and well executed. We as the audience feel for Satine and Christian and we wish to see them together.

The cast does a wonderful job in the movie. There are so many colorful characters. Satine, played by Nicole Kidman, steals the show though. She does an incredible job and shows off so many sides of her troubled character.

The other great part of this movie is the art direction. The movie is beautiful aesthetically. From flashy lights to grim set pieces, the world feels like a fantasy land. The set up and the way the characters look and dress were just spectacular. The actual directing was amazing to, how the songs were set up to the dance numbers. "Moulin Rouge" is just a sheer work of art.

The only thing that I didn't like were the songs. Don't get me wrong the songs that they used were great and used effectively in the movie, but I wish it had original songs that I could hum to. No matter it is a slight bump.

Overall the movie is great and it tells an great story about love. I really enjoyed the art style, but wish it had original songs. I give "Moulin Rouge" 4/5, a visual masterpiece with a timeless story.

Hairspray

 

Since we've been on the topic of John Travolta, I thought the next movie musical I should review is 'Hairspray," the 2007 edition. I haven't seen the the original, but I do enjoy this version very much. "Hairspray" about a heavyset girl, Tracy Turnblad, who wants nothing more than to be part of The Corny Collins Show, her and her friend watch everyday after school. She soon find out that the African Americans with just as much if not more talent are not being given that same rights. So quickly she begins to fight for integration on television. The movie deals with two major problems in television back in the day one is the lack of color people and the other is how people who didn't fit the American beauty were treated regardless of skin color.

Tracy Turnblad played by Nicki Blonsky did an incredible job for her debut. She played Tracy perfectly. Tracy is a perky lovable girl, who has a lot of energy and is able to dance. She is persistent with everything she does and isn't afraid of what people think , a rare quality in the 60's. Slowly she changes everyone she encounters.

Penny Pingleton played by Amanda Bynes is another interesting character. She is like Tracy in some ways, but fears way to much what people will think of her especially her mother. She is in a forbidden romance throughout the movie with  Seaweed, a African American boy. She hides everything form her judgmental and stuck in the past mother.

Again John Travolta steals the show by playing Edna Turnblad, Tracy's mother, yes her mother. Edna is a heavyset girl who hasn't left her house in years because she fears people will make fun of her because of the way she looks. She is very isolated and doesn't seem to know how the world has changed around her. She is supportive of Tracy, but is to intimidated by other to truly support her daughter. Travolta does an excellent job and I wish he had been nominated for a Best Supporting "Person" Oscar.

Overall everyone in the entire cast is enjoyable and very watchable on screen. Corny Collins played by James Marsden is one of my favorite character in the movie mainly due to Marsden.

The story and plot of the movie is both engaging and fun. The comedy is well blended even into one of the more serious scenes, but doesn't take anything away from the movie and its effect.

The main thing in any musical is the music and boy is the music good in "Hairspray." They all have a vibe of the time period and are well integrated into the movie. Non of the songs feel out of place or out of date. My favorites are "Welcome to the 60's" and the end song "You Can't Stop the Beat." They are great big numbers that show how the world is changing or has changed.

Overall Hairspray is a delightfully fun movie with great songs and an engaging story. I personally think it should have been nominated for Best Picture. I give Hairspray 4.5/5. A fun engaging film with rocking numbers.

Grease

Okay, I know I haven't done a review or an update in like a month, but things happened and I had to focus on that for a while. Well now I am back and ready to do some reviews. Alright lately I've been watching a lot of musicals and wondering why musicals are so rare these days. They are such an extraordinary genre that infuse great story telling with toe tapping hum along numbers. So for the next few days I am going to do reviews on some of my favorite musicals old and new.

Okay to start off I am going to review the most successful musical of all time and one of my favorites, Grease. A story of two teenagers, a preppy innocent girl, Sandy, and a tough self conscious greaser, Danny, who fall in love during the summer time. However, they face problems showing affection when they get back to school because they fear what their respective click might think of them. But in the end they change for each other and they drive off into the skies.

Okay no matter how much I love this movie the story is not the strong point. It is entertaining, but a bit shallow. Danny continuously unknowingly harms Sandy and they break up. They then get back together when Danny sweet talks her. This basically happens throughout the movie until the end. I guess it show the spontaneous relationship teenagers have, never really knowing what they want. There are also some sub-plot that are interesting but aren't handled to well. Like the fake pregnancy thing near the end with the character Betty. The event occurs early on in the movie, but is not resolved until the end of the year.

One place that this movie does shine is in its characters. Who are very interesting and fun. Danny for instance is a this tough greaser, but we see early on that he is a sweet gentleman. It's just when his friends are around he has to put up this fake persona. Overall he is charming and John Travolta does an excellent job.

Sandy is also very lovable, but we do get irritated when she acts so dumb towards her affections for Danny.

Betty on the other hand is a character that is really tough and raunchy. However the closer to the end we get and the more she fears for the pregnancy we get a lot of sympathy for her. We see her put her wall down and see her as a real human being.

Now what makes this movie such a classic and memorable are the songs and dances. If it were nit for the amazing  music in this movie it would have been forgotten along time ago. The songs are remarkable and movie the story, plot, and character development forward. "Summer Nights" a fun song that tells of what Danny and Sandy did during there summer. It was funny seeing the others perspective of the events. "Greased Lightning" another fun song that has the boys working on their car. The dance sequence during the school dance. "You're the One That I Want" the best in the movie in my opinion. So much happens in that song and so much is told. It probably is one of the most catchiest songs ever made. All the songs in Grease are terrific and elevate the movie to classic status.

Grease is a enjoyable and fun movie with a decent story, great cast, and amazing music. It is deservedly the most successful musical ever made and a standard for all musicals. I give Grease 4/5. Fantastic music  and characters, but a lackluster story.