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Tim Burton and Johnny Depp go together like black and blue, or like fire and ash. Amidst the chaos, there is a unique unison between the two conflicting forces. Most of their films are something of a paradox. Mixing the dark with light, pain with pleasure and humor with sorrow. Never has the paradoxical complexities of their talents come together in such a way as we see in Sweeney Todd.

The story picks up on the unfortunate past of a barber named Benjamin Barker (Johnny Depp), who’s family was taken away from him by the overly pious Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman). After getting out of jail fifteen years later, and without knowing the fate of his beautiful wife and daughter, Barker makes his way back to Fleet street. Coming home though, something is different with this man. He is set out for revenge and no longer the man he once was, Benjamin Barker is now dead to the world — people now call him Sweeney Todd. Todd comes back to find that life and home that he once had no longer exists. The shop below his parlor is ran by Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter), who informs him of the fate that his family had endured. Todd can think of nothing but vengeance, leading him to carry out a murderous plot.

I must admit that I had little interest in this film. However, the plot was intriguing and the film gave the prospect of bringing Johnny Depp and Tim Burton together again. The tandem has worked together on some fantastic projects in the past, and the two names becoming synonymous with each other. Most of their projects have lately been looked at as “just another Burton/Depp film.” While Sweeney Todd does carry the well known characteristics of most Burton/Depp films, this one is different.

You can expect the same attention to detail that you would get with any Tim Burton film. Sweeney Todd has fantastic sets, gorgeous costumes and characters that match the wry and maniacal tone of the film. This film is missing something very specific, something that has been at the heart of any of Burton films despite their dreary and somber look: Humanity. Sweeney Todd as a character lacks humanity, so the same would be expected of the film. This is a welcome void however, the film could not work with a painfully sparkling ending. The most blissful moments of the film were watching Todd slit the throats of his patrons — it makes me glad that the film wasn’t forced into a PG-13 rating.

I have never been a fan of musicals, so I was not looking forward to sitting through two hours of song-and-dance. However, the music and the lyrics were brilliant and the film was a fantastic orchestra of contrast. Sweeney Todd mixed black with white, irony with sincerity, and humor with solemnity in such a way that made the film a wonder to watch. What makes the film so special is Burton’s faithfulness to the spirit, or lack there of, of the story. The film needed to be brutal and graphic. It was Burton’s touch that made it a fun experience.

Grade: A

The Upside: Sweeney Todd has fantastic sets, gorgeous costumes and characters that match the wry and maniacal tone of the film..

The Downside: Don’t expect a tear jerker, or an inspirational moral to this story.

On the Side: To prepare for the role of Adolfo Pirelli, Sacha Baron Cohen hired his personal barber as a consultant on shaving techniques, and took up to 16 hours to learn how to handle a razor.

Release Date: December 7, 2007 Rated: R for graphic bloody violence. Running Time: N/A Cast: Johnny Depp, Helena Bohnam Carter, Alan Rickman, Timothy Spall, Sacha Baron Cohen Director: Tim Burton Screenplay: John Logan (screenplay), Stephen Sondheim (musical), Hugh Wheeler (musical), Christopher Bond (musical adaptation) Studio: Dreamworks SKG Official Website: Click Here