At the heart of the latest superhero flicks “Iron Man and Tim Burton’s twisted, gory musical “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street is a tale of two men, with haunting pasts, seeking salvation.
The two can’t be more different. “Iron Man’s Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is a sanctimonious, womanizing billionaire who receives his wake-up call after he gets abducted by Afghani terrorists.
Sweeney Todd (Johnny Depp), on the other hand, is a simple-minded barber, in early 19th century London, whose life is shattered when a corrupt judge (Alan Rickman), seeking his beautiful wife, sends him away to a penal colony in Australia for 15 years, based on a crime he didn’t commit. He returns back with only vengeance in his mind after he finds out that his wife has committed suicide, while his daughter is captive in the judge’s household.
Both men take polar extremes to reach their salvation; one succeeds, the other fails, and the two emerge as fascinating subjects of two standout Hollywood productions that render the second coming of Indiana Jones frankly overhyped.
It took nearly three decades to lift the cinematic adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’s unconventional classic musical from pre-production hell. Based on a British myth made popular in the 19th century, Sweeny Todd rose to pop culture fame with the 1936 Todd Slaughter starring vehicle. The film, and the myth, centred on a barber who murders his clients, and uses their corpses as material for his neighbor and accomplice Mrs Lovatt’s meat pies.
In 1968, playwright Christopher Bond added the revenge backdrop for a new theatrical take, perhaps to provide Sweeny with a solid validation for his crimes, and also to explore his main theme of social injustice brought by budding, cannibalistic capitalism.
Fast forward to 1979; composer/lyricists Sondheim adapts Bond’s play into a Broadway musical that initially struggles at the box-office. Sondheim’s adaptation was elusive to say the least. Excessively morose and pessimistic, with a plentiful of carnage accumulating to a major bloodbath, “Sweeny Todd made “Phantom of the Opera, the mother of all horror musicals, look like “Peter Pan.
It comes as no surprise then that only through the hands of the infamous duo Tim Burton/Johnny Depp – a pair known for turning audience-friendly materials into original dark stories existing in an alternate universe of their own – that the project finally saw the light of day.
The sixth Burton/Depp collaboration is much more sinister, violent and horrific than anything the duo has ever created. Tim Burton’s best film since 1994’s “Ed Wood is, simply put, a work of demonic genius – a fascinating, brooding musical unlike anything the genre has managed to present in its long history.
Bond’s theme, propelled to the forefront of Sondheim’s musical and the countless theatrical spinoffs, has been pushed back to the background, acting as a thin, inconspicuous subtext for those seeking a more profound meaning in Burton’s visual tour de force.
Burton’s merciless, possessed barber lives in a world where the possibility for human decency and fairness doesn’t, and couldn’t, exist. The tender romance between Anthony and Todd’s daughter Johanna, once representing the sole ray of sunshine in Sondheim’s rendering, has been suppressed and downplayed in Burton’s version.
Todd is essentially a one-dimensional character, portrayed with frightening intensity by Depp, sporting a streak of white hair that bears a close resemblance to Frankenstein’s. He’s a man so consumed by anger, so fixated on vengeance that it blinds him from regarding any possible path of happiness; an obsession that ultimately, inevitably, leads to his tragic demise.
Sondheim’s grand, edgy music is trippy, forceful and confessional. Depp – possessing a raw voice with limited notes more suited for Rock numbers than Broadway/West End musicals that require flamboyance – is splendid with his best David Bowie impression.
Todd is a deeply disturbed, damaged creature and Depp doesn’t attempt to draw any sympathy or soften the sharp edges of his character.
Dariusz Wolski’s stark, color-drained cinematography, Colleen Atwood’s customs and especially art director David Warren’s gothic set form the larger picture of Burton’s austere world. The carnage is more artistic than graphic.
There are a few insistences boasting Burton’s signature macabre humor, including one remarkable dream sequence where stern faced Todd and a pale Mrs Lovett are contrasted against a bright, sunny seaside milieu. These moments of relief are rare in a picture full of numerous scenes of pure nightmarish terror, not for the fainthearted.
Like recent Oscar winners “There Will Be Blood and “No Country for Old Men, “Sweeney Todd is a film with a bleak world view with tremendous misanthropy that is, nevertheless, utterly beguiling. It’s a film that brims with inventiveness and a grand scope of vision that demands to be seen in theaters.
“Iron Man is a completely different animal. Following last year’s torrent of disappointing comic-book adaptations (Spider-Man 3, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer), actor/director Jon Favreau (Elf) has managed to craft an impressive, highly entertaining film that injects new blood in a worn-out genre. With grosses surpassing the $400 million mark worldwide, “Iron Man is definitely the surprise blockbuster of the year so far.
Originally conceived in the early 60s by Marvel Comics, “Iron Man was designed as an anti-communist hero, fighting Vietnamese rogues and stressing the military might and technological advancement of the American army. The series creator Stan Lee later shifted his focus, developing Stark into a complex, flawed character with alcoholic and personal problems.
Paramount’s choice of Robert Downey Jr. to play the iconic hero was met with considerable skepticism at first. Always regarded as one of the finest actors of his generation, Downey’s talent was constantly overshadowed by his drug abuse and numerous arrests.
After spending nearly 12 years in and out of rehab, Downey finally got his act together and ignited the screen once more with 2005’s modern cult classic “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Further roles in “Good Night, and Good Luck, “A Scanner Darkly and last year’s “Zodiac cemented his new position as one of the most reliable American actors working today.
With “Iron Man, Downey officially makes the comeback of the century; a $150 million production that almost entirely lies on his shoulders, and the film certainly works because of him.
Favreau has updated the series and set it in a modern-day America. Besides his fondness for women and booze, Stark is an engineering genius who inherited the world’s largest weapons manufacturing corporation. Stark possess the archetypical right-wing mentality that justifies weapons manufacture as means to protect the US and sustain peace.
“They say the best weapon is one you never have to fire, Stark states early on. “I respectfully disagree. I prefer the weapon you only need to fire once. That’s how dad did it, that’s how America does it, and it has worked out pretty well so far.
His abduction forces him to realize the magnitude of the destruction he was responsible for. After creating the Iron Man armor suit to flee his captors, he decides to secretly develop his new invention and alter the activities of his company, much to the dismay of his right-hand man Obadiah Stan (a bald, steely eyed Jeff Bridges, sporting the most intimidating goatee of the year).
The obvious political undertones of the film are inconsequential, functioning as another standard plot device. On the surface, “Iron Man is essentially a conventional genre piece containing nearly all hallmarks of superhero flicks from the supporting sidekick (Terrance Howard), the two-dimensional villain, a knockout love interest (Gwyneth Paltrow) and the mandatory big final showdown.
What elevates “Iron Man above recent superhero flicks is the superb performances from all three leads. Downey, Bridges and Paltrow eschew the predominant artificiality
of the genre to deliver natural, straight performances that feel improvised rather than scripted.
Downey, naturally, is the standout. I can’t think of another actor enjoying his wit, charm and perfect, spot-on comic timing. Whenever the film seems to be heading towards the conventional genre territory, Downey and Favreau throw in an unexpected, off-key stunt to sustain this fresh aura that slightly wanes near the end.
Favreau’s action sequences are unexpectedly crisp and exciting. They arrive sporadically and the action could’ve certainly worked better had Favreau prolonged these short sequences in a more focused fashion. Nevertheless, and unlike last year’s “Transformers for example, the action never deviates from the storyline, acting as an integral part of the plot and not a forced one.
“Iron Man is a zippy, cool and exceedingly enjoyable affair benefiting from a multifaceted, mature leading character facing different moral dilemmas. It’s not as great as “Spider-Man 2 or “Batman Begins, the current landmarks of the genre. As an opening chapter of a new franchise, “Iron Man is unquestionably a noteworthy achievement.
