Tuesday, December 25, 2007

A Christmas Miracle

It snowed today. On Christmas. For, like...hours. Well..., maybe two. But still, I can't tell you the last time it snowed on Christmas here. I could probably google it, but I don't have that kind of energy. I'm in a consumption coma.

I hope everyone had a delightful Christmas. I enjoyed mine, even if the snow did melt by 3:00 PM.

As is our tradition, amy g. and I went to a movie this evening. We find it to be a good way to wind down from all the family of the several days prior. Usually we hit the pub theater for a glass of wine and a slice of pie, but this year we had company. Kansas, the waif and her man-half til death tears them asunder, ty, amy g. and I all went to see Sweeney Todd...because I had been hyperventilating with anticipation ever since I saw the trailer on somethingorother months ago. I'm a huge Tim Burton fan. And an even huger Johnny Depp fan. And an even HUGER Burton/Depp hybrid fan (with the exception of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory...what the fuck was that?)

Even better, I'd already gone to
Rotten Tomatoes to see that finally Burton has graced us with a winner in review-land. It's been a while. So we went. Immediately I had to pee. Why does that always happen? But I held it. When watching a stage-to-screen musical such as this, it is imperative that one pays extra close attention to the songs, since they are the primary mover of the storyline in a way that dialogue...well...just isn't. So I stayed in my seat trying not to think about how many glasses of horrible white zinfandel I'd downed before setting myself down for a two hour stint. Because you can't miss a second of a musical and still know what's going on.

So this is what I thought:


Sacha Baron Cohen is a gem. His part was fabulous. He was the much needed comic relief when Helena Bonham Carter just couldn't be. And based on the tightness of his trousers, I would say his wife is a very lucky woman.


Carter should get an Oscar. That woman needs recognition for being CONSISTENTLY wonderful, whether it be Shakespeare or Chuck Palaniuk she's reciting. And I truly feel that if it hadn't been for her character, the complete lack of heart in the film would've left me feeling empty as well as ooged out.

Depp is hot. That is both obvious and an understatement, but when you take into account the double digits of roles where his character has OBVIOUSLY questionable personal hygiene and he still is the hottest thing in the room...that says something. I was surprised at how pleasant his singing voice was but mourned the complete lack of emotional depth of his Sweeney. I realize that's the character...it was what he was supposed to be, but he does "emotional" so beautifully...I felt ever so slightly robbed.


Broadway plays have never been known for their tight storylines...but this translated pretty well onto the film. There are the usual plot holes that we feel more distinctly on screen than if one were sitting in an audience waiting for intermission to grab a cocktail so the set can change. But I think trying to hold something like this to the same storyline standard as, say, Syriana is unfair. Still...it'd be nice if Burton could've tightened it up a little.

But visually...it was fucking sweeeeet.

12 keep(s) me blogging:

Anonymous said...

Haven't seen the film yet. Think Depp is a genius. Don't know what Burton consumes but it's stronger than white zinfandel. Either way, but the time the film shows up on my Neflix I'll be in a nursing home.

BTW skip the Simpsons Movie, they sold out and it sucks big time. (WTF were they thinking?)

Jill said...

Totally agree that Deppis hot, but that pastey, corpse-like, white make-up isn't doing a thing for me. Sleepy Hollow Johnny is much hotter.

kara said...

dad - nah...it'll be on DVD by next year. but, you know, since you're RETIRED...maybe you can actually get yourself to a theater.

jill - well hello there ms. absentia.
short of his willy wonka ensemble, i'd pretty much be up for every character he's ever played. make-up or no.

Mary Witzl said...

If I hadn't read your post, I would not have recognized that as Johnny Depp. As it was, I still had to check with my kid, who tends to read over my shoulder and so was able to confirm that that really was Johnny Depp. I have to say that he looks best as a pirate. You're right about the Willy Wonka role. He was cute in that, but not in a hot way.

Gorilla Bananas said...

I'm glad Sasha Baron was good because he's had to kill off Ali G and Borat. Did Helena get her kit off?

kara said...

mary - best as a pirate? really? best? reeeeeally? finding neverland? sleepy hollow? from hell? the man who cried? donnie brasco? dead man? if you don't know any of those titles, you have some sheeet to watch.

goranas - i read that too. something about the characters being too famous now. it makes sense. the humor banks on the people he interacts with not having any idea the characters aren't real.

Unknown said...

I really, really liked the film, and that's saying a lot considering my weak stomach (I don't do blood). I'd say this was Burton's best since Scissorhands. Depp has got to be my favorite actor alive today. He never ceases to amaze in both hotness and versatility. Yeah, it's a musical, but this ain't no Rogers & Hammerstein fluff, Sondheim is some tough shiat to pull off (I know this first-hand) and they nail it. The Waif gives it two severed thumbs way up.

Mary Witzl said...

I thought I'd seen my share of Johnny Depp movies, but obviously I'm way behind. Damn! I'll just have to cut out the dusting and something else, too. Maybe the vacuuming. Yes -- I'll cut out the vacuuming and go get Sleepy Hollow.

My kids have already seen Sleepy Hollow, of course, so they'll argue for something else instead...

Me said...

Never really been a Burton fan but I will be sure to check this one out.

thethinker said...

I saw that a few nights ago. I was so sad to see Sacha Baron Cohen die. That man is hilarious.

And Carter was great, too. Did you know that she was pregnant while they were filming the movie?

kara said...

waif - you're a tough crowd.

mary - and that's not even the stuff i DIDN'T list. wait til you get me going.

or - see that you do, young man...see that you do.

thinker - i did hear that. i read an interview where she mocked the fact that her breasts shrink and grow between different scenes. funny stuff.

MommyHeadache said...

I loved Sweeney Todd the movie too! Carter had me in stitches and her levels of hygiene in the kitchen reminded me of mine!