Sweeny Todd

Well, last night was interesting. Didn't realize Sweeny Todd was out, and then suddenly a friend of mine and I shot out to grab tickets ahead of the showing just in case. I've been eagerly awaiting this movie for a good while - since I heard it was coming together I think. The collected talent for the movie just felt right - and it was.

Sweeny Todd is just one of those movies that feels like it justifies its production. I know a lot of people were a bit worried about the end product. Afer all, the musical is one of those pieces that is almost sacred in the musical community and Tim Burton is well known for insisting his vision before all others.

Visually the movie is very Burton. Dark and drab colors draped around character's who bone structure is enhanced by their make-up. Surreal bright colors that make normal scenes feel abnormal, as if to make the abnormally dreary more natural. All this accented by splashes of red. Yes, that wonderfully unsettling crimson shade of red.

Musically the overture is very strong, and the performances are right there where they need to be. Depp can really sing, as well as the rest fo the cast. Nothing else to say except that it works and is quite good.

I'm not going to spoil the story, but the movie ends right where it needs to end. It doesn't drag on with what else happens like many other movies. The audience was upset that it ended where it did, but I think it would have ruined the story if they kept going. There's a great thematic meltdown at the end with the plot twists, and then the credits roll.

I really can't say much about this movie that is negative. It doesn't have the chorus, but in the movie I didn't miss it. The movie flows smoothly along its core plotline.

I think this is one of the best movies out this year that I can remember, and I hope it grabs a few Oscar nods. Highly recomended.

Do you know what is awesome?

This is awesome.
click for Choral Lordi

Non-DC characters I really like, but know little about

There isn't any particular order to the order I'll list the characters other than how they come up in my head. I'll start out with the one I originally planned to write out before I considered turning it into a series of writings.
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Spawn

I have never read a single issue of the comic, and have only flipped through a collected graphic novel a few random times. I have seen the live action movie a handful of times and think it is fairly decent for an adaptation based on what I know. I have watched a number of the HBO animated series episodes, but most were out of order I think. I consider Dark Saga as one of the best cds Iced Earth has produced.

I think it is the cd that really makes me like the series. Much of what I've seen isn't enough to really form a solid opinion, and it has also been a long time since I have seen anything of the other media.

Spawn's design is a little wacky for, well, spawn of Hell. The mask itself doesn't work for me, but that cape makes up for everything else. Probably it is a bleed off from my love for Batman, who also has shots of a giant windswept cape - except Batman's cape doesn't seem to have a mind of its own. The chains also make him look cool, but that is probably the whole idea behind his design.

What really hits me about the character is his story/origin. As dark and tragic it is, it is also really romantic to me. Simply put, the man who became Spawn was betrayed and killed. He then sold his soul to see his wife again. While he was dead, fate was twisted around to have his best friend and wife fall in love and move on without him, and become happy without him. The man gave up everything to see his wife, and that which he gave everything up to spoiled it all for him. Now he is cursed into the slavery of evil and tries his best to remain in control.

Like I said, most of what I feel about the character and story is based on Dark Saga, which is a heavy metal cd devoted entirely to Spawn. Out of all the cds by Iced Earth it is probably the most rounded and I can listen to the entire cd without much pain from disharmony. It also plays up the tragedy of the main character, and that is what I connect with the most.

If you're the least bit curious about the cd you can see it here, with samples.