Sweeney Todd.

Sweeney Todd is an excellent film directed by the much famous Tim Burton. The genre of this film is thriller/horror and is aimed at anyone who likes thrilling, horrific and gory films. Johnny Depp plays Benjamin Barker who was the demon barber of Fleet Street who has returned in order to get revenge on those who have messed him about in the past. In particular, he wanted revenge on Judge Turpin, who accused the barber of a crime he did not commit in order to get close to the barber’s wife, Lucy. Lucy was so distraught when Benjamin was sent away and tries to kill herself by drinking poison. However she survives but after being driven insane she results to begging in the streets. Benjamin and Lucy also had a child, Johanna, Turpin then takes Johanna and appoints her as his ward. When she turns 16 he offers her marriage and she declines of which he cannot comprehend. When he sees Anthony Hope looking at Johanna, he has him beaten and threatens him that he will have him killed if he even comes close again.

After 15 years in exile, Benjamin returns but under a new identity of Sweeney Todd. He meets Mrs Lovett who explains that Lucy drank poison years ago, he then wants revenge and so starts up his barber business above Mrs Lovett’s pie shop in order to get back all those who have made him suffer and lose his beloved family. Turpin wants to impress Johanna so goes to Todd’s barbers for a shave. Todd is about to kill him but is interrupted by Anthony who reveals Johanna is going to escape from an asylum that Turpin sent her to. On Turpin’s return to the barbers, Todd convinces him to have a shave; this is the scene where he is brutally killed.

The killing of Judge Turpin takes place in Sweeney Todd’s barber shop which is above Mrs Lovett’s pie shop. The barber shop has a rather interesting setting because it is in an attic which demonstrates the thriller by allowing the audience to understand that they are going to witness some form of killing as they get an uneasy feeling from the surroundings that it is set. The scene begins with a dialogue between Todd and Turpin, as they talk Turpin then realises Todd’s real identity is Benjamin Barker.

 Throughout this scene, many filler lights are used, this creates shadows onto the key light which softens it but it also allows a shadow to be shown onto the characters which demonstrates the contrast. The main lighting is top lighting, which can be seen as coming from the outside as the windows are located at the top of the room. The effect of this is that it makes the lighting seem real and that it is coming from the natural daylight.

The tension is built up throughout this scene. To begin with, non – diegetic sounds are played which creates a chilled and calm mood. Then as Turpin discovers who Todd really is, there is a change in the music to more horrific sounds which create an uneasy feeling and can allow us to know that a form of killing is going to follow. The sounds are off screen and are played alongside different sound effects which also raise the tension. Just as Todd goes to kill Turpin, diegetic sound effects are brought in which allows the audience to understand what is happening by the sounds as well as the horrific sights they see. The sounds become very parallel to the image being shown. The sounds are also very complementary to the images as they fit very well and demonstrate the terrible sights where the barber savagely stabs Turpin in the neck before slitting his throat and then dropping him into a chute leading to Mrs Lovett’s basement.

The actors are also dressed very well in costume, the barber has very wild hair but sophisticated clothing which gives off a portrayal of what the character is like. It makes the character seem very mad and insane which fits with the story line of him getting revenge after having his beloved family taken from him. As the killing takes place, there is a substantial amount of blood present which emphasises the brutality of the murder. The characters also act very well which flows with the plot making it a better thriller film.

A further point on the film language is there are very good camera angles. Leading up to the killing, the scene is shot from close up angles which emphasise the importance of the characters. The other effect of having close up shots is that it allows the audience to focus on something in particular, Tim Burton uses this and zooms in on the blade in which Todd uses to kill Turpin. When he is killed, the film is shot from a high angle which portrays how vulnerable and week the victim is.