Arts Sweeney Hiphop
posted by on March 29 at 10:43 AM
Is everyone aware that Johnny Depp, Sacha Baron Cohen, and Helena Bonham Carter are starring in a Tim Burton adaptation of Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd, currently in production? Sounds fucking rad.
Except. Says Liz Smith in Variety:
SPEAKING OF cutting remarks, Sacha Baron Cohen is trying to cut his co-star, Johnny Depp, dead. These two are filming the Stephen Sondheim musical “Sweeney Todd” at Pinewood Studios in London—wherein Cohen plays barber Adolfo Pirelli and Depp plays Sweeney Todd, the demon barber of Fleet Street. There is a competititon to see which actor can best shave another person with a straight razor. The “Borat” star put his own real life barber on the payroll as adviser and has had 16 hours of razor training. They say that Cohen has had problems with singing Sondheim’s lyrics and that he has been given permission by the film’s director, Tim Burton, to sing in a rap style. Cohen has to warble and shave customers at the same time in this film.
Ummm. (Via Thompson on Hollywood.)
Musicals are always being poorly cast by directors who don't give enough attention to the "musical" part. If someone can't sing, they shouldn't be in a damn musical.
Not that I won't see this, of course...I never miss anything Burton does.
Sweeney Todd is pretty much the only musical I really like. I knew Tim Burton and Borat would fuck it up.
I saw the 5th Avenue's production of Todd last year. It is one of the more outrageously demanding vocal scores I've ever heard -- serious, operatic-level chops required. Not to cast aspersions on the fine actors cast in those roles, but there is frankly no way in hell they can sing those parts without some serious technological help. And by "technological help" I mean "somebody else sings it."
If Burton intends to leave the "rap-style" singing in the final cut, then we can only assume he's going the Chicago route and simplifying the song-and-dance numbers to the point where the big name actors can look good doing it. Which would be a shame, because it's a great score. I'm saying this as somebody who ordinarily hates Broadway musicals.
When was the last time Burton directed something decent, meaning something that anyone other than his die-hard fans consider good?
i dunno...liz smith isn't exactly the Oracle at Delphi...
but Sondheim is always tough to sing, and Sweeney IS one of the toughest...i AM a little nervous about this....
i thought the movie soundtrack to Chicago, was better than the cast album...ann reinking was AWFUL...i actually prefer zellwegger...
I would pay a disturbingly large sum of money to never have to see this, um, "movie".
It's going to suck in all ways anyway. I mean, Helena Bonham Carter? Nepotism, much?
it IS worrisome that none of these people are singers....
does fucking tim burton qualify you to star in a musical...
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