Throughout the week, we’ve watched quite a few movies and shows. For the week of March 8 through March 14, here is a list of what we’ve watched, and what we thought of each Netflix selection!

Camelot: This film adaptation of the Lerner & Loewe musical of the same name stars Vanessa Redgrave and Richard Harris. Dominick had seen this before (he’d also been in the musical at his high school many years ago). Ash had not. This is a classic film that follows the story of King Arthur, the king of England who created the round table and who was betrayed when his wife Guenevere fell in love/had an affair with his top knight, Lancelot. Dom loves musicals, and this is no exception. Ashtyn enjoyed it as well, though she didn’t feel she connected emotionally with all of the songs, and had a hard time watching Vanessa Redgrave, at times, due to the remarkable resemblance to her daughter, Natasha Richardson, who tragically passed away last year.

Coral Reef Adventure: Originally presented in IMAX and narrated by Liam Neeson, this stunning documentary looks at various coral reefs located around the world. Underwater explorers/filmmakers Howard and Michele Hall are invited to a Pacific island nation (Fiji, we think?) where a reef off the coast is dying. They explore the Pacific’s various reef systems to try to discover the reason for why this and other coral reefs are dying. We thought this film was absolutely stunning. This documentary raises many questions that are important, especially those concerned with human impact on the underwater world. We only wish we could have seen what efforts were made to try to save this reef.

Whale Wars: A group of self-proclaimed ‘pirates’ that are captained by the founder of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, Paul Watson, sail the seas near Antarctica attempting to deter the Japanese from hunting whales in the area. Sailing on their boat the MV Steve Irwin, the antics of the crew include throwing ‘stinky stuff’ on Japanese boats (labeled research boats) and trying to stuff up their rudders with balloon type objects. Dom thinks the entire crew is made up of douche bags. While the intent is nice, there has to be a better way to stop the hunting and killing of whales. Ashtyn found the show hilarious because the crew is so dumb.

Civil War Journal: The Conflict Begins: Four episodes about various elements of the Civil War present themselves in this documentary style, PBS-presented, television experience. Narrated by Danny Glover, the episodes feature historians, present reenactments of battles and show real life, historical documentation that helps explain what life was like leading up to and during the beginning of our nation’s bloodiest war. Dom didn’t get a chance to see this. Ashtyn thought the music was incredibly cheesy, especially during the beginning and ending sequences. However, if you can ignore this, the entire series is incredibly interesting. She especially enjoyed learning more about John Brown in episode one.

Ink: Jamin Winans developed this fantasy film, which explores what happens when we fall asleep. An independent film that could not find a distributor, when Ink hit pirating programs like Limewire and BitTorrent sites the download rate in one week was so high, 400,000, it led to better DVD and Blu-Ray sales. When Emma, a little girl living with her grandparents after the death of her mother, falls asleep, a Storyteller gives her good dreams. However, when Ink, disfigured and desperate to become an Incubus, enters her dream world and kidnaps Emma, putting her in a coma outside her dreams, the Storytellers and a blind pathfinder must team up to find her before the Incubi sacrifice and kill her. Outside dreamland, Emma’s father, John, who lost custody of the girl and has poured himself fully into his work, as a result, must decide whether to visit her and reopen the wounds caused by losing her the first time. Ink’s concept is very intriguing. This film suffered a little because of the low budget visually, but with such a great plot, and decent acting especially by independent actors, this can easily be overlooked. This was the best fictional film we saw, this week.

Hurt: Melora Walters and William Mapother star in a movie that could possibly air on the Lifetime Network. Walters is Helen, a woman who is accustomed to her privileged life, with her husband and two children, Lenore and Conrad (Jackson Rathbone). Mapother plays Helen’s brother in law, Daryl. When Helen’s husband dies in an accident and they lose their house, they go to live in what looks like a junkyard, but is really a car recycling center, with Daryl. When Helen (a former foster child) finds out her husband was going to take in a girl named Sarah, she decides to open her home to the girl, but when bad things start happening, a terrible family secret is exposed. Dominick thought this story could have been interesting and the actors were all pretty decent, but the plot was so predictable it ruined the movie. Ashtyn also felt it was very predictable, so it was hard to view this movie as a horror flick. You know what’s going to happen, which ruins the elements of scariness and surprise. The key problem was the plot.

CSA: Confederate States of America: A mockumentary exploring what would happen if the Southern states/Confederacy won the war, this is supposed to be a funny piece. When the Confederates win, an entirely new history is written for this country. That country is revealed in CSA. Initially, we felt this sounded pretty funny. The commercials littered through the mockumentary were laugh worthy, but at some point, this film takes itself way too seriously. Presented as a dry as turkey, fact filled ‘documentary’ we would have much preferred if this film kept that lighthearted, silly feel most mockumentaries have. This wasn’t even absurd enough to be absurd. In the end, it was kind of boring.

Witch Hunt: The most riveting film we watched this week, every person needs to see Witch Hunt. In the 80s, when us kids were growing up, thousands of miles away, kids only a few years older than us were being shuffled around foster homes and forced to testify against their parents in a series of infamous, child molestation trials. This documentary explores how these false charges not only ruined the lives of the many Bakersfield residents who were convicted and served time in jail for crimes they did not commit, but also how it has ruined the lives of the children who were coerced into lying about these adults. We were shocked and disheartened by this documentary. We were disgusted juries could convict these people, that the authorities who did this are still in control and that the media didn’t investigate these false accusations. Most heartbreaking is the story of John Stoll, who lost 20 years of his life to prison and the only son he had, as an effect of his false conviction.

Nine Dead: Melissa Joan Hart returns to acting in this horror/thriller film. We were interested because this received pretty good ratings on Netflix. Hart is one of nine random people who are kidnapped and end up being chained in a room together. A masked man explains that they are all here for a specific reason. They have ten minutes to figure out what that reason is. Every ten minutes, the man will come in and kill one of them. If they discover the reason every single person is there (even the dead ones) the masked man will call the police, turn himself in, and let them all go. For the most part this film is pretty good, but it is ruined by a letdown of an ending that makes the whole movie feel like a drastic waste of time. We have a much better idea for the ending of this movie, but sadly, we weren’t the filmmakers, so we have to live with what is available in this film.

Crips and Bloods: Made in America: In California, segregated housing during the civil rights era meant that racial minorities kept to themselves and formed their own social groups within their communities. To an extent, this led to the inception to America’s two most powerful gangs, the Crips and the Bloods. While other documentaries have focused specifically on how these gangs form, this documentary looks into life prior to the gangs, the race riots, and how these kids could have come to form such gangs. From there, it explores the lives of gang members and looks at those who have died from gang violence.

Stacy Peralta takes viewers into south-Central L.A. and shows how such violence spiraled out of control so quickly, turning into over 40 years of bloodshed. We found this documentary to be informative, interesting to watch and unlike others on the subject matter. Looking back at the 50s and 60s to see what these segregated black communities were like helps to shed light on how a generation of kids felt they had to turn to gangs and why kids in these areas still choose to do so today.

Technorati Tags: Documentary, Horror, Classic Film, Thriller, History, Films, Watch, Netflix, True Crime, IMAX, nature, mockumentary

Release Info:
Theatrical Release: September 24, 2008
DVD Release Date: February 3, 2009
Online Availability: Amazon for $27.99

I am the ultimate musicals connoisseur. I love musicals. I have a musical theatre background. It’s pretty clear that’s why I am the one who had the opportunity to watch and review Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway. I also have seen Rent, live on Broadway. I guess that makes me somewhat of an authority on the show. I also went through a period of my college life where I was addicted to anything and everything Rent related. That makes me the perfect guy to review this DVD.

Truth be told, there will NEVER be a better cast than the original. The cast, which included Taye Diggs, Idina Menzel, Anthony Rapp, Jesse L. Martin, and Adam Pascal have all gone on to do other shows on both Broadway and television. The cast had excellent chemistry and personified the roles they played. The cast I saw was primarily made up of those who replaced the original cast, but it was still very exciting and unlike any other performance I’ve seen on stage, to date.

I was looking forward to seeing Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway. I knew it was a filming of the final production of Rent, so I wanted to celebrate this remarkable show. Come to find out, I’m really disappointed in this Blu Ray. Not only is Rent no longer on Broadway, a show that was on stage for over 12 years, but I felt the cast, the final cast, didn’t do Jonathan Larson or his musical justice. It’s the casting that I have the biggest problem with, because I know the musical and I love it. There were performers who couldn’t sing the actual part so they sang up in another octave, which ruined the songs, in my opinion.

The actors just didn’t fit with the vision Larson created for Rent. Their own interpretation of the characters really sucked. You will never experience a show like you will when actually watching it from the audience. Still, the Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway Blu Ray didn’t make me even want to see this group on stage. If this group had been the original cast, I don’t believe the show would have been a success and it’s sad to see how their sub par singing and over the top acting ruined a wonderful, Broadway creation that I hold near and dear to my heart.

The Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway Plot
I could tell you the plot to Rent in my sleep. I’ve heard the songs a million times. I’ve listened to the original soundtrack so many times I can’t even count that high. I’ve seen this show in the “Rent” theater, on Broadway (well technically off the side street to Broadway) and I’ve enjoyed sharing this show with my family and friends. I’m very sad that Rent has ended its run on Broadway. I only hope one day the show can be revived, with a deserving cast.

Rent is a rock opera more than a musical. It parallels La Bohème, the opera by Puccini in many ways. It’s easy to see that Jonathan Larson, the creator of Rent, was inspired by the opera. Larson even uses the music of “Musetta’s Waltz” as a central theme that plays throughout the entire show. Of course, this modern day show is about a group of New York “bohemians” living in the village, with AIDS, poor, and some are facing the oppression of being gay, lesbian or bisexual. The primary cast is made up of seven interconnected friends and their one mutual enemy.

Rent is centered around the storytelling of filmmaker Mark Cohen. He is roommates with Roger Davis, a musician who has HIV. Roger contracted the virus from his girlfriend and found out after she committed suicide. The two once lived with Mark’s now ex-girlfriend, Maureen Johnson, a singer and performer who cares about human rights. She’s also a shameless flirt who dumped Mark to date a lawyer, Joanne Jefferson. The three also once lived with on and off professor of philosophy/anarchist, Tom Collins. Tom has AIDS, and he’s back in town after getting kicked out of MIT, where he taught/performed anarchist-like stunts.

At the beginning of the show, we learn that Mark and Roger live in a dingy apartment with no heat, occasional electricity and various other problems. The last roommate they had was Benny or Benjamin Coffin III, now that he’s married into money. Benny lets them live there, rent free, but he’s changing his mind, now that he’s going to be tearing down the lot nearby where homeless people live. He tells the guys they can stay in their apartment in the building he now owns, if they stop Maureen from protesting in the lot later that evening. Mark and Roger won’t agree because they are actually on Maureen’s side.

Tom is stopping by to visit around the same time, but he gets mugged and beat up. He is found by a drag queen named Angel Dumott Schunard, who also has AIDS. Angel takes Tom home, and tends to his wounds before they head over to Mark and Roger’s place. Angel has just scored big on the street, as a street percussionist, so she’ll be taking everyone out after Maureen’s show. In the meantime, Mark has to go fix Maureen’s equipment for the protest. Joanne has become her new stage manager, but doesn’t know what she’s doing. Mark warns Joanne about Maureen’s roaming eyes, actually making himself feel better as he fixes the mic, something Joanne cannot do.

Back at home, Roger meets the new neighbor, Mimi Márquez, a 19 year old who is addicted to smack, has HIV, and also works at a kinky sex club. The power has gone out and she’s in need of a “light” for her candle. She is attracted to Roger and he is to her, but he was badly hurt by his ex, April, so he’s shut just about everyone out, including Mark.

As Maureen’s performance approaches, Joanne grows nervous, because Maureen does flirt. Of course, Maureen makes it clear she loves Joanne, even if everyone is always staring at her. This only appeases Joanne for so long. As the performance goes off well, ending in a riot, Mark has the potential to sell his footage for profit. Roger struggles with his feelings for Mimi, especially since she’s still addicted to smack. Maureen and Joanne must deal with Joanne’s insecurity and jealousy, though much of it is warranted due to Maureen’s flirtatious nature. As Tom and Angel struggle with the effects of having AIDS, the two fall in love, and provide hope to all their friends, in the process.

Storyline/Plot: 5 out of 5 stars
Replayability: 0 out of 5 stars
Acting: 1 out of 5 stars
Singing: 0 out of 5 stars
Directing: 4 out of 5 stars

Audio/Visual:
Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway looks acceptable though I don’t know that it represents Blu-ray in the best way possible. The strong vibrancy that comes with Blu-ray isn’t really here and it makes for just a standard presentation. The colors are fine, though the blacks have a tendency to occasionally look a little drab. The skin tones look natural, which is good and it’s easy to see the detail in their faces, especially because the director loved to fill the screen with close-ups more than anything. Things like sweat are easily visible on the cast during their performance. People that loved this cast shouldn’t find major problems with this transfer, but Blu-ray lovers will find much more to complain about overall.

Like the video, the 5.1 Dolby TrueHD leaves a lot to be desired. The sound is clean and manages to handle itself in a basic sense, but it’s not as strong and explosive as it could have been. For a live theatrical performance that has been put on Blu-ray there isn’t much to complain about. The music sounds fine. I would have loved to hear it as strong as it would have been live, in person, but being that I am by no means fond of this cast, I won’t complain too much. I would just hope that in future live musical performances studios would learn the importance of top notch, flawless audio. Rent, even with this cast, deserved much better. Subtitles are available in English and French.

Visual: 3 out of 5 stars
Audio: 2.5 out of 5 stars

Bonus Features:
There are a number of special features here. Maybe I would be able to appreciate that assuming I liked the cast, but being that I didn’t I had a hard time dealing with a lot of the repetition found here. Some of these are good and if you like the cast you will probably love most of them. Still, how much you favor them will depend on your overall feelings for this cast for Rent.

“Rent: The Final Days on Broadway” – This documentary looks at the last week of performances before Rent ended its run on Broadway. The documentary is led by a number of people from cast to producers and the director. They discuss the overall impact this musical has had on the world, the tragic death of the writer, and plenty of things in between. In this segment, it also is explained that while it was filmed “live” the majority of scenes were shot sans audience in case any re-shooting needed to be done.

“The Final Curtain Call” – Cast members from the past listen to the final number behind the scenes and when it’s finally over they head on stage to sing Seasons of Love one last time with the current cast. It was nice to see some of the old crew, from Rent. I only wish they’d have been in the actual show!

“The Wall” – This six minute feature looks at the wall outside of the Nederlander Theater. This is a spot where Rent fans are able to write their feelings about the show and say goodbye.

“The Final Lottery” – This interesting process details how producers offered a daily lottery for front row seats at Rent. This process allowed people that could have never afforded tickets, to see Rent for $20 a seat. This feature just explains the process for the final show and lets the excited winners have a say.

“National Marfan Foundation PSA” – Anthony Rapp takes a minute of his time (literally) to explain what Marfan Syndrome is and how you can tell if you have it. This is the affliction that led to the death of Jonathan Larson.

“Jonathan Larson Performing Arts Foundation PSA” – This is a short PSA for the composer of Rent, Jonathan Larson. This includes some information about the Foundation that helps theater professionals in their time of need.

“Casting” – This eight minute feature looks at cast members and the audition process for Rent. The producers and director also appear to talk about how hard casting has been from the original cast until now.

“Home” – This is all about the Nederlander Theater, the place where Rent lived in its 12 year run. The theater was actually empty for three years before Rent moved in, but it’s seemed like home ever since.

The only thing left is a series of trailers for I’ve Loved You so Long, Saarwariya, Across the Universe, Passengers, The Wackness, Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist, and Rachel Getting Married.

Bonus Features: 4 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line:
Neither the movie by Chris Columbus or Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway can capture the true essence of this show, as it once was on Broadway. Still, if I had to pick a favorite of the two DVDs listed above, it’d be Columbus’ Rent. Sure, it has some film adaptations that the show didn’t have on Broadway, but the original cast own their roles and it’s enough to make a true fan nostalgic. I’m sorry, but no one beats Idina Menzel as Maureen. That’s just the way it is.

Still, Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway suffers from far too many flaws for me to take it seriously. When I go to see a show, I expect the performers to actually be able to sing. I consider myself someone with a good ear when it comes to music (considering I’ve had 16+ years of training), so I know good when I hear good. I didn’t hear good in this production. The sad thing is that this show is the one that suffers from the poor casting. I can’t recommend Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway. I can’t send you to Broadway anymore to see the show either, so the only advice I can give is to purchase the original Broadway cast recording, instead. I’ve worn my CD pretty much out, but it’s been worth it to hear the best singers and actors for the job perform the songs Jonathan Larson wrote for them.

Overall Rating: 2.44 out of 5 stars

Technorati Tags: Rent, Filmed Live on Broadway, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, Jonathan Larson, Musicals, Blu-ray

Release Info:
Theatrical Release: 2008
DVD Release Date: January 20, 2009
Online Availability: Amazon for $18.99

“You know you want it baby! Geneco’s Got it!”

Have you ever started off loathing a movie before seeing it only to find that it becomes your favorite movie of the year? The idea of Repo! The Genetic Opera, to me, prior to seeing it was something similar to a train wreck. Maybe it was the inclusion of Paris Hilton that bothered me, but I really thought there was no way they were going to pull this one off. I have faith in Bousman and I absolutely adore the Saw franchise, but I didn’t think he could do it this time.

I didn’t understand how Hilton could be in a musical because she cannot sing well enough to accommodate the needs of something like that. Furthermore, I didn’t understand why seasoned vets like Sarah Brightman and Paul Sorvino would want to be in a movie that Hilton would be sure to butcher. Well, when I am wrong, I will admit it. Bousman has my utmost respect for playing things out the way he did. He gave Hilton a part straight out of most anti-fans minds and hearts. It couldn’t have been better if I had thought of it myself. Needless to say, no one could have been better for the part than Ms. Hilton was.

It took precisely one watching of Repo for me to become addicted to it. The music is infectious and gets into your head. It demands to be heard or you go around humming it every day. Then again, you do that with some songs whether you hear them or not. “Zydrate Anatomy” for example, just sits in my head all day long and I go around singing it. Hell, I even tried to find it as a ringtone for a Verizon cellphone, but have been unsuccessful so far. It would be well used if I found it though.

Terrance Zdunich is the co-writer of Repo and he also stars on screen as the Graverobber. Prior to this movie (and even during it, for a brief period) I had no clue that Zdunich existed. I ended up looking up his name because I had to know who the Graverobber was. He rarely acts, though I hope to see him in more things in the future. His character, the Graverobber, was one of my favorite characters and Zdunich is one hell of a singer.

Paul Sorvino shocked me because I’d never heard him sing before. In the first couple of numbers they have him speaking to the beat and then out of nowhere he just starts singing. I think my mouth dropped. I can easily see why Sorvino was chosen for the role of Rotti Largo. The same can be said for Sarah Brightman, who stars as Blind Mag, though I knew she could sing prior to hearing her in this movie. Of course, I do have to say she looks amazing in Repo. It seems as she ages she just continues to get better looking. It’s entirely odd, but it’s certainly nothing to complain about.

Bill Moseley could not have been handed a better part if they had wrote one for him. Luigi Largo is a temperamental maniac that is out for blood. The character had Moseley’s name all over it. I only remember ever seeing him in Rob Zombie movies, in which he plays characters similar to Luigi, but more bloodthirsty and less musically inclined. His character is a huge source of amusement though and I was definitely glad to see him in this.

Huge props need to be given to Anthony Stewart Head who manages to pull off two sides and voices when playing the father (Nathan) and the Repo man. He goes from being caring to sadistic in the same song. Then there is Alexa Vega. I was told she was in the Spy Kids movies, but I have to confess I don’t remember her. I will be looking out for her in the future thanks to Repo. Not only was she fabulous at portraying her emotions and all of the bottled up angst you would expect the character of Shilo to have, she was also a really pleasant singer. I couldn’t have been happier with the casting choices Bousman made and I will make an effort not to doubt him in the future.

I recognize that this movie will not be for everyone. It has a tendency to be gruesome. There is murder all around, drug addiction, and manipulation. Still, Cult Classics are so rare these days. It seems they are even rarer when they come out of the gate as a cult classic and you know that’s what they will become. Repo already has a cult following and I suspect it will only get bigger. Some believe that it will rival that of the Rocky Horror. I cannot say that to be sure, though I can tell you, I once used to go around humming “Time Warp” and now it’s on to “Zydrate Anatomy.”

The truth of the matter is, they don’t make movies like Repo anymore. I think that’s the main reason that I love it so much.

The Repo! The Genetic Opera Plot
Repo can be summed up in a series of words which I will give you before fleshing out the plot. If you do not like movies with these words then you will probably not like this movie.

Love. Hate. Revenge. Repossession. Obsession. Betrayal. Heartbreak. Opera. Seclusion. Fury. Addiction.

In the not to near future, a virus kills off much of the population. People need to be saved or the human race will die off. Rotti Largo (Sorvino) and Geneco are the cure. Geneco is able to offer surgery to replace what faulty genetics have put in your body. Need a new kidney? No problem! Can’t walk? Just pick up a spine and you will be on your legs in hours. However, as time went on surgery became more of a fashion statement. You could change everything about yourself in the blink of an eye. You might think surgery for sport would hurt, but thanks to the manufactured painkiller, Zydrate, patients feel no pain.

The rules of the game are simple. Geneco and it’s founder will help you get all the surgery that you need and a lot that you don’t. Financing is available so things like upfront payments are not important. As long as you make your payments you are fine and can live with all the surgeries that you have had. However, if you forfeit on a payment (even one), the Repo man comes and takes back whatever the surgeons put in.

Rotti Largo is the most important man in the world thanks to his genetic advances, but not even those advances can help save his life. Largo has cancer and is lost about who to leave Geneco to because all three of his children are utter morons. Amber Sweet (Hilton) is a terrible singer that is self-obsessed and hooked on surgery and street Zydrate (the big drug on the street, harvested from dead people that had taken the actual drug while living). Luigi Largo (Moseley) is filled with rage and not very smart about it. This is a guy that will stab you in the neck if you make his coffee wrong. Finally, Pavi Largo (Ogre) is a face snatching love machine with little self-control. They are all addicted to surgery and they are all idiots.

On the opposite end of the spectrum you have Nathan (Anthony Stewart Head), a devoted widow to Marni, and loving father to seventeen year old Shilo (Vega). Marni died in childbirth due to a blood disease that was passed on to Shilo. Since Shilo was a child she had to be sequestered to save her life. Nathan makes sure that no one gets in or out to see her, though she occasionally sneaks out to her mother’s tomb while her father, the doctor, is working. What Shilo doesn’t know is that her father has a terrible secret. He is also the Repo Man. He works for Rotti, repossessing body parts. He does this so Shilo never has to learn the truth about what he did to her mother.

On the night of the Genetic Opera, Rotti has a plan to go out with a bang. He can fix years of pain on his part and finally get revenge on Nathan for stealing his fiancee, Marni, away. Blind Mag (Brightman) will perform for the last time and then when she is finished, Rotti will end the evening with a bang. That is, if everything goes according to his plans.

Storyline/Plot: 5 out of 5 stars
Replayability: 5 out of 5 stars
Acting: 5 out of 5 stars
Directing: 5 out of 5 stars

Audio/Visual:
Early in the movie a doctor is shot through the head and the blood and guts fly quickly out through the back of his skull in the prettiest pattern you ever did see. When you see something like that and you find it beautiful, you know that you’re in for a visual treat. Offering a 1.85:1 aspect ratio, Repo is one of the nicest looking Blu-rays that I have seen recently. A comic book feel is present at times with bright, strong colors, and major amounts of detail. When the movie is current and not in comic book mode it looks even better. The slightest speck is visible.

You can count the stitches on a surgery patient or see the definition of the veins on a person’s body that is missing skin. As detailed as it is, at times you feel like you’re in a dream. There is this overtly powerful softness to it that you notice especially when you see Shilo without her wig. However, it is this softness that allows you to see her head is bald, not the truth, that Vega is wearing a cap. The majority of the film appears to have been shot in HD and it shows. The dark colors draw you in easily and the blues simply pop off the camera. Even the dingy backdrop of the world looks good in it’s own way. It certainly fills every necessary need to push this movie forward and make it even better.

At the end of the day though it is going to be the audio that is absolutely necessary here. After all, this is an opera we’re talking about. Without good audio this movie was going to be in some serious trouble. The audio specs for Repo include DTS-HD MA 7.1. You don’t have to know what that means to know that the movie sounds absolutely incredible. There is no way that Bousman could have allowed anything less. An opera isn’t going to sound good if the channels aren’t proportioned right or if everything is weakly defined where audio is concerned. The majority of the movie is sung. I think all in all there might be a few lines spoken, but they are rare. The music not only sounds good, but offers an intense and emotional backdrop to the story. This backdrop is filled with strength and more intense emotions when you add in the lyrics and the voices of the actors in Repo. While the visuals certainly sold me, the real prize has to go to the audio in this set.

Visual: 5 out of 5 stars
Audio: 5 out of 5 stars

Bonus Features:
The DVD copy had some good features and while those are still here, additional features have been added to appease the Blu-ray crowd. There are some simple offerings, such as the theatrical trailer and the poster gallery. Still, there are a number of other excellent offerings including the two audio commentaries and a few featurettes. I’m also quite partial to the Sing Alongs, which we will discuss in a minute.

As far as the two commentaries are concerned, the first contains Bousman, Vega, Ogre, and Moseley. It is a laugh fest to say the least. There is a good time to be had here and it includes singing occasionally. You can expect to hear a lot of stories about how poor the budget was for Repo. A personal favorite is when Bousman talks about how he tried to trick the set makers on Saw IV into making things that he could later recycle for Repo. Vega’s need for mints and Alka-Seltzer and the fact that no one noticed that a set caught on fire are two other funny things you can expect to hear.

The second commentary includes Bousman, Zdunich, Smith, and Joseph Bishara. I was excited about this one merely because I wanted to hear what Zdunich would add. This commentary pays the most attention to the music in the film. You never hear these guys become too technical, which will be nice for most people. If you have time to listen to this I highly recommend you do so. It’s awesome to hear how these guys went out of their way to market this film on their own (Bousman is on my Twitter and I recall several Repo tweets) when the studio didn’t bother to do anything today. It’s really a shame they didn’t as I am sure that it would have been worth it to them. Either way, these commentaries are some of the best that I have ever sat through.

Paris Hilton might not have been in either of the commentaries, but she is available with Bousman on various scenes that include optional commentary. The songs that have Hilton commentary are “Zydrate Anatomy”, “Blame Not My Cheeks”, and “Happiness is Not a Warm Scalpel.” “Who Ordered Pizza” also includes some commentary. This is not nearly as good as the other commentaries. It’s mainly Bousman pushing Hilton to talk through questions. It was interesting to hear her talk about how she had to sing bad on purpose though.

Six minutes of deleted scenes are also included here in the form of two musical numbers that were never finished. “Come Up and Try My New Parts” is Sweet’s invitation to the Graverobber when she is trying to get some of his Street Zydrate and “Needle Through a Bug” deals with Shilo and the Graverobber. The first song was too similar to “Zydrate Anatomy” which is why they axed it and “Bug” just didn’t work it’s way into the film. Also included are “Buon Giorno”, which is most easily described as an introduction to the Opera and “Graverobber and Shilo escape” and well I am sure you can figure that one out. All of these scenes include more commentary with Bousman and Hilton.

“From Stage to Screen” is a ten minute look at everything that went into making Repo the cult classic that is was destined to become. Everything from production issues to music and a crap budget are discussed. You get some cast and crew interviews, too. It would have been nice to see this as a longer, fleshed out featurette, but for what it’s worth it is good.

Three webisodes for three of the most popular songs in Repo, “Chase the Morning”, “Zydrate Anatomy”, and “Legal Assassin” are also included. Web promos usually make for bad additions, but these actually offer a good deal of information. You get to see rehearsal footage, art, casting information, and plenty of more Repo tidbits that make these worth watching.

Things are wrapped up with my favorite feature of all, the Sing-a-Long tracks. These tracks allow you to follow the bouncing heart and sing with the music that Repo made cultishly popular. The songs offered here are “Zydrate Anatomy”, “Legal Assassin”, “Chase the Morning”, and “We Started This Op’ra Shit”.

Bonus Features: 5 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line:
If you have access to a Blu-ray player I highly recommend purchasing Repo! The Genetic Opera. It looks good on DVD but it’s simply amazing on Blu-ray. I have watched this at least four times since I put it in to review it. The music is infectious and the performances are all worthy of praise, even Paris Hilton’s as much as it pains me to say that. This is one movie you are guaranteed to not forget once you see it.

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Technorati Tags: Repo The Genetic Opera, DVD, Alexa Vega, DVD Review, Lions Gate, Alexa Vega, Musical, Sarah Brightman, Paris Hilton

Movie Info:

Release Info:
Theatrical Release: 2008
DVD Release Date: January 20, 2009
Online Availability: Amazon for $13.99

“Zydrate comes in a little glass vial…”

I’m the musicals expert in my household. I spent years studying musical theatre as a student in college, a performer in shows, and a classically trained singer. All in all, I studied for over 16 years. That’s over half my life. I like to think I know a few things about musicals. In fact, I’ve spent the last six years getting my girlfriend into them. She has good taste, so it hasn’t been that hard.

There are many different types of musicals. There are the sunshine and roses, Rodgers and Hammerstein style of musicals. The cherry sounding music and somewhat controversial (for their time) stories have made these timeless classics. There are the rock opera style musicals, like Tommy, which features music by The Who. There are the socially conscious musicals, like Rent, which look at the time period in which they are set and speak to a socially conscious musical audience. Finally, there are the cult classics.

Cult musicals really don’t fit into a category. There aren’t many of these musicals out there. One undeniable cult classic is The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Another I believe has cultish qualities is Godspell. I’m not sure what it is about this musical. Maybe its the idea of Jesus in a superman outfit. Whatever it is, this musical is beyond the norm. If I had to place Repo!: The Genetic Opera anywhere on the musical spectrum, it would be in the cult section. This movie/musical is cultishly addicting. It’s cultishly delightful. It makes the musical lover in me squishy all over. It’s just that kind of movie!

Repo!: The Genetic Opera is surprisingly well acted. The vocal talent is superb. The weakest link vocally is Alexa Vega, who plays the main character, Shilo Wallace. Alexa’s voice is young, fresh, and fits the part, but I wouldn’t wish to see her in a more musically intensive role. She couldn’t be appearing on Broadway with the type of voice we hear in Repo!: The Genetic Opera, unless the movie made its way to Broadway (which would totally rock). However, her voice is sweet, and the occasional off tune moments for her are actually an endearing part of her character. What Vega lacks in vocal prowess is made up in her superb acting ability. This is a girl who has been steadily acting since she was a small child and it’s easy to see why.

Alexa’s innocent, charming performance is countered by astounding talent. The vocal abilities of Anthony Stewart Head, in the dual role of Shilo’s doctor/father Nathan and the Repo Man, Sarah Brightman as Blind Mag, the star of the Genetic Opera, and Paul Sorvino, as the greedy head of Geneco, Rotti Largo, put all the other performances to shame. Okay, that isn’t quite true. Terrance Zdunich, the co-writer of Repo!, who also plays the Graverobber, is a show stealer. His comedic timing, his vocal ability, and his character appeal make him the fan favorite of this movie for best performance by an actor. Still, the aforementioned actors bring it vocally unlike any others, and their acting is far superior to performances I’ve seen in other movies.

While I can’t say their vocal ability is perfect, especially since many of their lines are spoke-sang, Paris Hilton, as Amber Sweet, Bill Moseley as Luigi Largo and Nivek Ogre as Pavi Largo are perfectly cast as the three children of Rotti Largo. It doesn’t matter if you love or hate Paris. You will LOVE her in a role that was designed for her. Bill Moseley is an outstanding actor, who owns the role of Luigi. This part had to be written with him and mind. As for Ogre, who doesn’t love him? He makes the perfect face stealer in this movie. The casting works perfectly and that’s what truly makes the movie.

The undeniable appeal of Repo!: The Genetic Opera is a combination between addicting songs that get in your head, an original and engaging story and plot, a perfectly cast movie, and outstanding direction by Darren Lynn Bousman. I wasn’t sure what to expect with Repo!: The Genetic Opera. The musical lover in me wanted to check it out, but I had no idea I’d love this musical nearly as much as I do.

The Repo!: The Genetic Opera Plot
The world in which Repo! is set is somewhere around 2030. It’s in the future, but not too far. A mysterious illness hits the world and people begin to die. Their only hope is organ transplants. Genetics expert, Rotti Largo (Paul Sorvino) uses his company Geneco, to help people get the organs they need. With payment plans, anyone can afford an organ donation through Geneco. Eventually, this turns into less of a need and more of a fad.

At the same time, Rotti has developed a drug, Zydrate. It makes sure that people will want more surgery, because it makes sure they don’t feel a thing. Of course it is highly addicting. Grave robbers steal a street version of it, by sucking it out of dead people who have taken the drug. Geneco must patrol the streets to keep the Graverobbers from stealing the drug. Also, Rotti has manipulated Congress into passing a bill that allows for organ repossession. If someone is late on a payment, Rotti is legally allowed to repossess their organs, killing them in the process. A Repo man is sent to remove the organ and take it back to be used by another.

Each of the main characters of Repo!: The Genetic Opera has their own story. Their stories are all interlinked to make one major story that’s actually quite disturbing.

Shilo
The main character is really Shilo Wallace (Alexa Vega). All of the stories tend to revolve around her. She’s 17 and has been locked (sequestered) in her bedroom due to a rare blood disease she inherited from her mother, Marni. Shilo believes her mother died in childbirth, but that’s really not the truth. Her father is Nathan (Anthony Stewart Head) who leads a double life as the Repo Man.

Nathan
Nathan is a doctor and dad to Shilo, as well as leading a secret life as the Repo Man. He works for Rotti because he believes that he killed Marni. Desperate to save her life, Nathan gave Marni what he believed was a cure. It ended up killing her, but Nathan managed to save Shilo as Marni lay there dying. He’s overprotective of Shilo because the thought of losing her is too hard to bear.

Rotti
Not only is he the head of Geneco and the father of Amber Sweet, Luigi and Pavi Largo, but he also was once engaged to Marni. Rotti is dying and he can’t find a way to save himself. He has more than a few secrets, including who he plans to leave Geneco to when he dies.

Blind Mag
Blind Mag (Sarah Brightman) was Marni’s best friend. She was introduced to Rotti when she was still blind. Rotti gave her eye transplants so she could see. Now that she’s no longer blind, Blind Mag realizes her contract, as the figure-voice of Geneco and the voice of the Genetic Opera, has been signed in blood. If she leaves, she forfeits her eyes. Blind Mag believes Shilo died in childbirth with Marni, but is shocked to learn that she is alive, as she is her Godmom.

Amber, Luigi and Pavi
The children of Rotti all have their issues. Amber can’t sing. She’s addicted to both surgery and Zydrate, which she buys off the street from the grave robber. Luigi has a terrible temper, yet he’s sure Rotti is leaving Geneco to him. He’s just counting down the days until his dad dies. Pavi is a terrible thief. He steals people’s faces. He’s also into the ladies, who all seem to like him, even though it’s clear he’s a freak.

Graverobber
The Graverobber is pretty much the narrator of the story. He’s linked to many of the characters. Rotti wants to arrest and kill him. Amber buys her drugs off of him. He spends much of the movie guiding Shilo through the outside world, a place she has to sneak out to visit. He also provides much of the information about the story to the audience and Shilo.

Repo!: The Genetic Opera goes between comic book style and a graphic novel 300-esque movie. It’s all very over the top and that works for this film!

Storyline/Plot: 5 out of 5 stars
Replayability: 5 out of 5 stars
Acting: 5 out of 5 stars
Directing: 5 out of 5 stars

Audio/Visual:
Repo sports a 1.78:1 transfer and it looks fantastic. The anamorphic widescreen transfer has never looked better in a DVD format. In fact, the only thing that looks better than this movie is Repo in Blu-ray. There is a futuristic, comic book feel to this so it’s a visual treat. Of course, this was made by the makers of Saw so you can expect plenty of dark, dirty looking scenes with an excellent color palette. All of the colors are deep and lush against normally gray or black backdrops. The level of detail and overall quality here is just excellent.

The sound for Repo was particularly important because it is a musical. The call for a good track was handled with Dolby Digital 5.1. When it comes to DVD it’s not going to get better than this. The music sounded great and the standard dialogue passes with flying colors. It’s always as dramatic and dynamic as it needs to be, which adds even more to the basic music sound. In addition to standard English audio there is Closed Captioning and subtitles in both English and Spanish.

Visual: 5 out of 5 stars
Audio: 5 out of 5 stars

Bonus Features:
There are not very many special features here, but what is here is definitely worth looking at and listening to if you’re a fan of the movie. You receive two commentaries and two featurettes, one shorter and one a little bit longer. The theatrical trailer is also included though that’s not a huge draw where special features are concerned.

The main commentary features Bousman with Alexa Vega, Nivek Ogre, and Bill Moseley. This is a fun track to listen to. It’s nice to see actors so into their work. It’s not uncommon, especially in the beginning of this track to hear the actors break into song. Of course, eventually Bousman does call for some order and he gets down to business. He talks about the film shoot and other details of filming and it’s pretty interesting overall. The most vocal of the actors has to be Vega who also adds plenty to this commentary.

The second commentary includes Bousman, the co-creators Zdunich and Smith, and the music producer Joseph Bishara. This is a more technical track that talks about the production as a whole and how it moved to film. There are some things that you will recognize from the first track but this one ends up being more filmmaker friendly and worthwhile in terms of true information. All in all, it’s definitely worth a listen.

“From Stage to Screen” includes close to eleven minutes of behind the scenes footage. All of the information is pretty interesting, so I found it slightly disappointing that it wasn’t longer. You receive a Repo history lesson along with information about production issues and there are various interviews with cast and crew.

Finally, “Legal Assassin: A Repo Man on the Edge” is just a quick overview of the story and the achievements of the cast. At four minutes this should have been longer to be done right. Either way, there is a decent set of features here.

Bonus Features: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line:
Repo!: The Genetic Opera is a new musical for a new era. This musical is addictingly good. I can see it on Broadway and the cult following will make it nearly as popular as Rocky Horror. So, get some popcorn, your voice warmed up and make sure you have your DVD player handy. It’s time for a little “Zydate Anatomy” and “Chase the Morning” when Repo!: The Genetic Opera is put in your player. Pick this up in Blu Ray or regular DVD. Repo!: The Genetic Opera is one of the top DVDs to be released, so far, this year. I’d be a fool NOT to recommend it.

Overall Rating: 4.93 out of 5 stars

Technorati Tags: Repo The Genetic Opera, DVD, Alexa Vega, DVD Review, Lions Gate, Alexa Vega, Musical, Sarah Brightman, Paris Hilton

TV Show Info:

Release Info:
Theatrical Release Date: July 18, 2008
DVD Release Date: December 16, 2008
Online Availability: Amazon for $22.99

Long has the time passed since musicals were made on a regular basis. In the 1960s and 1970s, many of Broadway’s top shows were converted into film sensations. Some were highly successful, like the beloved classic, The Sound of Music. Others, weren’t quite as successful and were more corn fed than anything. So, in this day in age, it’s rare to see a full fledged musical adapted to movie.

I’d never seen Mamma Mia! on or off Broadway. I used to be in the scene, being a former theatre geek, who also happens to know how to sing. I just never got to see this show. That being said, I was both apprehensive and nervous about seeing this movie. First, most of the cast is made up of actors I respect. C’mon Meryl Streep and Bootstrap Bill in the same movie? How cool! Second, who knew if any of them could sing or not? Singing is kind of important in a musical, after all.

I’ll be honest, the singing is a bit hit or miss. There are a few cringe worthy moments, especially for Pierce Brosnan. No offense to Pierce. I liked him as Sam, but I wish they would have had someone else sing for him. During certain songs when he is singing solo, it sounds like he has a chicken bone stuck in his throat and he’s trying to regurgitate it as he sings.

Seriously, Pierce should have had someone sing for him. I can only blame the director for this one. Of course, while I spent a few moments cringing, it wasn’t so bad it ruined this energetic, fun movie for me. On the contrary, I quite enjoyed it. I just recommend putting on the subtitles while he sings and buying earplugs, just so you don’t get embarrassed (for him) listening to his garbling.

The biggest surprise for me was the fact that the gorgeous, talented Amanda Seyfried has an amazingly angelic voice. I love her on Big Love and also loved in Mean Girls. From the first strains of “I Have a Dream”, until the closing credits, Amanda impressed me greatly. As a trained vocalist, who is quite picky about singing, I don’t know what her critics are talking about when they say her singing “needs work”. In fact, next to veterans, Julie Walters and Christine Baranski (both of whom have beautiful voices) Amanda is the best, most consistent vocalist in this movie.

That’s not to say that Meryl Streep wasn’t excellent. In certain songs, especially “The Winner Takes It All”, Meryl shows a robust musical palette. In fact, I like Meryl as a belter, more than as a casual, pop style singer. Her voice is the strongest in those belting moments and she far surpasses expectations of how magnificent her singing is. By the same token, there are moments where she strains her voice and some songs just aren’t suited for her range. Still, her performance in this movie, as an actress especially, is nothing short of brilliant.

While I’m on the topic of vocal prowess, how about Colin Firth? What a pleasantly British, almost choir-angelic voice he has! He was the best singer of the older men, and while it’s pretty obvious he’s not a professional singer, I still enjoyed hearing him sing “Our Last Summer.” Speaking of men, Dominic Cooper, an unknown to me prior to this movie, has a swell voice. He’s the best male vocalist overall and he rocks it with Amanda Seyfried. While most of these actors aren’t professional singers, some of them sure convinced me that it is time for them to sign a record deal!

The Mamma Mia! Plot
Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) is getting married on Skopelos, the Greek island where she grew up. There, she lives with her mother, Donna Sheridan (Meryl Streep) and helps her run her mother’s hotel resort, Villa Donna. At the beginning of the movie, Sophie is mailing out three invitations to her wedding. She is nervous and hopeful, as she puts the invitations into the mail and she sings the song “I Have a Dream” to reflect her hopeful nature for these invites.

The next day, Sophie meets her best friends, Ali (Ashley Lilley) and Lisa (Rachel McDowall), who are also her bridesmaids, at the dock. She is excited, as she tells them she has found her mother’s journal from the year she was pregnant with her. The girls are shocked to learn that three possible men could be Sophie’s  father, and Sophie has invited all of them to the wedding, without telling Donna she knows any of this or what she’s done.

The three possible fathers are Sam Carmichael (Pierce Brosnan), a businessman who Donna fell in love with, until he returned to England because he was engaged to another woman, who he planned to marry. Devastated, Donna met an intriguing man who is now a banker named, Harry Bright (Colin Firth). Harry wasn’t Sam, but he was exciting enough to take her mind off of her lost love. After Harry, Donna fell for a rebellious wanderer, Bill Austin (Stellan Skarsgard). The hardcore romance fizzled and Donna ended up pregnant. Whenever Sophie has asked in the past about her father, Donna only tells Sophie the man was her summer love, but truthfully Donna doesn’t know who Sophie’s father is.

Sophie has shocked her friends, but there isn’t much time for exploring this, since her wedding to Sky (Dominic Cooper), who helps run the hotel with Sophie and Donna, is the next day. Donna’s two best friends, Tonya (Christine Baranski) and Rosie (Julie Walters), show up to help with the wedding preparations. They used to be Donna’s bandmates (Donna and the Dynamos). The chemistry between these three actresses is remarkable, and you can believe they are all best friends outside this movie.

It isn’t long after this that Sam, Harry, and Bill arrive, on Harry’s boat. They’ve all missed the last ferry to the island, so Harry takes them across on his yacht. None of them know their true purpose in coming to Sophie’s wedding; that they might be her father. When they arrive, Sophie tries valiantly to keep them hidden from Donna. She also is upset, because she thought she’d know her father when she saw him, but she doesn’t. Thus begins the hilarity, as Sophie tries to keep the men from Donna and Sky from finding out what she’s done before she can tell him herself.

Mamma Mia! is silly in many parts. There are some laugh out loud moments, and the music is ABBA inspired pop-goodness. Seriously, this high energy movie can’t keep anyone depressed for long. While there are a few choice flaws to this movie, particularly where the singing occurs for Pierce, and the excitement levels are at the beginning (seriously, do women really act that way when they get together?!), the overall, campy, gooey-ness makes the musical lover in me all squishy soft.

Storyline/Plot: 4 out of 5 stars
Replayability: 5 out of 5 stars
Acting: 5 out of 5 stars
Overall Singing: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Directing: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Audio/Visual:
You’d expect Mamma Mia! to have this magical quality visually and this is just emphasized by the soft, ethereal quality to the film’s video. Mamma Mia! is presented in a 2.40:1, anamorphic widescreen format. The outdoor location is stunning and it shows up that way in the presentation. While colors are vibrant, the level of saturation suffers during indoor scenes, and the black levels do not have as much depth as they should. The outdoor moments are spectacular, though the transfer has minor compression errors. There aren’t really any other visual problems, but for a new, feature film, the transfer was slightly disappointing.

A musical relies heavily on its score, so the audio is one of the most important elements of a film like this. The English: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround track suits this movie. It’s robust, vibrant, and energetic, with a full-bodied track and extensive use of the speakers, and all the various sound channels. There is an English Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo, a Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround and a French Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround track, also included. Subtitles are available in English, Spanish, and French.

Visual: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Audio: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Bonus Features:
This is a two disc special edition, for Mamma Mia!, so that means there are a few more bonuses included then in the regular release for the movie. The first disc offers only what is available on the single disc release of the movie. It features a Sing-Along option with On-Screen Lyrics for all 22 Musical Numbers (sing along as you watch the movie in this karaoke style feature), a Deleted Musical Number: “The Name Of The Game” (which featured Bill and Sophie bonding, but is not the best vocal number out there), and a Feature Commentary with Director Phyllida Lloyd.

The commentary is okay, but not the best I’ve heard. It’s a bit dry and boring, which isn’t at all acceptable for a film of this extraordinarily exuberant nature. There is a lot of information about the production, problems it had, and the goals of making this musical into a movie. While film buffs might like this, the average person is going to find it a bit stale for their tastes. Well…at least if they are anything like me.

The second disc is chocked full of even more bonus features. Here is a list and description of everything included on the second disc.

“The Making of Mamma Mia!” – This standard making of featurette comes in at just under a half hour in length. It features interviews, a look into the making of process and a back story/history of this movie production. Fans of ABBA will enjoy the interview with Benny Andersson. This could have been much longer and more in depth, but for what it offers, there is some good stuff here.

“Outtakes” – There is less than two minutes worth of outtakes. I love outtakes, and these are pretty funny.

“Deleted Scenes” – Nearly ten minutes of deleted material is included. There is more information presented on Sky, Sam, Harry, and Bill, all of which has been cut. Other than that, nothing of real importance has been included in this section. I guess that’s why these scenes were deleted.

“Anatomy of a Musical Number: ‘Lay All Your Love on Me’” – One of the biggest numbers in the movie, the musical number is gone over in this short featurette. You’ll get to see what went into filming this number.

“Becoming a Singer” – One of the best, most enjoyable features on this DVD, this featurette is over ten minutes long. It looks at the recording of the movie’s score. It features a look at the actors, most of whom aren’t professional singers. Very interesting stuff here!

“Behind the Scenes with Amanda” – This is shot home video style. It takes you behind the scenes with Amanda Seyfried. It’s a bit silly and pointless, but still rather fun.

“On Location in Greece” – The big dance numbers took place in a sound stage not in Greece. This feature looks into filming in Greece and how to replicate the location on a sound stage.

“A Look Inside Mamma Mia!” – This explores, briefly, ABBA and the band’s legacy. This should have been MUCH longer.

“‘Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!’ Music Video” – This video features Amanda Seyfried.

“Bjorn Ulvaeus Cameo” – A short look into Bjorn, the other half of ABBA that helped to produce this movie.

Bonus Features: 4 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line:
Mamma Mia! is a surprisingly fun film. If you can get past the minor glitches that make the movie less than perfect, you will truly enjoy this movie. With a great story, some of ABBA’s best song, and a great cast, many of whom are decent singers, the movie comes together as a poignant, comedy filled movie, that just might brighten
your day.

Overall Rating: 4.13 out of 5 stars

Technorati Tags: Mamma Mia, DVD Review, Meryl Streep, Amanda Seyfried, musical, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Christine Baranski, Julie Walters

Release Info:
DVD Release Date: October 21, 2008
Online Availability: Amazon for $27.95

I don’t tend to watch many musicals, though the ones that I do find interest in quickly become my favorite movies. Among them are Rent, Little Shop of Horrors, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. I never got a chance to see the play written by Sondheim. The first time I got to see anything concerning this Demon Barber was when it was released on DVD earlier in the year. I think I have been singing “Worst Pies in London” ever since.

It was only the genius of Tim Burton that could have convinced Sondheim to sell the rights to his play. Still he only agreed on the basis that he would have ultimate casting say over the movie. Burton was set on having Johnny Depp in the lead role and that is where he and Sondheim butted heads. Sondheim did not feel that he would be right for the role due to what he perceived as a more rock vocal style. However, upon hearing Depp’s vocal ability he was pleased enough to grant Burton’s wish and place Depp in the lead role.

Helena Bonham Carter was trickier. Some would assume that she only got the role because of her relationship with Tim Burton. The truth is that she beat out numerous big name actresses after taking extensive vocal lessons and sending around a dozen tapes to Sondheim personally. He was pleased with her vocals and was the one to approve her as the love-starved Mrs. Lovett. Sacha Baron Cohen on the other hand, had auditioned for his role specifically for Burton. In order to show off his vocal ability he decided to sing the entire score of Fiddler on the Roof. As you might have guessed, he won the part of Adolfo Pirelli.

Naturally, some changes do exist from play to movie. Some songs have been taken out, but none were added. The ones present and accounted for are “The Worst Pies in London,” “My Friends,” “Epiphany,” “Pretty Women,” “Johanna,” and “Wait.” If you’ve never seen the play then you may not assume that they cut anything out. These songs work perfectly with the story and nothing feels as if it is missing unless you know that it is.

This movie is one of the rare ones that have everything in place. The acting is good, the story is engaging, and the music is phenomenal. The direction is nearly flawless, though I say that as a huge Tim Burton fan, so I could be a bit biased. I suppose it all depends on how you look at it. All I know is that Sweeney Todd made me like Burton a little bit more and it made me stop teasing Dominick for liking musicals, because it turns out I like them more than I though, thanks to this.

The Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Plot
Benjamin Barker (Depp) had it all. He had the love of his wife, Lucy (Laura Michelle Kelly) and a beautiful baby, Johanna (Jayne Wisener). He had a modest business, running a barber shop above Mrs. Lovett’s (Helena Bonham Carter) pie shop on Fleet Street. He had everything he could ever want and life was good. However, Barker was naive to think that something this good could stay that way forever. The nefariously evil Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman) envied what Barker possessed, so he set out to take it.

Turpin created some charges and had Barker shipped off to Australia. He took Lucy and Johanna for his own and even raped Lucy in hopes of making her his wife. Lucy’s love always did belong to Benjamin though so she poisoned herself rather than live without her true love. Johanna became a ward of Turpin’s where she was locked away from the streets of London, in hopes of keeping her for his own.

Once Johanna is grown, Barker (hardened after many years away) hitches a ride back to London with a sailor named Anthony (Jamie Campbell Bower). Barker has changed considerably though and is no longer going by the name Benjamin Barker. Instead, he has transformed into Sweeney Todd. Upon returning, he heads to Mrs. Lovett’s pie shop. She tells him of the unfortunate news about his wife and daughter before going up to his old shop and giving him his razors, prompting him to reopen his shop.

Soon, Todd is out for revenge. Though Turpin is on the top of the hit list, Todd soon learns that no one is truly innocent. Mrs. Lovett worships him, but Todd will never be able to love her like he did his Lucy. Life is empty for the demon barber without her and the world will pay because of it. Of course, there is a plus side for Mrs. Lovett. Her pies go from being the worst pies in London to the best pies with Sweeney Todd around to be her muse.

Storyline/Plot: 5 out of 5 stars
Replayability: 5 out of 5 stars
Acting: 5 out of 5 stars
Directing: 5 out of 5 stars

Audio/Visual:
The 1080p AVC encoded 1.85:1 imagery looks absolutely stunning in this picture. Sweeney Todd has never looked better and if you haven’t seen it in Blu-Ray I highly recommend that you do so. The blacks and other dark colors are flawless. The rare color scenes are beautifully rich. There is no grain and dirt is absent. It is flawless. The blood drips or sprays onto the screen and you cannot help but sit and stare in awe. The transfer is one of the best I have seen on blu-ray. The silver of the razors shine dazzlingly in the light and every small detail is met with absolute precision. The smallest detail is noticeable and becomes heightened in this quality. It makes a good movie that much better. If you like Sweeney Todd in the standard definition form, you will absolutely love it in Blu-Ray.

At the heart of things, Sweeney Todd is a musical and that makes it incredibly important to have a high audio quality. This audio transfer of Dolby TrueHD 5.1 does not disappoint. The musical numbers sound absolutely fantastic. I cannot describe how wonderful they sound. The lower notes come through with strength and richness, but they do not overpower the audio. Meanwhile, the high notes really shine through, as well. The dialogue sounds fabulous. I did not find a need to mess with the volume once the correct levels had been established. Things sounded perfect from start to finish. The full range of channels is used to provide a dynamic sound. The movie would not have been the same without it.

In addition to English TrueHD 5.1, there are two foreign language tracks that have been included. Both French and Spanish viewers can enjoy sound in Dolby Digital 5.1. As I do not speak either language fluently I opted out of listening to either option, but based on what the English 5.1 sounded like in the standard definition copy, I am sure that everything sounds fine. Also included are subtitles in English, French, and Spanish.

Visual: 5 out of 5 stars
Audio: 5 out of 5 stars

Bonus Features:
A fan of Burton’s or Sweeney Todd could not ask for more in the way of special features. This set includes everything you could possibly want or need. There are plenty of basic offerings like photo galleries and a theatrical trailer. One of the most basic things and perhaps the only thing missing is a commentary by Burton. You do receive several featurettes and documentaries though that more than make up for the lack of commentary.

“Burton + Depp + Carter = Todd”: This is a behind the scenes look at the pairing of Burton, Depp, and Carter. In this 25 minute clip you will see rehearsal footage, recording sessions, and various cast interviews about the film and the collaboration between these three.

“Sweeney Todd Press Conference”: This clip was a joy to watch. Watching Burton, Depp, Carter, Alan Rickman, and the others interact with the press with quite funny. They are all good showman and that certainly makes something normally dull more entertaining to watch.

“Sweeney Todd is Alive”: The Real History of the Demon Barber: As it sounds, this explores the legend of Sweeney Todd and considers whether or not there could have been a real demon barber out there. This makes an interesting edition to the film and it was worth watching.

“Musical Mayhem”: Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd: Sondheim is on hand to discuss his musical, what it was like to work with Burton on the movie adaptation, and how much he liked the film. He even goes as far as personally endorsing it, which was a nice touch.

“Sweeney’s London”: This featurette looks at the Industrial age of London and what it was really like in those days. This isn’t as interesting as some of the other pieces, but still worth a look at least once. On the other hand, The Making of Sweeney Todd feels somewhat unnecessary with all the other good stops in the special features. This “Making Of” ends up feeling more like a promotional piece than anything.

Things rap up with a number of other special features that include a look at the Guignol genre of theater in “Grand Guignol: A Theatrical Tradition,” a piece on how things were designed for the film in “Designs for the Demon Barber,” a look into the special effects in “A Bloody Business,” and Depp and Burton fielding more press questions in “The Razor’s Refrain.”

Bonus Features: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line:
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street is a fantastic movie. Fans of musicals will love it. Fans of Burton will adore it. The acting is amazing, the picture is amusing, and even people that aren’t fans of musicals will find something to enjoy in Sweeney Todd. This Blu-Ray presentation only makes the movie seem better. I highly recommend picking this up in Blu-Ray if you have a player. If not you should really consider asking Santa for a Bblu-Ray player or a Playstation 3. You really have no idea on the amount of quality that you’re missing out on by not seeing this and other amazing movies in Blu-Ray.

Overall Rating: 4.93 out of 5 stars

Technorati Tags: DVD Review, Johnny Depp, Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Mrs. Lovett, Helena Bonham Carter, Stephen Sondheim, Sacha Baron Cohen, Musical, Tim Burton, Blu Ray Review

Release Info:
Theatrical Release: October 29, 1993
DVD Release Date: August 26, 2008
Online Availability: Amazon for $22.99

I know this may sound weird, but I used to hate Halloween. I couldn’t stand the holiday. I think it had to do with the fact that, due to my disability, I couldn’t always do the one thing a kid wants to do on Halloween…trick or treat. Because of that, I associated my negativity of those specific Halloween days to Halloween, as a whole. It wasn’t until I became a parent that I started to truly appreciate this holiday. In fact, back in the 90s, when The Nightmare Before Christmas was released, I was too young to appreciate the film. I knew it involved Halloween in some way, so I just never wanted to see it. Today, I can admit how wrong I was in judging a film by what I believed was its premise.

The Nightmare Before Christmas is a movie by Tim Burton. I think Burton is visionary in his approach to cinema. I liked his interpretation of Sweeney Todd and how Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was more on par with the book the movie is based on, as opposed to the equally as good Gene Wilder version. Even going back as far as Beetlejuice and Edward Scissorhands, I’ve liked Burton. I don’t think I really even knew who he was back then, but I knew I liked his movies.

The Nightmare Before Christmas started off as a poem that Tim Burton wrote, way back when he was an animator for Disney. He was busy working on hit 80s, Disney animated features like one of my all time favorite Disney movies, The Fox and the Hound and the less than memorable Tron. Burton claims he got the idea from the ever changing Halloween to Christmas decorations in the stores. I can see how that and the Dr. Seuss classic, The Grinch could both have influenced the making of The Nightmare Before Christmas. Whatever it was doesn’t really matter. This movie was brilliant and I’m sad it took me so long to see it.

I’ve found people either love Tim Burton or just don’t get his true genius. I get it. I like his quirky, obscure, artistic nature. I dig it. I’m down with it. I can’t wait to see the future projects he’s working on, including the movie version off Dark Shadows (with Johnny Depp as Barnabas) and his new interpretation of the oft filmed Alice in Wonderland. But, until these films emerge, I have plenty of Tim Burton movies I can enjoy now including, but not limited to, The Nightmare Before Christmas.

The Nightmare Before Christmas Plot
While The Nightmare Before Christmas was a commercial and critical success during the early 90s, after its initial VHS distribution, the movie pretty much became a cult classic. Today, The Nightmare Before Christmas has a faithful band of followers akin (though not quite comparable in size) to that of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. It’s not hard to see why, considering this movie is hard to categorize (is it comedy? drama? musical drama? other?), which makes it accessible and attractive to a vast audience.

The Nightmare Before Christmas begins in Halloween Town. This is a place where the entire goal and purpose is coming up with new ways to scare the bejeezus out of people. The leader of town is Jack Skellington (Chris Sarandon/speaking, Danny Elfman/singing). Jack is just not satisfied, thinking there is more out there and there is more to life in general than what he sees in Halloween Town. The rest of the town doesn’t “get it”, so Jack makes an active effort to discover that thing, alone.

Jack is never truly alone, though. A rag doll named Sally (Catherine O’Hara), created by the crazy Dr. Finklestein (William Hickey), is in love with him. She believes in Jack and wants to be with him, but Finklestein has other plans for her. In the meantime, Jack manages to stumble into the land of Christmas Town and he becomes enamored with the differences between Halloween and Christmas, immediately deciding that he has to make Halloween Town see how important it is to celebrate Christmas, too.

Initially, the people of Halloween Town don’t get it. They want to understand it, but they just don’t know how. With a group that includes three mischievous teenagers, Lock (Paul Reubens), Shock (Catherine O’Hara), and Barrel (Danny Elfman), a freaky gambling addict, Oogie Boogie (Ken Page), and plenty of corpses…enough to make your head roll, this movie is more than engaging. While this Christmas thing doesn’t exactly make sense to the folks of Halloween Town, it’s pretty clear any attempt at Christmas isn’t going to be overly successful.

As you might imagine, the Christmas idea doesn’t go over exactly the right way. It ends up being a disaster that pretty much ends in Santa being kidnapped and Jack becoming so obsessed with Christmas, he intends to take over the holiday for himself. This movie has a deep yet powerful message to it. It has beauty in it. It has terror in it. It discusses the expectations put on holidays and how we as Americans sort of go through the motions, moving from one holiday to the next without any forethought.

Storyline/Plot: 5 out of 5 stars
Replayability: 5 out of 5 stars
Acting: 5 out of 5 stars
Directing: 5 out of 5 stars

Audio/Visual:
The Nightmare Before Christmas looks excellent. I’ve been told it never has looked better than it does now (in a standard version). If this impresses you, you’ll want to check out the Blu-Ray, which I’m told makes this look like nothing special! Still, this 1.66:1 aspect ratio (it’s original ratio!) has been digitally enhanced to near perfection. The colors are vibrant. The animation is perfectly imperfect. The contrast is sharp. Designed for 16×9 televisions, The Nightmare Before Christmas in this edition is simply stunning with no visible visual errors to discuss. For an animated film this color palette sure looks realistic!

The audio for The Nightmare Before Christmas is great. It can’t compare to that on the Blu-Ray, but most standard editions cannot compete with Blu-Ray on any level. The English DTS 5.1 surround track makes excellent use of the speakers. The music, which this film is quite heavy with, sounded as clear as a bell. The dialogue comes through clearly, as well. I didn’t volume toggle. I just sat back and enjoyed the music to my ears.

There are additional tracks available in Dolby Digital 5.1. These are in English, Spanish and French. Subtitles are available in all three languages, making this DVD available to the hearing impaired.

Visual: 5 out of 5 stars
Audio: 5 out of 5 stars

Bonus Features:
This is what fans of The Nightmare Before Christmas want to know about more than anything. Yes, The Nightmare Before Christmas is a two disc special edition. Some of the bonuses are brand spankin’ new and some of them are from the last DVD release of The Nightmare Before Christmas. There is a third disc side, which contains the digital copy version of The Nightmare Before Christmas. You can check that out and consider it as the very last of the bonus features. It’s just another way to watch your movie, only this time you can do it on your computer!

The Nightmare Before Christmas starts this two-disc bonus section off on the very first disc. While the previous release of The Nightmare Before Christmas, from 2000, had a comprehensive set of bonuses, this just adds to what is already available. Fans will want to get rid of their old copy (eBay or Amazon should work!) and pick up this edition (or the Blu-Ray) instead.

The first disc features a brand new audio commentary. This is done by writer/producer Tim Burton, director Henry Selick, and Danny Elfman who did various voices (including Jack’s singing voice) and the score for the movie. This commentary could have been better had the three filmed it together. That’s the only downside to this commentary. Otherwise, it’s pretty rockin! There is plenty of extra information that is added to the commentary. You get to hear Danny Elfman at his best (singing). Burton is more than willing to provide his thoughts and he’s always very entertaining when he does.

There is a six-part making of feature for The Nightmare Before Christmas. This is a comprehensive making of featurette looking at everything from the cast to production, the music and more. At close to a half an hour worth of footage, this was one of my favorite parts of the bonus section. If you’re interested in film making and all that goes into it, as I am, you’ll find this featurette highly worthy of your time!

I love the next featurette, simply because it’s just so creative. Christopher Lee narrates the original The Nightmare Before Christmas poem that the movie is based upon. This was Tim Burton’s original vision for the movie. While it only features Jack, his skele-dog, Zero, and Santa, it’s nice to get into the mind of Burton and find out what inspired him to make this film. There is even some minor animation to make this story a bit more engaging. Fans will love it!

The Nightmare Before Christmas goes to the theme park. When you check out the featurette “What’s This? Jack’s Haunted Mansion Holiday Tour”, be prepared to get thrills and chills. Okay, not really but if you go on the actual ride, you might be frightfully scared. The ride combines The Nightmare Before Christmas with a haunted mansion and replicates the sets from the movie to make the ride more realistic.

Moving on to Disc Two, the developers of this DVD don’t even pause. Things start out with two Tim Burton original shorts. There is Vincent, which runs for a little over five minutes, and the nearly half hour long, Frankenweenie. For those who don’t know, the latter is set to be a full length film, coming out in the next few years. As for the short, it features Daniel Stern, Shelley Duvall and Sofia Coppola. Vincent is also entertaining and has that Tim Burton feel to it that made many of his early movies so popular.

The featurette “World of Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas” looks at the worlds explored in The Nightmare Before Christmas. There is Halloween Town, Christmas Town and the Real World, where humans live and exist. With moments of animation and conceptual art, it’s easy to see how structured this movie was and how much work went into developing this project. Overall, this is another excellent bonus.

Finally, there are a series of deleted scenes, a storyboard-to film comparison feature, original posters and original trailers for the film. All in all, a very nice set of bonuses is included here.

Bonus Features: 5 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line:
The Nightmare Before Christmas is a truly enjoyable movie. I had never seen it before watching this, but I can highly recommend purchasing this 2-Disc Collector’s Edition. With a digitally remastered quality, The Nightmare Before Christmas has never looked better. Sure, some of the bonuses have been recycled, but there are also some new features, including a new commentary, that makes double dipping worth while. Go out and get The Nightmare Before Christmas in its 2-Disc Collector’s Edition right away! You won’t regret your purchase.

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Technorati Tags: The Nightmare Before Christmas, 2-Disc, Collector’s Edition, DVD Review, Walt Disney Home Entertainment, Tim Burton, Musical, Halloween

I love musicals. There are romantic musicals. There are entertaining musicals. There are cheesy musicals. They really don’t make musicals like they did in the old days. Many big name actors have starred in musicals and while not every storyline for a musical is logical nor does it make a lot of sense the entertainment value of the singing, acting and dancing are what make these movies worth watching.

I had never seen any of the musicals in the Classic Musicals from the Dream Factory: Volume 3 box set collection. While I had heard of many of the actors and seen most of them in other movies, I’d only heard of Kismet out of the nine movies included in this box set. I figured the set couldn’t be all that bad. With names like James Stewart, Jack Benny, Lionel Barrymore, Eleanor Powell, Jane Powell, Howard Keel, Richardo Montalban, and Red Skelton, it is hard to argue about the quality of the acting, but I have realized that I should be prepared for anything. Luckily, while this certainly is a diverse group of films to put together in one set, I wasn’t too disappointed with what I found in this set.

Release Information:
The nine movies that are included in the Classic Musicals from the Dream Factory: Volume 3, were all originally released from dates that range from the 1930s-1950s. Hit the Deck was released in March of 1955. Born to Dance was released in November of 1936. Lady be Good was released in September of 1941.

Broadway Melody of 1936 was released in September of 1935. Broadway Melody of 1938 was released on August of 1937. Nancy Goes to Rio was released in March of 1950. Two Weeks with Love was released in November of 1950. Deep in My Heart was released in December 1954. Finally, Kismet was released in October of 1955.

Warner Bros. released the Classic Musicals from the Dream Factory: Volume 3 on April 8, 2008. The DVD box set and the two previous volumes can be purchased through online retailers including Amazon. This box set, in particular, is available for just under $70.

The Classic Musicals from the Dream Factory: Volume 3 Plot
The Classic Musicals from the Dream Factory: Volume 3 features nine movies on six discs. Here is a brief synopsis of each movie with a list of a few of the primary actors in them.

The Eleanor Powell 2-Disc Double Feature

:Born to Dance:
This is a part of the Eleanor Powell 2-Disc Double Feature. The cast for Born to Dance includes Eleanor Powell, James Stewart, Virginia Bruce, Una Merkel, Sid Silvers and Buddy Epsen.

Jenny (Una Merkel) works as a hostess and desk clerk at the “Lonely Hearts Club”. She has been married to a navy boy, ‘Gunny’ (Sid Silvers), though they haven’t seen each other since he shipped off right after their marriage four years ago. Gunny shows up at the club with his navy buddies, sailors Ted (James Stewart) and Mush (Buddy Epson). At the club, Ted falls for a wannabe Broadway performer, Nora Paige (Eleanor Powell), who is just a small town girl with stars in her eyes.

When Ted saves the Pekinese of the Broadway star Nora is playing understudy to, Lucy James (Virginia Bruce), she falls for him. Ted is ordered to go on a date with her, by his captain, since Lucy was a part of a public relations campaign on his submarine. After Ted and Lucy’s picture are posted in the paper, thanks to her overzealous publicist who thinks interest in Lucy will go up, Nora vows that she’s done with Ted, who still loves her.

:Lady be Good:
Lady be Good also features Eleanor Powell as well as Ann Sothern, Robert Young, Lionel Barrymore, John Carroll, Red Skelton, and Virginia O’Brien. This film features the Gershin tunes, “Lady be Good” and “Fascinating Rhythm”. Dixie Donegan Crane (Sothern) and Eddie Crane (Young) aren’t just a lyricist-composer duo. They’re also married to one another. Despite still being in love, the two are divorced. Their only hope is the help of Dixie’s meddling best friend, Marilyn Marsh (Powell), who also performs in the duo’s show.

:Broadway Melody of 1936:
The second disc of the Eleanor Powell double feature offers this movie, which includes an all star cast with Jack Benny, Eleanor Powell, Robert Taylor, Una Merkel, Frances Langford, Sid Silvers, and Buddy Ebsen. Robert Gordon (Taylor) wants to put on a show. To do so, he must rely on the funding of a wealthy widow, Lillian Brent (June Knight), who does so with the promise she will have the part of lead dancer. At the same time, an old friend of Gordon’s who is also a talented tap dancer, Irene (Eleanor Powell), would like to have the role of the lead dancer in the show, but Lillian is determined to keep the part for herself.

:Broadway Melody of 1938:
The final selection in this Eleanor Powell four set is Broadway Melody of 1938. Once again, this movie stars Robert Taylor, Eleanor Powell and Buddy Epsen. This movie also stars George Murphy, Binnie Barnes, Sophie Tucker, Judy Garland, Charles Igor Gorin, and Raymond Walburn. Steve Raleigh (Young) wants to put on a Broadway show. He wants Sally Lee (Eleanor Powell) to be his star. To pay for his show, Steve must rely on his financer, Herman Whipple (Robert Wahlburn). Herman’s wife, Caroline (Binnie Barnes) doesn’t want Sally in the show, preferring to have a famous actress in the lead. Sally decides to train a horse she once owned, in order to race the horse and make the money so Steve can have the show he wants, but that is easier said than done!

The Jane Powell Double Feature

:Nancy Goes to Rio:
One of the two movies to feature Jane Powell that is included in this set is Nancy Goes to Rio. The cast, besides Powell includes Ann Sothern, Barry Sullivan, Carmen Miranda, Louis Calhern, and Scotty Beckett. In Nancy Goes to Rio, Powell plays Nancy Barklay, the daughter of a legendary Broadway actress, Frances Elliot (Ann Sothern). A playwright Frances works with and her publicist feel tha she is too old to play a role in a leading show that she wants to perform in, in Brazil. In the meantime, Nancy has headed down to Rio to visit her mother and she’d be the perfect person to take over the role! Well, everyone but Frances seems to think so. To add more drama to an already dramatic film, Frances and Nancy fall for the same man, Paul Berten (Barry Sullivan), and having overheard Nancy rehearsing, Paul just happens to think she’s pregnant!

Two Weeks with Love
This is the second of the Jane Powell movies. The actors involved in this film are Jane Powell, Ricardo Montalban, Louis Calhern, Phyllis Kirk and Ann Harding. Patti Robinson (Powell), her parents, and her sister take a vacation to the Catskills. Patti falls for a handsome young man by the name of Demi Armendez (Ricardo Montalban). Unfortunately, Patti’s friend, Valeria (Phyllis Kirk) is also in love with Demi and she has the advantage over Patti because Patti’s parents, especially her father, think she is too young to date. As Patti tries to get Demi’s attention, it will take her performance in an amateur show to really show him what a great girl she is.

:Random Films Included in this Set:

Deep in My Heart
An all star cast made up of Jose Ferrer, Merle Oberon, Helen Traubel, Doe Avedon, Paul Stewart, Walter Pidgeon, Paul Henreid, Rosemary Clooney, Gene Kelly, Fred Kelly, Jane Powell, Vic Damone, Ann Miller, Cyd Charisse, Howard Keel, and Tony Martin perform in the musical Deep in My Heart. This was an MGM biopic on the life of the famous musical composer, Sigmund Romberg (Jose Ferrer). This is the only film in which Gene Kelly’s brother Fred makes an appearance. This movie is filled with music and each performance number is loosely connected by the telling of Romberg’s life story.

Hit the Deck
This film is quite similar to other sailor-style musicals, including the far superior On the Town and Anchors Aweigh, though it is not quite as good as the other two movies, in terms of its story. Hit the Deck still features a decent cast that includes Jane Powell, Tony Martin, Debbie Reynolds, Walter Pidgeon, Vic Damone, Gene Raymond, Ann Miller, Russ Tamblyn, and Jane Darwell. The movie focuses on Susan Smith (Jane Powell), who wants a role in the musical “Hit the Deck”. Determined to save his sisters virtue, Danny Xavier Smith (Russ Tamblyn), will do anything he can to keep that from happening, especially since their father is a strict Rear Adm. Daniel Xavier Smith (Walter Pidgeon).

Kismet
Probably the best known of all the movies in this set, Kismet stars Howard Keel, Ann Blyth, Dolores Gray, Monty Wooley, and Sebastian Cabot. This is by far the best of all the musicals in terms of the storyline and Howard Keel, a movie musical veteran, puts in a great performance in this movie. Kismet is another term for fate, and the lives of a poor beggar, known simply as The Poet (Howard Keel) and his daughter Marsinah (Ann Blyth) are forever changed on one fateful day.

While most of these musicals are entertaining the first time you watch them, especially if you like musicals, they just aren’t as good as some of the more well known shows out there. The acting, with such an amazing cast in all nine movies, is what makes this set, along with the the song and dance numbers. When it comes to the plot of each musical, the stories are somewhat weak, but musicals aren’t necessarily known for their story strength and depending on why you’re watching these musicals, you might actually just want them so you can listen to the music and see some of the best actors from this era in Hollywood perform.

Storyline/Plot: 3 out of 5 stars
Replayability: 3 out of 5 stars
Acting: 5 out of 5 stars
Directing: 4 out of 5 stars

Audio/Visual:
The visual quality for the nine films in this set varies from somewhat decent to quite poor. Here is a basic run down of the visual quality for each film with a brief description of any visual problems the film might have.

Born to Dance: This film goes back and forth from terrible to good in terms of quality. The biggest problems are scratching and fuzz with the occasional crackling. When it is really bad, it really isn’t happening in the most important of scenes, but it is visible enough to be noticeable. The contrasts are good and the colors are typically vibrant. This gets 1.5 out of 5.

Lady be Good: The best in the bunch, the full frame transfer is good with vibrant colors, nice blacks and white tones, and excellent contrast. You can expect minor grain, but depending on the age of the film, that is to be expected. This gets 4 out of 5.

Broadway Melody of 1936: Expect quite a bit of grain, scratching and brief moments of fuzziness. The contrast is quite exceptional and everything is vibrant. This one looks much better than some of the other films, but still shows its age with some dirt and other muck that could have possibly been cleaned up. Overall this gets 3 out of 5.

Broadway Melody of 1938: There is some grain and scratching, but the transfer, done in full frames is much better than the transfer for the 1936 movie. This gets 3.5 out of 5.

Nancy Goes to Rio: The contrast is decent. The colors are good. There are some compression artifacts and plenty of grain, but it is much better than some of the other films. This gets 3 out of 5.

Two Weeks with Love: There are some problems with the colors. They are not as vibrant and the contrast isn’t quite as good as some of the other films. There are artifacts and grain as well as some scratching. Still, it is better than a few of the Eleanor Powell movies. This gets 2 out of 5.

Deep in My Heart: This film has been enhanced at a 1.78: 1 ratio. The colors are off, with some very vibrant moments. There are minor problems with grain, but save for the color issue, the transfer is actually pretty good. This gets 3 out of 5.

Hit the Deck: The colors are sharp, the contrast is good and so is the saturation level. There are some edge problems, but overall this 2.35:1 presentation is decent. This gets 3 out of 5.

Kismet: The color is muted and the film suffers for it. The contrast is good and the enhanced 2.35:1 video has a good level of saturation. Expect moments of grain. This gets 2.5 out of 5.

Here is information on the audio quality for each film, with a brief description of any problems the audio for the films seemed to have.

Born to Dance: Presented with a remastered English mono soundtrack, the audio for Born to Dance is quite good. The music, the dialogue and any sound effects on this audio track come through loud and clear. There is also a mono French track and there are subtitles available in both English and French. This is 4 out of 5.

Lady be Good: The English mono soundtrack is decent, but there are a few minor issues with volume that need to be dealt with. The music sounds good and the dialogue is clear for the most part. There are subtitles available in English and French. This is 2.5 out of 5.

Broadway Melody of 1936: This has English mono sound. It’s relatively flat, but otherwise good. There are English and French subtitles. This is 3.5 out of 5.

Broadway Melody of 1938: This soundtrack isn’t as good as the previously mentioned tracks. The track has been damaged and there are some problems with the music including issues with volume toggling. The mono tracks are in English and French and there are also subtitles in both languages. This is 1 out of 5.

Nancy Goes to Rio: The English mono soundtrack is quite good. The sound is a bit flat, except when it comes to the music, which is full and vibrant sounding. The sound comes through clearly in all its various forms. There are subtitles available in English and French. This is 4 out of 5.

Two Weeks with Love: The English mono soundtrack is quite good. There are subtitles available in both English and French. Everything comes through clearly and is easy to hear. This is 4 out of 5.

Deep in My Heart: This English soundtrack is a remastered 5.0 track. This track is awesome. There is also a track available in French. Subtitles are available in both languages. As you might expect everything comes through quite loud and clear. This is 4 out of 5.

Hit the Deck: The Hit the Deck soundtrack isn’t that good. There are both 5.1 and 5.0 remastered English soundtracks, but it is pretty clear the source material was in very bad shape so the enhancement isn’t as good as most soundtracks could be. Be prepared to sound toggle quite a bit. English and French subtitles are available. This is .5 out of 5.

Kismet: The remastered 5.0 and 5.1 Dolby Digital soundtracks are excellent. Sounds are clear, full and delightful to hear. There are tracks in English and Portuguese with subtitles in both languages as well as French. This is 4.5 out of 5.

Visual: 0.2 out of 5 stars
Audio: 3 out of 5 stars

Bonus Features:
Here is a list of the bonus features by movie.

Born to Dance: The short “The Second Step”, a cartoon featuring Cab Calloway, an audio outtake of “Easy to Love”, the original trailer, and an excerpt from a 1936 Hollywood Hotel radio broadcast are all extras with this film.

Lady be Good: The short “Glimpses of Florida”, cartoon “The Rookie Bear”, the theatrical trailer, an audio outtake of “I’d Rather Dance” and a radio broadcast excerpt from “Leo on the Air” are the list of this film’s extras.

Broadway Melody of 1936: The short, “Sunkist Stars in Palm Springs”, the cartoon “To Spring”, the theatrical trailer and an excerpt from the broadcast, “Leo on the Air” are all included as bonus features.

Broadway Melody of 1938: The short, “That Mothers Might Live”, cartoon “Pipe Dreams”, audio outtakes from “Everybody Sing”, other audio outtakes, the theatrical trailer and an excerpt from the radio broadcast, “Leo on the Air” make up a nice set of extras for this film.

Nancy Goes to Rio: There are no extras included.

Two Weeks with Love: The TCM broadcast for the “Private Screenings” interview by Robert Osborne (featuring Jane Powell), a Tex Avery cartoon “Garden Gopher” and the theatrical trailer are all included here as bonuses.

Deep in My Heart: There are some outtakes, a Tex Avery cartoon, “Farm of the Future”, and Strauss waltzes that are all bonuses for this film.

Hit the Deck: There are no extras included.

Kismet: The short, “The Battle of Gettysburg”, a cartoon, “The First Bad Man”, an outtake of “Rahadlakum”, an audio outtake of “Rhymes Have I” and two excerpts from “The MGM Parade” are all bonuses for Kismet.

As you can see there is plenty of interesting bonus features to this set. Fans of these musicals will love the extras.

Bonus Features: 5 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line:
If you like classic era movie musicals then you’re going to want to pick up a copy of Classic Musicals from the Dream Factory: Volume 3. Otherwise, you won’t want to get this box set. While the actors are good and the musical aspect is good, the films just aren’t as good as many of the most famous musicals. If you aren’t sure if you’re going to like Classic Musicals from the Dream Factory: Volume 3 and the movies in this set, you might want to rent them first. You never know. You might like them, but then again, you might not!

Overall Rating: 3.31 out of 5 stars

Technorati Tags: Classic Musicals from the Dream Factory, Volume 3, Born to Dance, Kismet, Broadway Melody of 1936, Broadway Melody of 1938, Nancy Goes to Rio, Hit the Deck, Deep in My Heart, Two Weeks in Love, Lady be Good, Eleanor Powell, Jane Powell, Jack Benny, James Stewart, Red Skelton

20th Century Fox must know a money maker when they see it because this is the third release of the movie about the man in black. I did not catch this movie prior to the Oscar ceremony. I should have known that it would be good with the cast and the buzz surrounding the film. Of course, buzz can be wrong and since I was not a huge Cash fan (I was a little young to feel him the way older folks might) I had no reason to jump right out and go see it. However, when I did, I promptly kicked myself for not seeing it sooner. I fell in love with this movie and have seen it several times since that day.

This Walk the Line: Extended Cut has added more playing time to the film, though the moments are not so much that if you have the film already (or the other two, I should say) you aren’t going to need to rush right out and buy this one. The supplemental additions are interesting, but not mandatory. Likewise, there are some pretty decent special features here, but many of these have been on the other releases, so there is not any need to assume that you need to rush out and purchase this one unless you really desire the material that is new on this cut. Of course, if you’re buying this for the first time, this is definitely the way to go and it comes highly recommended, for reasons you already know if you’ve seen it, and will understand later in this review, if you haven’t.

Release Information:
It is hard to dispute the validity of a movie that has won Academy Awards, Golden Globes, and even Grammy Awards. Walk the Line has received excellent reception from nearly all critics. In fact, the ones that have something to say are usually commenting on the fact that the film is not altogether accurate. While there are some inaccuracies according to Cash’s biography, they are few and far between and do not affect the movie as a whole or change the course of Cash’s life in any way. The basic elements of his life and story remain intact and are elegantly portrayed throughout the movie.

A fan favorite amongst a number of Cash and Carter fans, this film also garnered much interest in people that do not like country music and who may not be familiar with the Man in Black and his fiery companion. The proof to the fans love is in the pudding and within a year this film had earned over $186 million. Furthermore, during the first release on DVD as many as three million copies were sold on the first day alone. This third DVD incarnation was released by 20th Century Fox on March 25, 2008. You can pick this up at all major retailers including Amazon, where it is available for $20.

The Walk the Line Plot
The essential plot line for this biopic has to do with the rise and fall and eventually piecing together and re-rise of Johnny Cash, as portrayed by the enigmatic Joaquin Phoenix (Hotel Rwanda). Phoenix, as was Cash in real life, is complimented by the interesting and strong willed June Carter, played by the beautiful and talented Reese Witherspoon (Fear). At the heart of this movie there is a beautiful love story that is so powerful that when one lover dies, the other soon follows. However, as a love story alone this would have been limited. When you add in stellar performances depicting music, fame, fury, anger, drug addiction, possible abuse, and more you have a hit that won’t soon leave your mind after you see it.

The movie opens to Cash (Phoenix) about to perform at Folsom Prison. The album he would make would become one of the greatest selling live albums ever and it was in a prison to boot. As Cash prepares to go on stage he is standing in the prison workshop, eyes focused on a table saw as it shakes from the sound of the nearby music playing the instrumentals for the song Johnny will soon be singing.

This scene was done to further the story and did not really occur, as when Cash waited to go on, he was actually in the prison kitchen not the workshop. However, as the movie soon shows us, Johnny’s brother Jack (Lucas Till) was killed by a table saw accident as a child, making it the perfect lead-in for a flashback.

The flashbacks take us to the childhood of Cash (Ridge Canipe – The Santa Clause 3) where he lived with his parents and siblings. The family, living in a rural Arkansas area, were cotton sharecroppers and were anything but wealthy. Due to the fact that the family was always in need of money, the oldest boy, Jack, would often split wood and do other jobs to help out. One day, this would bring an end to Jack’s life. The loss was hard on everyone, especially Johnny who is berated by his alcoholic father (Robert Patrick – Bridge to Terabithia) who often asks why the good son was taken and the other was left behind. As you might expect, Johnny is scarred by this and spends much of his young life feeling like he should have done something to prevent Jack’s death.

During this time, Johnny garnered a love for music thanks to his momma (Shelby Lynne) and her gospels and this love for music is something that would stay with him, eventually making him famous. The movie gets into full swing once the adult John Cash (Phoenix) head out to join the Air Force. Stationed in Germany, he works as a decoder of Morse code. He spends quite a bit of time speaking to his future wife, Vivian (Ginnifer Goodwin – Big Love) during this time, despite having only dated her for a few weeks prior to his leaving. We also see him starting to compose his own music and picking at a guitar in his spare time.

When he gets out of the force his real career begins. After an unsuccessful attempt for Cash to try being a door-to-door salesman, in 1954, he ends up getting his band together, consisting of Luther Perkins (Dan John Miller – Leatherheads) and Marshall Grant (Larry Bagby) and auditioning for Sun Records head, Sam Phillips (Dallas Roberts – The L Word). It would be this audition that would lead to a record contract and the eventual stardom of the late, great Johnny Cash.

Things start out good with Johnny going on tour with legends like Elvis (Tyler Hilton – One Tree Hill), Roy Orbison (Johnathan Rice), Jerry Lee Lewis (Waylon Payne), Carl Perkins (Johnny Holiday), and naturally June Carter. The obsession that Johnny seems to have with June is noticed nearly immediately. In some ways, it seems (at this point) that June would be better suited for Johnny than Vivian, as she understands show business and all that it entails. On the other hand, Vivian wishes to let all that go when Johnny finally comes home. As the story goes, there comes a point when Vivian cannot stand the drug abuse, the absence of her husband, and his obsession with another woman. So, she finally takes their girls and leaves him.

Throughout the film we watch Johnny lose control and succumb to an addiction to pills. June becomes his saving grace in many ways, as the only time he truly seems at ease is when he is with her and when they are on stage together. As the movie progresses, the Folsom concert goes on and the lives of Johnny Cash and June Carter come together like a somewhat twisted, but certainly loving fairy tale.

Considering the biopic angle of the film, the interesting storyline was already in place. The goal of the director was to bring the actors together and bring out the best in them. The dialogue is not where the strength in this movie comes from. In many ways, it is not even the music, though that is a powerful portion of this film. The true power comes from the non-spoken, emotional path that is taken with the close-ups of Witherspoon, Goodwin, and Phoenix throughout various scenes in the film. This gives the viewer a chance to see the pain and other emotions that are so prominently displayed as the actors seem to channel the real life personas they are playing.

The director, James Mangold, who has previously been responsible for such films as Copland and Girl, Interrupted, hits the mark dead on with Walk the Line. He manages to bring out a purity and childhood innocence in a confused man and a connection in two actors that set the screen on fire. While I didn’t really recognize his name or follow his career before, this has convinced me to be on the lookout for him. The same could really be said about Phoenix and Witherspoon, as well.

The singing is done beautifully and the acting is a credit to two of the most promising, younger Hollywood actors out there. So many actors would have wanted to play Cash as he is most remembered. However, this film is not about the legendary, larger than life, Cash that he ended up being. Instead, it is about a younger, puppy love obsessed, screwed up Cash that he had to evolve from into the greatness that he was. Phoenix gives us this man hook, line, and sinker. He is absolutely perfect. Meanwhile, Witherspoon is funny, beautifully, enigmatic, and screwed up in her own way. She seems enamored with Cash early on and yet afraid of what he is capable of. These emotions are clearly portrayed in Witherspoon’s every action. It would be hard for you to find another biopic movie that is nearly as good as Walk the Line.

Storyline/Plot: 5 out of 5 stars
Replayability: 5 out of 5 stars
Acting: 5 out of 5 stars
Directing: 5 out of 5 stars

Audio/Visual:
Walk the Line looks absolutely fabulous. The transfer is stunning. I did not notice any visual errors in this 2.35:1 transfer. The colors are balanced with perfection and I could not find one single problem with the video quality that was offered here. Whether or not it has been enhanced in any way since the previous releases, I do not know, as I have not seen the previous two DVDs.

The audio is available in your choice of Dolby Digital 5.1 DTS, 5.1 Surround, and even a passable Dolby 2.0 track. Each of these sound excellent, but obviously the 5.1 DTS blows the others out of the water. In addition to all of the English tracks the DVD includes French and Spanish 3.0 Surround tracks. Subtitles and closed captioning round out the audio offerings with the subtitles working in both English and Spanish.

Visual: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Audio: 5 out of 5 stars

Bonus Features:
Before I get to the point where I list the special features, I want to talk about the extended scenes that were added. I have not viewed this on the previously released DVDs though I have viewed it on television. The original movie comes in at 135 minutes and the extended cut adds close to 20 minutes of footage. This previously deleted footage is not necessary for the film to do what it has always done best, but fans of the movie will find these scenes interesting. They do not hurt the movie and it never feels too long. If the director were going for a time save, it made it obvious that these scenes got cut, because many of them just reitterate what we already know. I found the presence of these scenes welcome, but if you already own this disc in a previous format, I do not feel it’s necessary to double dip.

The added scenes include “Jack’s Funeral”, “Cry, Cry, Cry”, “Broken Record”, “Ezra & Maybelle Carter”, “I Still Miss Someone”, “On the Phone”, and “The Sermon”. In addition to these previously deleted scenes, there are a few scenes that didn’t make it back into the film and are put in a deleted scenes section of the special features.

Static features from previous releases include the director’s commentary, the theatrical trailer, “Celebrating the Man in Black: The Making of Walk the Line” and “Ring of Fire: The Passion of Johnny & June”. Of the two, I really enjoyed “Ring of Fire” the best, as it provided many thoughts and interviews with everything from Kris Kristofferson to the actors as well as June and Johnny’s son.

The Johnny Cash Jukebox: Walk the Line Extended Musical Sequences features some new introductions and eight extended performances of the stage performances that you saw in the movie. The songs include (in no particular order), “Get Rhythm”, “Rock and Roll Ruby”, and “Cocaine Blues” by Phoenix as Johnny Cash, “Jukebox Blues” by Witherspoon as June Carter, and “Jackson” by Witherspoon and Phoenix as Carter and Cash. Other songs include “Lewis Boogie” (Waylong Payne as Jerry Lee Lewis), “You’re My Baby” (Johnathan Rice as Roy Orbison), and “That’s Alright Mama” (Tyler Hilton as Elvis).

Finally, this extended cut includes five brand new featurettes. The featurettes include “Becoming Cash/Becoming Carter”, “Sun Records & the Johnny Cash Sound”, “The Cash Legacy”, “Folsom: Cash and the Comeback”, and finally, “Cash and Faith”. All of these are worth watching without a doubt, though if I had to pick favorites I would highly recommend “Becoming Cash/Becoming Carter”, “Sun Records & the Johnny Cash Sound”, and “Folsom: Cash and the Comeback”.

Bonus Features: 5 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line:
Walk the Line: The Extended Cut is currently one of the best DVD offerings of the year. It is a breathtaking movie that is filled with special features. It doesn’t get better than it does here. That being said, if you own this movie already you will likely be just fine with the release you have. This extended cut is dedicated to those who either do not have the movie or are such huge fans that the extra special features will be absolutely necessary to complete their collection. Any way you slice it, this one is as highly recommended as they come.

Overall Rating: 4.93 out of 5 stars

Technorati Tags: Movie, DVD Review, Special Edition, Walk the Line, Reese Witherspoon, June Carter, Johnny Cash, Joaquin Phoenix

I love movie musicals when they are well written, entertaining, and engaging. I should like movie musicals considering how many musicals I’ve been in and how many classes I took, in college, concerning musicals both on stage and in the movies. With that in mind, I wasn’t sure what to expect when I heard Johnny Depp and Tim Burton had teamed up, together, to bring Sondheim’s best musical (at least my favorite of all his work), Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, to the big screen. I wasn’t sure how Sweeney Todd would transfer from stage to screen because some musicals transfer exceptionally well and others just don’t work at all.

The story of Sweeney Todd in its various incarnations, dates back to the 1800s, when the legend of the London butcher was first published. Since then, the story has changed with each creative individual’s vision for the characters and the story. Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street was first staged in 1979 by Sondheim. The composer spent over 25 years turning down ideas from Hollywood before consenting to allow Burton to adapt the musical into a screenplay. The only stipulation was that Sondheim had to approve casting. Burton, had his own stipulation, and that was that Johnny Depp had to be the lead character, Sweeney Todd.

At first, Sondheim wasn’t sure whether Depp could handle the score, vocally. There is no doubt Depp is a talented actor, but Sondheim had the same concerns I did. Could a cast of “Hollywood-ish” actors carry a music-intensive score? I wasn’t sure if Johnny Depp could sing at all. Evidently, Depp impressed Sondheim enough for him to agree to allow Burton to cast him in the lead. From there, the adaptation ofSweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street was in development, and I must say, I’m all the better for seeing this.

Release Information:
Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street opened in 1,250 theaters on December 21, 2007. The film had a successful opening weekend, grossing close to $10 million and since then, the popularity of the film, in correlation with the many positive reviews the critics have given it, have lead the film to a worldwide gross total of over $142 million as of the beginning of March. Not wanting fans of the movie to have to wait too long before releasing the film on DVD, Paramount has been promoting the DVD heavily before its April 1, 2008 DVD release.

I received a copy of Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in a Two-Disc Special Collector’s Edition. As a promotion, my DVD came in a cute pie tin, with a picture of Sweeney Todd (aka Johnny Depp) in the middle of the tin. It was very clever advertising on Paramount’s part. The movie is released in a standard edition as well as the two-disc set. The standard is available for $16.99 USD at Amazon, where you can get it in a pre-order. The two-disc special edition is available for $22.99 USD. Ultimately, which movie you purchase will depend on the extras included.

The Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Plot
The story for Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street may be dark and somewhat depressing, but those are the most enjoyable stories to act out on stage. Burton’s vision was a darker, harsher take on Sondheim’s story. There are some minor changes to the plot and some of the songs had to be cut due to time constraints. Still, Burton doesn’t butcher the work. He accurately pays homage to an excellent musical by the greatest living composer of our time.

I should remark on the colorization process Burton uses. If you’ve seen his work before, you know that Burton enjoys mixing bright, vibrant colors, when necessary, with black and white. This works incredibly well for Sweeney Todd, with colors only present with necessary and often, they stand out significantly, in order to put a greater emphasis on the action occurring on screen. While this style of filmmaking isn’t recommended for every film, it suits this movie just fine. The shades of black and grays used transfered perfectly, lending a lot more to the mood of the film that a colorized version would have lacked.

The transformation of Depp, who is known for turning himself into whatever character he is playing with such passion and conviction any method actor would be jealous, is astounding. Sure, we’ve seen him as Willy Wonka, as Jack Sparrow, and even as your average teen, Glen, in A Nightmare on Elm Street (all of which had Depp transforming amazingly…well…except for Glen). As Sweeney Todd, Depp is terrifying, heartbreaking, deviant, devious, and broken. There isn’t another person who could personify Todd on screen with such aplomb.

Now that I’ve complimented the director and at least one of the actors, I can move on to the plot. Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, in its movie form, tells the story of Sweeney Todd. Originally named Benjamin Barker, Todd had spent 15 years in exile in Australia, for a crime he never committed. As Depp explains to a young sailor, Anthony Hope (Jamie Campbell Bower), who saved Todd’s life and brought him back to London, there was a man who was naive. He was in love with his young wife, Lucy, and they had a new baby. This is insinuated from the get go that this is the story of Benjamin Barker.

A corrupt judge, Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman), sees Lucy, decides he must have her, and so he has his crony, Beadle Bamford (Timothy Spall) take Benjamin away. He is arrested and exiled by the judge. Despite being a well-liked barber, the judge has all the power and Barker must leave the country. When Barker returns as Sweeney Todd, 15 very long years have passed. He is much older and the years imprisoned have given him a worn, older look, which is highlighted by the white stripe of hair down the middle of his somewhat long-ish locks.

Sweeney Todd returns to the site of his barber shop where he finds Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter) baking disgusting tasting (and looking) pies. She says they’re the worst pies in London and she’s not lying. She does happen to have his beloved, silver razor set. She could have sold them, but she kept them hoping he’d return. She tells him of his wife’s fate. Lucy was forced to be with Judge Turpin. Miserable, she poisoned herself. Now, Turpin has adopted their young daughter, Johanna (Jayne Wisener), who is now 15. She has been imprisoned in his home for as long as anyone can remember.

Sweeney is dead set on getting revenge. Since he is the ‘Demon Barber’ of Fleet Street, you’ve probably already figured out he becomes a murderer. I’ve heard him labeled a monster, but I don’t see him as that. He had said he planned to stop and even spoke to his friend (the blade) about going to sleep once he’s had his revenge. I see Sweeney more as a product of a hateful society and terrible circumstance. He was bitter and he was in pain. The loss of Lucy was enough to send him over the edge.

Sweeney commits his first murder to protect his identity and prevent someone from blackmailing him. From there, he concocts a plan with Mrs. Lovett, who is in love with Sweeney, to get rid of the bodies by having her cook them in the oven and put them in her pies. He will have customers come in to his upstairs barber shop and kill them. It is the perfect way for him to get revenge, her to make money, and the bodies to be disposed of in an easy way.

There is an interwoven story about Johanna and the sailor, Anthony. Johanna wants to escape. Anthony is infatuated with her. He decides to seek Sweeney Todd’s help in getting Johanna away from Judge Turpin. Of course, he does not know the girl is Sweeney Todd’s daughter. He just knows that he is in love with her, as is shown when he sings the best song in the show/movie, “Johanna”. There are also some very interesting characters who add a little something to the roles including a rival barber, Signor Adolfo Pirelli (Sacha Baron Cohen), a beggar woman (Laura Michelle Kelly) who says evil is consuming the barber shop as she complains about the smell of “evil” coming from the chimney and a little boy, Toby (Ed Sanders), who helps out at the barber shop/pie shop.

The best singers in the show were definitely Ed Sanders and Jamie Campbell Bower. Young Sanders, especially, blew me away with his talent. That’s not to say anyone did a poor job. My least favorite singer was newcomer, Jayne Wisener, though she didn’t have much of a part. The rest of the cast was cast perfectly. Johnny Depp can sing! Who knew? Alan Rickman was perfectly evil and he can definitely carry a tune, too! Sasha Baron Cohen put in a believable performance and Helena Bonham Carter is creepy enough to make the perfect Mrs. Lovett. Sure, Bonham Carter is married to Burton, but she had to jump through all the same hoops to get Sondheim to approve her for the role. Having taken extensive voice lessons and having submitted at least twelve audition samples to Sondheim, the composer approved her for the role wholeheartedly. I don’t think any other actress in Hollywood could have pulled the part off better than she did.

The adaptations to the story in terms of plot and cuts to the music were done in a way that the story was not lost. John Logan skillfully weaves an interesting story that leaves you wanting to know more as it unfolds. Pacing is done in a way to keep things interesting and allow those watching to know just enough to want to know more. All of the elements that make a movie excellent come together to make one terrific movie musical worthy of the work of Sondheim.

Storyline/Plot: 5 out of 5 stars
Replayability: 5 out of 5 stars
Acting: 5 out of 5 stars
Directing: 5 out of 5 stars

Audio/Visual:
The clean picture that Burton presents for the main feature of Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (Two-Disc Special Collector’s Edition) is transfered at an aspect ratio of 1.85:1. It is an anamorphic widescreen transfer that does not have any visual errors. The colors are vibrant, the blacks and grays are deep and rich. The contrast is perfect. I didn’t really notice any visible flaws or at least nothing that would be too distracting. Overall, the quality is superb.

With such a music intensive score, the utmost care had to be taken to ensure that the sound for the film was perfect. The score was played by a 96-piece orchestra and every word, sung or spoken, is easy to hear and pleasing on the ears. No volume adjustment is needed. Everything is consistent. The Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound track in English is perfect for the movie. There are two other tracks that are 5.1 Dolby Digital in French and Spanish. Subtitles and Closed Captioning are available in all three languages.

Visual: 4 out of 5 stars
Audio: 5 out of 5 stars

Bonus Features:
Since this is a two-disc special collector’s edition of Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, there is a large amount of bonus features. What is included enhances what is already available with the main feature. The extras include:

Disc One

“Burton + Depp + Carter = Todd” – This is a behind the scenes featurette that shows Burton, Depp and Bonham Carter making Sweeney Todd. The feature is filled with plenty of rehearsals, behind the scenes footage, and recording sessions. This feature lasts close to a half hour.

Disc Two

“Sweeney Todd Press Conference” – A feature that shows a press conference for the movie. The conference features Tim Burton, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Timothy Spall, and Richard Zanuck.

“Musical Mayhem – Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd” – An interview with Stephen Sondheim. This discusses his musical, how he feels about the movie (he’s very happy with it), working with Burton on the movie project, and how the score changed between musical and movie.

The Making of Sweeney Todd – This is your typical making of feature. I enjoyed this supplement, a lot.

The Razor’s Refrain – Music from the movie accompanies a montage of movie stills.

Designs For A Demon Barber – This, as you might have guessed, deals with the design and look of Sweeney Todd. There are plenty of concept drawings showing ideas for the movie as well as interviews with Tim Burton, Colleen Atwood and Dante Ferretti.

“Sweeney Todd is Alive – The Real History of the Demon Barber of Fleet Street” – This featurette was my favorite of all the extras. This discusses the orgins of the story behind Sweeney Todd. There is reference to the original legend, evidence that could support Sweeney Todd being real and evidence to support him not being real. There is also a look at real serial killers that may have influenced the legend.

Moviefone Unscripted with Tim Burton and Johnny Depp – Moviefone customers had the chance to ask Johnny and Tim questions via the Internet. Here is their responses.

Sweeney’s London – This feature explores London during the time in which Sweeney Todd was set. Plenty of drawings from the period are included. The Industrial Revolution was an interesting time in London history.

A Bloody Business – If you’re like me, then you’ll love this feature. Tim Burton discusses the special effects used when it came to Sweeney Todd’s victims and other elements of death. Ashtyn thought the blood was Campbell’s Tomato Soup. This sheds some light into how the effects of death were created. Creepily enough, Johnny Depp looks on as Burton talks, as he wears his Sweeney Todd costume and makeup. This one is rivaled for my favorite feature with the legend featurette.

Grand Guignol: A Theatrical Tradition – This looks into one of the biggest theatrical influences for Burton and Sondheim. The Grand Guignol was a real theater found in France. In honor of the theater, the term “Grand Guignol” is now used to describe entertainment forms of a horror genre. The Grand Guignol was active in France from 1897 to 1962.

There is also a photo gallery and the trailer for Sweeney Todd.

Overall, there are plenty of offerings to satisfy fans of the movie and those who want to know about Sweeney Todd.

Bonus Features: 5 out of 5 stars

Bottom Line:
Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street is the best film I’ve reviewed in 2008, thus far. I highly recommend the film whether you’re a fan of movie musicals or not. While the two younger, male performers shine the most, Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter put in solid performances and carry the movie. This one is a must see film. If you decide to purchase it, you should pick up the two-disc special collector’s edition. With so many bonuses and extras its worth the purchase.

Overall Rating: 4.86 out of 5 stars

Technorati Tags: Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Two-Disc Special Collector’s Edition, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, DVD Review, Stephen Sondheim, Musical, Tim Burton