Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)

Tim Burton is my 2nd favourite director of all time (next to Wes Anderson) but even i was worried when i heard about his new project, and that it was going to be a musical. I knew nothing of Sweeny Todd's narrative or its themes, so to me it could of been anything. It could of been a cheesy musical, but luckilly it was not. It's a violent , epic story that burton was able to sprinkle with his own taste for the strange and unusual.

Sweeny Todd sees burton teaming with Johnny Depp for the 6th time. Depp pulls in a solid performance here, but he's not the only one here. Helena Bonham Carter delivers what i think was the finest performance of the film that added the humour and charm to the film. The interaction between the two was engaging and they worked together very well. Sacha Baron Cohen brings a short but memorable performance tro the film, his shave-off with sweeny is one of the many highlights of this movie. Alan Rickman plays the villian of the film with a quiet menace that is another wellocmed element of sweeny todd.

Now to my biggest fear, the music. I was suprised that i really enjoyed the musical elements of this film, ranging from the sinister / dark songs to the funny and quirky (By the Sea). Tim Burton was able to bring a sense of danger, elements of violence and humour when needed to these songs.

If i was going to point out something i didn't enoy it would be the romantic storyline between the character Anthony and Johanna. There i felt it starting turning into your conventional musical and slushy romantic storylines did not benefit this film at all.

All in all, Sweeny todd is a fantastic piece of work. Tim Burton has managed to create a visually appealing film, strong performances by all involved. Sweeny Todd has made a musical fan outa me ! (as long as they have violence and blood)

Semi-Pro (2008)

As i mentioned in my Talladega Nights review, Will ferrell has found his style, a arrogant character who was successful but has since lost his fame or skills and has to work his way back up (anchorman, Talladega Nights, Blades of Glory). I love Anchorman, one of my favourites of 2004. Talladega Nights i liked on first watch but lost its appeal on rewatches, then i really really liked Blades of Glory. However i think Will Ferrells style has finally worn off with me.

Watching Semi-Pro, i couldn't help but think that it was a shame that Dewey Cox didn't get more attention. One of the main issues with Semi-pro is that the story isn't solid, its a basic sport/comedy movie storyline, a team working towards one event. It's just slightly dull and formulaic. Usually even if i notice some cliches and basic narrative elements found in Will Ferell movies his comedic style pulls it through and makes it worth wathing, sadly this is too dull and he can't help it and comes off samey.

There were some funny moments but they came in set pieces rather than consistantly funny scenes. I'd rather have a film that has lots of funny jokes, than one or 2 REALLY funny jokes with the rest below par, which is basically what semi-pro is. My favourite scenes in terms of comedy were the puking scene, the gun scene and parts of the bear scene. Solid laughs there for sure. I also liked Woody Harrelson in this film, his character was prettygood and provided the romantic storyline.

All in all, it might be just be the fact that there has been so many of these types of movies (will ferrel basic comedy movies) that it was just unlucky in terms of order. However i'm pretty sure even if it was his first movie, it would seem dull.