Ok, so I’ve been a big fan of most of Tim Burton’s stuff till this movie happened to cross my life’s path. Let me just say that I was completely unaware of what lay ahead when I stepped into the theatre that day. I convinced my fiance’ and a couple of good friends to accompany me on this viewing voyage … and then spent the better part of half an hour after the film apologizing for bringing them along.

Yes, it was that bad. As many of you are probably aware, it is a musical, but the musical aspect of this film is not what has upset me to the point of writing off all Tim Burton films. No, it was simply the over the top theme of the movie which was pure STUPIDNESS … and no, I don’t care if that is a word or not. But wait, I’m getting ahead of myself…

PROS of the FILM
Probably the best part of this film was the singing done by every actor/actress in it. I was blown away with Johnny Depps performance, but even more so with almost everyone else. I was completely unaware of how many people in film can sing, or those who can sing after some lessons and that they can do it very well. The songs were even catchy despite the fact that they mostly dealt with some devious plot of killing someone.

Another pro to this film was the acting. Johnny Depp is by far one of the most talented male performances out there now-a-days and it shows in each film that he seems to be popping out as of late. Yet, you can’t give him the all the credit for where would he be without the support of a great cast to back him? Helena Carter is no stranger to Burton’s films and was an obvious choice for the estranged woman who turns dead bodies into consumable meat pies. She and Depp pair well together in this film especially for a part where it escapes from the dreary scene of the city into a dream like scape of a picnic etc. (I’m not going to go into detail – you’ll just have to see for yourself)

CONS of the FILM
There really is only one con of this whole film, and it’s sad to say that. Because of all the strong performances, the theme, the overall cinematography and even directing was right on … and then throw in an obscene amount of gore and over the top throat slashing and blood splattering … and it’s a perfect recipe for a sub-par film. Wait did I say sub-par…I mean terrible film. I just couldn’t get past the blood in my face for almost 2 hours of the film and the simple fact that for some reason no one in the whole blasted city of London didn’t notice that “Larry” was missing for over a week, or “the grumpy man on the corner” didn’t show up to the pub like he always does etc. etc. etc. I MEAN COME ON!

SUMMARY
Ok, so I’ll stop with my rant and just say this. I’m sure that many people are not expecting to see what they are going to get from this film. It surprised me and like I said, I’m a Tim Burton fan. Yet, this film seems to break his mold while still showing all the tricks that Tim Burton normally uses. So, if you like Depp, if you like over the top gore and don’t mind a tune here and there … go see this film and let me know what you thought. If you’d rather see something good then by all means please go see something else.

FINAL RATING: 6/10 (only due to performances – otherwise I’d give it a 4/10)