Rolling Stone: "Sweeney" Is "A Spellbinder of Breathtaking Beauty"

In his review of the new big-screen version of Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd, Rolling Stone's Peter Travers calls the film "a thriller-diller from start to finish: scary, monstrously funny and melodically thrilling ... This Sweeney is a bloody wonder, intimate and epic, horrific and heart-rending as it flies on the wings of Sondheim's most thunderously exciting score."

Leading the proceedings is director Tim Burton, whom Travers dubs "a true visionary ... He sets a new gold standard for bringing a stage musical to the screen." Johnny Depp, in the title role, is "simply stupendous," says Travers, and he got the singing down just right:

His light baritone has clarity, timbre and emotive power. Depp erases the line between singing and acting, fusing them into something that keeps the movie blazing. Oscar, take note.

As for Sweeney's cohort in crime, Mrs. Lovett, Helena Bonham Carter is "darkly delicious," Travers writes, and "rivals Depp in using an untrained voice to anchor lyrics to truth rather than showoff technique."

The review doesn't spare any praise for Sweeney, exclaiming that the "brilliantly conceived and executed film moves from one highlight to another," but comes back, in the end, to Depp's performance:

As the film follows its tragic course, Depp scores an explosive triumph. Covered in blood, Sweeney is finally engulfed by his emotions, and Depp finds the character's grieving heart. It's a staggering moment in a spellbinder of breathtaking beauty and terror.

To read the full Rolling Stone review, visit rollingstone.com. For more on the film's soundtrack, available on Tuesday, click here.