There's a little Edward Scissorhands here, a little Ichabod Crane there, and a dash of Ed Wood thrown in for good measure. Sweeney looks like Captain Jack crossed with Elsa Lancaster's Bride of Frankenstein, and Depp plays the role pretty much the way he has played every part in his career for Burton. This is Jack the Ripper's London - a place of shadows, horror, and the grand guignol. In fact, one could argue that it's Corpse Bride come to life. (Those who know the songs by heart from the stage musical will argue with me vociferously on this point, as one might expect.) Sweeney Todd might have worked just as well with the lyrics changed to spoken dialogue - that's how unremarkable the musical numbers are. Even the most heartfelt refrains lack the zest that we have come to expect from big-screen musicals. One has to give Depp and Bonham-Carter credit for doing their own singing, but neither has the pipes to really pull this off.

In the movie, it's odd that the instrumental portions of the soundtrack (those that feature the reverberations of an organ) are more effective than the songs. It's tough to develop rousing lyrics about murderers and cannibals. It's far from Stephen Sondheim's best work, but it has nevertheless developed a devoted following over the years. Since this is a musical, the first thing to discuss is, quite naturally, the music. Lovett's grinder so they can become the ingredients of her meat pies. Sweeney has opened a trap door in the bottom of his shop and, when he's done with customers, they are placed into Mrs. Soon, the haircutter is again open for business but those who enter seem not to emerge. Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter), who runs a disused pub under Sweeney's old barber shop. Sweeney makes it a priority to visit his revenge upon Turpin and his assistant, Beadly Bamford (Timothy Spall). He discovers that his wife is dead and his teenage daughter, Johanna (Jayne Wisener), is Turpin's ward.

Wronged by the vile Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman), who had Sweeney deported so he could steal his wife, the haircutter returns with visions of slicing more than sideburns and whiskers. Sweeney Todd (Johnny Depp) is the Jack the Ripper of barbers. The movie's lack of energy radiates outward from the low-key songs to the subdued performance by Johnny Depp to the desaturated color employed by cinematographer Dariusz Wolski.

Under Burton's direction, however, it's strangely stagnant. True to its stage nature, Sweeney Todd is characterized by a love of the macabre and a cutting wit. With Tim Burton at the helm, one has to wonder whether Halloween might have been a better release time. This year, in the proud tradition of Chicago and Dreamgirls, we have Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Every December, one of the major studios brings us a musical - something to lighten the spirits and brighten the holidays.

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