Sweeney Todd
A brooding, psychotic Johnny Depp slitting throats against one of Tim Burton’s most macabre backdrop’s to date should be all the encouragement anyone needs. The music might discourage some, but it’s so well integrated with painstakingly constructed sets, costumes and fine performances that it only adds to the experience. Depp’s softly spoken-sung lyrics convey palpable emotion, while all the actors display exceptional vocal talents. Sparing comedy moments including a sparkling cameo from Sascha Baren Cohen, as well as evil perfectly portrayed by Alan Rickman as Judge Turpin, ensure it’s a well-rounded film. Buckets of blood and a high body count don’t hurt either. The best musical to film adaptation in recent memory. Maybe in an Alien vs Predator inspired sequel, Depp could slice through the cast of Grease 2 or Hairspray. But then again, that’s probably just wishful thinking.
Tagged: Johnny Depp, Tim Burton
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9, the animated movie from Tim Burton
Tim Burton was an Executive Producer on this. It’s a bit of a worry when the biggest name attached to a film is one of the people who put up some money to get it made. Wes Craven’s name has been bastardised in a similar way, and last week I saw Hellride, which had Quentin Tarantino as an Executive Producer. It rocketed into my top five worst films ever. Anyway, back to 9 and the dark colours and detail of the animation does closely resemble a Tim Burton film. Read more
Also by XAVIER TOBY
A film about a horrendously obese girl who has two kids, with Mariah Carey in it and produced by Oprah. Sounds awful and at first, I couldn’t be less interested, but it turns out, I couldn’t be more mistaken. Based on the novel Push, it’s a tight and intelligent script realised by dedicated actors and exquisite direction. Read more
‘Most bands that play traditional music, do it in a traditional way. What’s interesting for us it to keep it fresh and make it a living tradition,’ said Gergely Barcza of Hungarian gypsy-fusion band Besh o droM. Formed in Budapest in 1999, the name translates as ‘ride the road’, which they’ve done with performances at festivals all over Europe, Asia and soon for the first time, in Australia. ‘When we started, I never thought the music would travel so far, and take us all to so many different places.’ Read more
Often a film revolves a major action or series of events, while at the centre of the Italian film Quiet Chaos, is a mammoth but not uncomfortable hole. When a TV executive’s wife suddenly dies, he takes to spending his days outside his daughters school, but instead of his life falling apart, his friends and relatives come to console him, and faced with his calm, they end up revealing their own difficulties. Read more
YOU'RE SAYING (2)
Gary said | 14 February, 2008
This movie is definitely a must-watch. Before watching ST, I was rather skeptical as to how Depp would be able to carry a tune since he has no musical background that I could think of. But when he started singing the opening song, I was amazed. He truly carried the role well with his menacing facial expressions and resentful yet soft voice when he sang.
Helena was also amazing. I love her character the most actually. Such perfect casting! Highly recommended!
HAVE YOUR SAY
Australian photographer, Sean Fennessy, was named by Art and Australia Magazine in 2006 as one of the ‘country’s best artists aged under 25′. These photos are from a larger series on Shanghai called Over the Rainbow. Read more
Australian designer Ruby Smallbone takes us into the chill of Winter with clockwork pieces and sharp cuts. This Sydney-based label is fast becoming an international hit with its distinct mix of European tailoring and street-inspired style. Ruby Smallbone’s Winter 09 collection proves there is a fine line between art and fashion, creating the perfect fusion of luxury fabrics within a creative and unexpected aesthetic.
Michael Wolf, a German born American photographer, has lived in Hong Kong since 1995. His work explores the ways city-dwellers in China and Hong Kong shape their surroundings in an ‘organic metropolis’. His series — Architecture of Density — has some breathtaking images of Hong Kong’s apartment buildings.
Whoa. That was intense. I’ve just awoken from a dream whereby my big self somehow stumbles upon my five-year old self playing enthusiastically with a group of kids. Read more
Kirk brings Molly to meet his family for a pool party but she doesn’t have her swim suit. Kirk, an average Joe, can’t believe his luck when gorgeous babe Molly falls for him even though he’s the first to admit She’s Out of My League. In cinemas April 1.
This isn’t an outdoor art installation, but it is still somewhat curated. Or maybe hoarded is a better description. Somewhere in the inner western suburb of Sydney’s Summer Hill, there is a brightly coloured collection of garden gnomes on display. The owner of the home is yet to be seen, but there are hundreds of gnomes, side by side, all with equally dopey expressions on their faces and accompanied by a second fixation: caterpillar soft toys. There are so many gnomes, the garden is no longer visible. Maybe it’s an Amelie style prank that has just piled up over the years? Read more
The highly polished electronic sound of Minneapolis band UltraChorus falls somewhere between Hot Chip and Phoenix, bringing a cut and paste indie rock aesthetic to late nineties Hip-Hop and R&B. We have their debut single, Words Kept Talking [listen below], available for free download in our Music Download section.
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WE'RE POSTING / SOME OF THE BEST
Forget battery powered vehicles. Cars made from ice are the future of transportation: no pollution, no honking horns, no painful rap music blasting out of souped up stereos. And if they melt, they melt. You just swim the rest of the way down the slipstream.
Yu Xiao was born in Zi Bo, Shandong, China. She received her M.A. in Photography from China Central Academy of Fine Arts in 2009. In this work, Never Grow Up, Yu Xiao digitally created child versions of herself as a commentary on China’s one child rule and the intense focus on childhood that results. Read more
The clever folk at Code Organ made a sythesizer that turns webpages into music. Just enter a URL and listen to the sweet, sweet sounds your site produces.
Creative advertising packaging
Despite the intentions of many, it’s not so often that advertising — as an industry — truly thinks outside the box. Yet, when executed well, clever eye-catching advertising actually works. It does. As these examples will attest to. Read more
French installation artist Baptiste Debombourg made this mural of Icarus using 35,000 staples as a comment on American power. Read more
From this artist selection of t-shirts comes this Christina Koustospirou illustration, silkscreened on a limited edition t-shirt, and distributed in a vinyl sleeve, with a biography of the artist on the back of the sleeve. Every t-shirt is numbered and signed by the artist, and comes in organic cotton. Read more
The new Runaways movie looks at the formation of the seminal girls’ group which spawned Joan Jett’s career. We have a Runaways prize pack to give away, including Neon Angel: A Memoir of a Runaway, the Joan Jett and the Blackhearts Greatest Hits CD, the film’s soundtrack, and Joan Jett’s photobook with Todd Oldham. To enter, just leave the name of the city you live in! Read more
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Thombeau said | 13 February, 2008
A brilliant film. Depp and Rickman are fantastic. Everyone is, really. Though a completely different animal from the original Broadway show, Stephen Sondheim gave it his approval. That’s saying something!