The Los Angeles Times "Gold Derby" blog is already predicting that Sweeney Todd will win the Oscar for best picture. "Sondheim's musical score is a masterpiece," says the site. "Viewers can't help but get swept up in Sweeney's lush melodies and raging drama." The blog says of the Stephen Sondheim play on which it is based: "Arguably, it's the greatest in Broadway history."
In his latimes.com "Gold Derby" column, writer Tom O'Neil is already predicting that Sweeney Todd will win the Oscar for best picture. O'Neil is confident enough in Sweeney's pre-release buzz among fans (the film and soundtrack are due out next month) that he's willing to make the call even before seeing the film—the only one "on the scene to inspire this kind of joy."
And it's no surprise to him: "Sondheim's musical score is a masterpiece," he writes. "Viewers can't help but get swept up in Sweeney's lush melodies and raging drama." Recalling the days in New York in 1979, when the Stephen Sondheim musical first appeared on Broadway and enthusiasm for the show reached a fever pitch, the O'Neil warns that "America's moviegoers are about to go through the same mania when they inevitably become smitten with its irresistible bloodlust, artistic brilliance, and twisted love tales."
Because Sweeney Todd has come to be more than just a show—"Arguably, it's the greatest in Broadway history"—O'Neil foresees the film version earning, in addition to best picture, best director for Tim Burton and best actor for Johnny Depp, in the title role.
The latimes.com article also features a video interview with the legendary Angela Lansbury, who earned a Tony in the original Broadway production as Mrs. Lovett, Sweeney's meat pie–making cohort. Lansbury has kind words for Helena Bonham Carter, who's taken on the role in the film.
Read the complete article and watch the video with Angela Lansbury at goldderby.latimes.com.
