Sweeney Todd and Batman | Teen Ink

Sweeney Todd and Batman

May 18, 2018
By @FaithTheaterNerd BRONZE, Concord, Alabama
@FaithTheaterNerd BRONZE, Concord, Alabama
1 article 0 photos 0 comments

Favorite Quote:
" Ughh, What fresh torment is this?"- Shego


Out of many movies created by Tim Burton, it can be agreed that the best movie that displays his directing styles is Sweeney Todd. Sweeney Todd is a movie based of the original broadway show of the same name. The show was written as a thriller for the stage, and when Tim Burton was given the chance to adapt this to film, he would make it in his style, while still appeasing fans of the show. One great point to start on is how he uses lighting and angles in the movie. If you watch the movie, there's no way you can not notice how incredibly dark it is, which is an interesting way of lighting. The darkness of the film really adds to the horror and intensity of the movie, it adds emotions and eerie feelings throughout the film. The angles are also very interesting as it verys. In scenes with tensions, you often get close up angles, such as when Benjamin Barker, under the cover of Sweeney Todd,  attempts to kill a man named Judge Turpin, who is responsible for his wife being gone and his daughter being separated from him. The scene is dark and the music is slow, Judge Turpin is not aware that Sweeney is Benjamin, and getting a free shave. Slowly they sing a song as Sweeney’s razors get very close to the Judges neck, creating tension and causing us to be in expectation of Sweeney killing the Judge. Suddenly, Sweeney is most definitely about to kill the Judge with the music loud and the close ups to his angry face, then a boy runs in and everything just goes south and the Judge lives. What Tim Burton did was use the dark lighting and the and the intense close angles to make viewers feel scared, and in expectation of the judges death. Tim is amazing at using his directing styles to get tension and other emotions through, not to mention the amazing acting which fit the scene, making us feel so involved and into the story, just to be snapped out just like that scene. This formula is very successful as Tim Burton frequently uses it throughout Sweeney Todd, and most of his other movies. So yes, Tim Burton does use different styles of lighting, music, and camera angles create different emotions and display his style throughout his movies. Tim Burton’s Batman also displays his directing style in an interesting way. Most everything related to Batman is dark, not meaning gruesome, but lighting wise. So this is already in Tim Burton's area of expertise. Batman lives in Gotham City, he swing off buildings and fights in various areas, leaving so many angle opportunities for Tim.

Once again, a great a great point to start on is the lighting music, and angles. Already stated, Batman is dark, he works in the night, the point of Batman is to cause fear. It was only elementary for Tim to make lighting scary as in previous works. One prime example of Time using outstanding lighting and angles to create emotions and thoughts, mostly fear, is in the opening of the movie. Young Bruce Wayne and his parents are walking through the city at night, they go into the direction of an alley, the music starts getting softer in a creepy way and the lighting is slightly more dark, even heartbeats are heard. The camera is behind the family as the walk down the alley with the music getting even more creepy, making you expect the worst. Suddenly the music gets at its highest loudest peik, and the family is just about to turn the corner when a man with a gun hits Bruce’s dad. Just in the opening scene, Burton is able to use the lighting angles and music to scare you, are make you feel nervous and expect things before they happen. If the music was upbeat and happy and the lighting was somewhat bright, you would have no idea of the scene at hand. So Tim wanted you to feel scared and know something bad was about to happen, its his style of work. So once again, yes, Tim Burton does in fact use lighting, music, and angles to create certain emotions and display his style of directing. So knowing that both Sweeney Todd and Batman both use different styles of lighting, music, and camera angles create different emotions to display Tim Burton’s style, an explanation can be made to show how both movies share almost the exact same lighting and music effects  to create the same emotional and otherwise effects as both movies have similar feels and themes. Using both examples for Batman and Sweeney Todd previously used, I will compare directing styles. So one simmularity to start on is the lighting in both movies, which is very dark. Sweeney Todd and Batman are both subject to dark lighting because of their dark themes. Sweeney Todd is about a murder and canabalism, yet is a musical so it has some minor bright scenes and feels, more on how Batman has the same minor bright scenes as well, so of course Sweeney Todd was choosen to have dark lighting to fit the mood. Batman is about a man dressed as a bat who scares, intimadtes and fights villians in the city of Gotham at night, but there is a reason that, like Sweeney Todd, Batman has minor scenes with some light and “happiness”. Batman is not a musical, but originaly a cartoon superhero who fight crime dressed like a bat who fights a clown, of course its not all dark. One example of how bad it would look if it was just a serious scene is Pennywise from the new IT. They show him of as some extremely scary demon who can lure children to death by scaring them. While it works and is somewhat scary, its actually kind of funny. The people who made it where wondering why some people were not scared and the answer is this, PENNYWISE IS A CLOWN. The reason he was so scary in the original was because Pennywise seemed like an innocent happy clown who out of nowhere killed a child! Imagine how out of place it would be if there was no humor and light in a movie based of a cartoon crime fighter fighting against a clown. Another simmularity is the music. Not that they use the same music, the soundtracks are very different, but that they both become more intense when something scary is about to happen, or to build up terror when nothing scary is about to happen. When Sweeney Todd, or Benjamin Barker, attempted to kill the judge, the music got louder and louder, and just when you think he is about to die, a boy runs into the shop and causes Sweeney to not kill him. In Batman, Bruce’s family is walking through an alley and the music once again gets louder and louder, you think something bad is about to happen when it turns out its just a cat, dispite the fact they make up for that killing Bruce’s parents… So Tim does use the same methods in different movies with different storys and charactors. He uses unique directing styles to create suspense and terror, even when nothing bad is going to happen. Its extremely well done in both movies as you honestly feel and know something bad is coming just around the corner, or this charector is going to die, dispite it not happening. Tim Burton is a master at this and shows it in both movies and other works of his own. So yes, Tim Burton does use different styles of lighting, music, and camera angles create different emotions and display his style throughout his movies. Tim Burton, as shown throughout the essay, has shown certian styles of directing to create emotions and display his style in films by themselves and in some cases in two movies the same methosd is used. He is using his lighting, angles, and music to display fear, terror, maybe even sadness and happiness. Something definitly not easy to do. In Sweeney Todd it can be agreed that lighting was the main directing style that hit with your emotions, and with Batman, angles.  What I really mean is that fear and terror is Tim Burton’s style, but he does it in a way that can also cause other emotions. One minute your in terror, and the other your laughing.Tim Burton uses his style to create fear and other emotions in an agreed to be amazing fashion, using story to create a way to use lighting, music, and angles to make those emeotions appear.


The author's comments:

This was created by me for a project, I chooose Sweeney Todd because I love musicals, and Batman because I love Batman.


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