C.) Shot size/Angle + Camera Movement

I also found some aspects of shot size and angle interesting...

In film, shot size/angle and camera movement is a key technique used to create the overall feeling and style.

The title sequence begins with a wide angle wide shot of the old Victorian London city skyline then pans from from left to right, ending at the barbershop. The intention of the director, Tim Burton, in using a wide angle wide shot is for us to visualise the vastness of London and see all the chimneys in the skyline. This hints at the importance of the chimney from the fiery human-pie oven later on in the film and how it is just one of many pouring out filth into the dirty Victorian sky. Perhaps Todd will get away with it; perhaps no-one will notice the stench?  Once the shot zooms in on the Barber shop this gives the feeling that the barber’s shop is somehow hidden amongst all the buildings and chimneys and Todd’s revengeful bloodthirsty actions will also be hidden.

The camera continues to pan to the rooftop of Sweeny Todd’s barbershop showing the window in the roof and this emphasises the setting of central London. The attic skylight windows are typical of the era

It zooms in on the dirty window, which highlights the grime of London. I think the focal emphasis on the dirt and grime is not only to portray London at that time, but to give us a sense that something very “dirty” i.e. not nice is going to happen. It also gives us the sense that we are about to look through the window and see something unfold before our eyes.

When the camera zooms in to the window the depth in the shot increases. There is a high shot looking down on the empty barber’s chair through the window. This is interesting because high shots usually make the object or figure look small and lacking in power suggesting insignificance or vulnerability but this is certainly not the case. The barber’s chair is a significant object in the film and by showing it from a high angle I think Tim Burton is doing it to create uncertainty and confusion as in the music rather than showing it from a low angle to show it’s dominance and power. It could also be showing the chair IS of great vulnerability rather than making it look vulnerable. It is the focal point, and a very important part of the film, as this is where the murders are committed. Blood splatters on window, beside the chair, giving the impression of the chair being involved with the murders. I think this is significant and Burton intends to give us a sense of vulnerability as we watch the storyline unfold. Vulnerability and tension are what keep us on the edge of our chairs and are the essence of horror movies. The technique of using the camera shots to keep us uncertain and on the edge of our seats is reflected throughout the rest of the film.

C.) Titles/text

The opening title sequence of “Sweeney Todd” contains no dialogue or actors/ characters and this means we are not distracted by either of these elements but can instead focus on the images and themes presented. I will look at the way the titles are juxtaposed with the images on the screen and take on significance in foreshadowing the driving themes and meanings in the film.

Title designer Richard Morrison had worked previously with Tim Burton on Batman (1989) and they used the same technique in Batman’s opening sequence i.e. no actors/ characters shown. It gives us an association with Tim Burton’s style of directing and suggests his vision for horror films.

The film opens with “Warner Bros Pictures & Dreamworks Pictures presents” in gothic white font which contrasts against the black backdrop.  The gothic font helps create the setting of the film into the Victorian Era as we understand the style of the font and its common use in Victorian times. If the font was different, such as “Marker felt”, it wouldn’t fit as well and we wouldn’t get such a strong idea of when it was set.

Also many of the famous early horror movies were based on classic books of the gothic/horror genre, such as Dracula, Frankenstein, The Phantom of the Opera, and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and so the gothic font helps us understand the genre as well as the setting.

An example of another film where the font suggests the genre, is the futuristic style font used for the Star Trek Film called:

The gothic font is also a traditional font for inscribing names onto graveyard tombstones and so through this Burton has suggested to us that death is going to be a driving theme through the film. 

All the titles are in white gothic font until the title of the film is announced “Sweeney Todd” in red gothic (dramatically reinforcing the images of blood). Tim Burton used the stark contrast of the white font against the dark grimy background to emphasise the setting of the film in dark industrial Victorian England. Also the use of white font until the title is displayed keeps the actor’s names clearly defined and separate from the title of the film. When the title Sweeney Todd finally appears in a red blood colour it has great impact and we realise that Sweeney Todd is not only the title of the film, but also as the central character he is inescapably connected to blood.

“A Zanuck Company Production” appears mid way along the left to right pan; it fades in and flicks out with lightening/thunder, caught by a drop of blood.  This technique draws the eye in. "A Tim Burton Film" appears just after the blood splatter on the window, centre of screen over the barber’s chair. This gives us an association between the director of the film and the barber’s chair. We already understand that the director plays possibly the most important role in the production of a film and therefore the proximity of the barber’s chair to his name suggests that the chair is pivotal to the film plot. His name is centre screen and this also draws our eyes in.

Three actors’ names appear on the screen before the film title is displayed. They are the three main characters. We see an association between their name and the image presented.

First is "Johnny Depp" and the text appears by the old Victorian silhouette picture of himself. I think Tim Burton doesn’t think we need to see… “(Johnny Depp) as  Sweeney Todd” as the image is enough for us to make an association. This also keeps a slight sense of uncertainty and tension as we are not 100 % sure. Depp is introduced first as he is the main character and the setting is the barber’s room with the chair. The style of the silhouette image is Victorian and so in keeping with the gothic font. The gothic font and image accentuates the Victorian period and the text and image combined clearly put “Johnny Depp/Sweeney Todd” in the barber’s room with the chair. This association let’s us know that the room and chair are going to be important.

Then "Helena Bonham Carter" appears by the silhouette of Mrs. Lovett, which shows she is also a main character and linked to the barber’s room/house. The Director makes the association between the two actors for us and we understand Helena Bonham Carter is closely linked in the conspiracy with Johnny Depp’s character

The name of "Alan Rickman" appears as the camera pans down past the barber’s chair. We can see that his character has a close association with the barber’s chair and the director is drawing our attention to it. As we realise that he is the Judge we suspect that this might be the place of his murder.  The display of the text is carefully coordinated with the music and appears on the downbeat of the music. This gives a sense of finality and emphasis that this is the place of his death. It shows the main drive behind the film and why the chair is there - to kill Judge Turpin. 

C.) Sounds

Tim Burton mainly uses diegetic sounds in the opening title sequence of Sweeney Todd. Diegetic sounds are those that exist in the world of the film and non-diegetic are ones that are added to create mood and feeling appropriate for the intended meaning of the scene. The diegetic sounds are those of a gust of wind; rain pattering on the rooftops; the globules of blood landing as they drip down the chair and splat on the window; thunder; the cogs of the chair clanking and the slam of the oven door.

We hear the cogs of the barber’s chair clanking as the camera pans downwards beneath the chair. This is an effective use of sound and I think it suggests more than one idea.

Firstly it hints at some hidden machinery associated with the chair that is not known to those sitting in it. We do not expect a barber’s chair to have that sort of machinery, so we begin to wonder if there is a hidden purpose to the chair. It adds to the sense of uncertainty and growing fear we are made to feel during the title sequence.

 Secondly the cogs suggest Todd’s thought processes, his mind turning over the ideas for revenge. Then when he comes up with the idea for murdering his victims it is like an automated machine that moves on its own and cannot be stopped. It brings up images in my mind of typical film images of victims tied down to a conveyer belt heading towards a fiery furnace or knives etc. – something that will kill them, and not being able to escape. For example, a Disney program such as Tom and Jerry.

The sharp slam of the oven door gives us a sense of finality, of the end of whatever horror we are to witness. We have seen the meat grinder spewing out meat of some sort and the finished pies coming out oozing blood. We feel horror and disgust and then try to make a connection back to the barber’s chair. The slam is sudden and gives us a fright, we realise that there is no going back after this point. Immediately following are the images of the sewers and “waste products”. The sudden sharp noise is typical of the horror film genre and a technique used to make the audience “jump out of its skin”.  In combination with the gory images it is a very effective technique.

The one non-diegetic sound I indentified (apart from the orchestral music) was a “Fssshhh” sound tied over the camera shots cutting to inside the barber’s shop. It suggests a ghostly unworldly sound and adds to the eeriness and uncertainty. At this point we don’t know if there are going to be ghosts in the film and it adds to our fear of the unknown. In combination with the images of blood it gives the sense that the “after-life” might come back to haunt us.

C.) Lighting/Colour

Lighting and Colour in films is to create mood and feeling and to ensure understanding of the meaning of the shot is clear.

The overall lighting in the title sequence of “Sweeny Todd” is dark and gloomy, and this is a traditional effect for horror films. It fits the genre of horror films right back to the time of films such as Dracula made in 1931. Dracula is one of the earliest classic American horror films directed by Tod Browning. It incorporates eerie lighting with a moody dark shadowy atmosphere. We understand from the overall lighting effects that Sweeney Todd is going to be a horror film.

The dark lighting of the entire title sequence is interspersed with the bright red of the blood and because of that we recognise that the blood is going to be a central theme in the film. The use of the blood grows from droplets into large puddles spilling out through the opening sequence. This suggests the ever-increasing butchery and murder that Sweeney Todd commits in the film. The bright red and very realistic looking blood travelling through the opening sequence contributes to Tim Burton’s vision for the film.  I think that he wants to give us the uncomfortable feeling of being right in the middle of the action with all the blood and gore as it would be if we witnessed “real” murders.

 

The other contrast colour is the bright lighting on the white in the text titles. The stark white contrasts against the dark background and draws our eyes into the screen. We focus on the text and see the names against the images in the background. As Tim Burton only puts the names of the actors against the images they represent, for example, Alan Rickman’s name beside the barber’s chair – the place of his murder, the colour contrast ensures that we focus and understand the text is associated with the image behind.

The other intense lighting contrast in the title sequence is the lightning flash in the sky, which occurs at the same moment as the thunder and is also emphasised by the dramatic music. The combination of these happening all at the same time makes us understand that we are in the centre of the storm. Lightning and thunder only occur at the same time when the storm is overhead; otherwise there is a delay between the lightning and then thunder sounding. This heightens the drama and our fear but also suggests to us that the film is going be in the very centre of a “storm”. So during the film we are not going to be observing action from the sidelines but from the very centre of the action. This fits with Burton’s vision of making the film “realistic”.

The use of lighting accentuates the shadows of the Victorian buildings and the smokey atmosphere. The light in the clouds is from the full moon, with some of the raindrops coloured white catching light from the moon and the others red with blood. The clouds get progressively lighter as the camera pans down from top. From this we understand it is the middle of the night and that is when bad things can happen! We are brought up to fear dark alleyways and shadows at night, danger could be lurking.  Images of Jack the Ripper in Victorian England are shown in just such shots e.g. Alfred Hitchcock’s horror film “The Lodger”.

As the camera zooms into the window it is dark and eerie inside the house and this keeps the scary mood. A contrast is provided by the light reflecting from blood dripping and this makes it look more gruesome and suggests the overall horror of the film.  The contrast between the sombre dark colours and then the white and red draws our attention to the importance of colour throughout the film. Tim Burton uses colour to portray important ideas. Later on in the film bright colours and contrasting lighting is used to portray Todd’s earlier happy family life with his wife and child. The dark colours in the rest of the film reflect Todd’s dark actions.

C.) Music

Stephen Sondheim composed the music for the original musical “Sweeney Todd” and this music is used in the film. The compositional style of Sondheim’s music in the film has been compared to the French composer Maurice Ravel (who was an impressionist composer- ie creating visual impressions through the music) and also Bernard Herrmann, who composed the music for the most famous of all traditional horror movies - those by Alfred Hitchcock, for example, "Psycho". We recognize that style of music from the genre of his horror films and so identify with the genre and understand that this is going to be a horror film.  

Stephen Sondheim’s original score for the musical was re-orchestrated by the stage musical's original orchestrator, Jonathan Tunick. He increased the orchestra from twenty-seven musicians to seventy-eight and this creates a larger, more cinematic feel appropriate for the film.

Prior to the opening sequence is a loud organ introduction for the “Dreamworks” logo. It is intensely dramatic, in the minor key and sets the scene for the opening title sequence.

The music used in the opening title sequence is orchestral and opens with a repeating triplet motif in an ostinato-like form. This is in the lower register of upper strings as the camera pans across the skyline of London. The key is not established which creates a sense of uncertainty and tension. If Sondheim had used a major key this would have created a mood of positivity and cheerfulness and contrasting this, using a minor key would have created a dark soulful tonality. The uncertain tonality and key of the music adds to the sense of unease and dread the Director, Tim Burton wants us to feel as the opening title sequence unfolds.

Stephen Sondheim has used the repeating triplet motif to create a feeling of persistent moving forward which keeps us on edge. It also anticipates and suggests the plot of the film - that of Todd’s sole purpose of moving relentlessly towards the ultimate goal of killing the Judge. We recognise and identify repetitiveness and relentlessness in a musical motif as creating a feeling of anticipation, horror and fear. The repetitive motif in the film “Jaws”:  duuh…..d- duuh.….d- duuh….d- is another good example of this technique being used.

A quiet low pedal interval of a fifth in the lower wind and strings begins, contrasting with the repeating triplet motif above. This dark tonal colour enhances the sense of doom with additional dissonant (clashing) notes to add tension. The dark sinister tonal colour of celli and bassi lowers from a fifth to an augmented fourth (or tritone) against the tonic. The augmented fourth is one of the most dissonant musical intervals in music and was named "diabolus in musica" - "the devil in music" in Renaissance times.  In those days composing music was very much an act of praising God, so as it sounded “unpleasant” and “un-godly” the augmented fourth was banned in Renaissance church music. When Sondheim uses the augmented fourth in Sweeney Todd we subconsciously understand that this interval has a “non-church” or “ungodly” like sound and that as the film unfolds we will follow a story of “ungodliness” ie murder and butchery of the very worst kind.

The augmented fourth interval is in sync with the bolt of lightning and crash of thunder combining several techniques at once - music, diegetic sound and the bright white contrasting colour of the lightning. This combination of techniques adds to the dramatic effect at this point and gives us the sense that there will be some dramatic events during the film.

As the camera zooms into the window the upper strings enter with a held interval of a fourth, building the texture and with the higher pitch highlighting fear and eeriness. This music intensifies and crescendos (gets louder) as we see the barber’s chair and this musical technique makes us realise that the barber’s chair is going to be a key focal point in the film.

As the camera cuts inside the flute begins a simple melody playing around the dominant note (5^th) of the scale with the held fifth chord underneath in the bass. This melody also has ambiguity like the start, because as a listener we can’t tell if it is in the major (happy) or minor (sad) key as there is no third clearly stated. It is the third in a chord that creates a minor or major triad (chord).

As the shot passes the armrest on the barber’s chair, the bass note moves to chord six of the key finally making it clear that we are in minor (sad, eerie, scary) key.  Stephen Sondheim has used the harmonic structure of the flute’s simple melody to portray the contrasting parts of Todd’s life: his happy past with his wife and child, then his sadness at his loss of them and the eerie revenge he is going to take.

After the image of the chair there are dissonant chords with a clear high pitched theme on top in the flute, piccolo and clarinet. This threatening and menacing music suggests the idea of danger, which is reflected in the shot showing blood dripping on the cogs beneath the chair. The music continues to intensify with a lot of dissonance with the colours of the orchestra used very effectively, even to the extent of using voices and organ. This is interesting because there are no people shown in the opening title sequence so when voices are introduced that subtly introduces the idea of the characters and not just the images of things and places.

The music builds up and the brass instruments (trumpet, trombone etc.) come in and increase in volume (crescendo) to when the title appears on the screen. The brass play the theme tune and this has great impact as the tonal quality of brass instruments is loud and dominant. Also brass instruments often play at important state occasions for heralding the entry of important state figures etc. This technique of choosing the brass to play at this point lends pomp and importance to the title appearing on the screen and our emotional response is to realise that this is an important moment.

There are more dissonant high-pitched intense chords with a high note in the violins. Then the main theme comes back with added choir singing in octaves on top adding to the texture. The mood creates the feeling something very bad is happening and we feel horror. There is also the conflict with the feeling of evil and sinful against the “church like” music.

The continuing ostinato (repeating motif) gives us the feeling of relentless driving. I think Stephen Sondheim has the intention of showing in the music, Sweeney Todd’s character relentlessly heading towards killing the judge.

When the pies are shown on the screen there is a build up of urgency in the brass as they come in with a two-note motif (repeated pattern) that increases in volume. This emphasises the images we see with a build up to what eventually is the slamming of the oven door.  This increase in intensity as the repeated pattern gets louder has the effect of making us sit up in our chairs waiting for the climax.

This happens when the door slams and the brass play an accented bass note down many octaves to the tonic of the chord. The tonic of the chord is the “home note”- or final note in a piece or musical phrase. Sondheim has effectively emphasized and coordinated this sense of finality with the imagery on the screen - showing the sewers - the very bottom. Contrasting this are the high screeches in the strings picture painting in the music - the mice scuttling around and squeaking.

Overall the music is used very effectively in the opening title sequence. It helps set the scene, the mood and tone and to help us understand the genre of the film. It underpins our emotional responses to the images we see.

B.) Genre/Atmosphere

Tone

The tone is to give us a feeling of what we are in for in the film; and in “Sweeny Todd” this has been cleverly created by symbolism relating to the film itself. Some examples are the cogs symbolising Todd’s thoughts and the ever-increasing globules of blood symbolising the growing number of Todd’s victims. The director, Tim Burton, uses dark and gloomy lighting, suggesting to us the overall tone of the film.

Part of the title sequence is from the point of view of Todd’s victims – falling down the “chute”, oozing out of the meat grinder, blood floating down the drain. Tim Burton wants us to experience the character’s point of view without actually showing the character. As we are only shown images and not people, Burton wants us to feel apprehensive for what is to come and also to give us a fear of the unknown.

There is a disorientating feeling is of falling for example the Victorian style silhouette pictures have blood dripping down and the title "Sweeney Todd" appears to fall and the blood down the sewers. Burton is suggesting to us the idea of Todd’s victims falling .

In the title sequence Tim Burton wants to take us through a series of feelings. He has done this firstly by utilising dark monotone images of London. It is a gloomy and grimy city, which makes us feel threatened and that we are entering a “dark” place not only physically, but also in what is going to happen. Following this, he wants us to feel scared by following the trail of dripping blood and then horrified as you wonder how the pies are being made when blood sizzles from beneath them in the oven. Burton lightens the tone slightly by the fact that it is partially cartoonised.

Tim Burton in conjunction with the composer, Stephen Sondheim, has used the music very effectively to enhance the various emotions throughout the title sequence. The eerie music at the beginning is to create a tense feeling of anticipation and then there is a feeling of heightened emotion and unease, created by the dissonant chords with the string ostinato above. The Horror feeling is created by the high screeches in the strings - a technique that is often used in horror films. The brass then add fullness to the sound, which intensifies the tone and then climaxes when the title of the film is shown.

The font of the title and credits for the actors and people involved is in Gothic font. This reflects the Victorian time in which the film was set and gives the viewer a better sense of the tone and setting of the film. The writing is white on the dark lighting which stands out and shows the people are involved are important. Then the title “Sweeney Todd” is coloured red. By doing this, Time Burton has cleverly made us realise that the blood is connected with the man Sweeney Todd himself and signifies the excessive and possibly gratuitous amount of blood used in the film.

Mood

For me, the mood of the opening sequence reflects very much what I think the Director’s intentions are.  To begin with I felt tense and quite cold with the dark images of Victorian London and the sound of thunder is threatening and suggests something bad will happen. A feeling of uncertainty follows this as the camera zooms up to house. The sound of blood splattering on the window and dripping and oozing through the cogs made me want to shiver in horror. I started to feel grossed out because it is quite realistic.

This was balanced by the fact that the images are partially cartoonised, which then made me question the reality of the film and my mood lightened a little. Because there are no people in the opening sequence and the images are hints of what happens I was also intrigued as to what might follow. When I saw Alan Rickman’s name (Judge Turpin) by the barber’s chair it made me question what the chair was going to be used for and what it all really meant. Later we discover it is the place of his murder. I found the contrast of the dark lighting and images against the bright white text made me focus on the text and then when the title “Sweeney Todd” was in red it made me think more about the oozing blood and I felt more disgust.

The cold, dark feeling from the beginning transmogrifies to a warming sensation as the pies are being cooked in the oven. Seeing blood oozing and sizzling from beneath the pies I started to suspect what was really in them and what might take place in the film. I thought about the smell of the sewers and felt sick seeing the rats scuttling around. 


I felt the sense of falling watching the images, blood, mincemeat and text falling down the screen. This anticipates Todds' victim’s fall through the barbers’ chair after having their throat cut.


The music underpins all of the images and emphasises what I felt to a very large extent, this is because as a musician I am very aware of what I hear, as well as what I see, when I “watch” a film. The music effectively enhances the visual impact of the opening sequence.