Sunday, January 21, 2007

The Depp and Streep Sing-a-longs

With the success of recent film musicals (Moulin Rogue!, Chicago, Dreamgirls) it's no surprise that some high profile musicals are on the radar for the next years ahead.

Even Tim Burton's going musical with Sweeney Todd in 2007 with two of his favorite actors, Johnny Depp and Helena Bohem Carter. In fact, we can expect to see another diverse role for Sacha Baron Cohen as Signor Adolfo Pirelli.

Yet Johnny Depp is not the only one who's "going musical." Meryl Streep seems like she get's award attention just for breathing, and so she's sure to get attention for singing in the film adaptation of Mamma Mia! (even if British director Phyllida Lloyd has never directed a motion picture release before). We saw Streep sing in a Prairie Home Companion this year, but performing songs by Abba will surely bring new flair to Streep's repratoir.

This year there has been a lot of heavier-themed films, and yet audiences and critics have gotten much more excited about films with lighter-tones like Little Miss Sunshine, Dreamgirls, The Devil Wears Prada, and Borat. So it's no surprise that even a director like Tim Burton and an actoress like Streep would look for opportunities to do technically complex films that give them a chance to explore their breadth as artists and hopefully garner critical attention in the process.

Of course, we must not forget, two musicals came out in 2005 with hardly a splash at the box office or among critics (Rent and The Producers). And in fact, at this stage in the game, I might be a little scared to join up the cast of a filmed musical if it didn't have Bill Condon associated with the staff, but really why not? Streep and Depp have enough experience and artistic liscense to try something new.

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6 comments:

Pfangirl said...

Don't forget Hairspray (with its all-star cast), due out in the middle of 2007.

Paula said...

Burton loves music. "Corpse Bride", "Nightmare Before Christmas"...the dark, goth guy is actually a big, show-tune loving pudding-heart. I can't wait to see his adaptation of "Sweeney Todd"!!!

Terence Towles Canote said...

I think musicals certainly have a better chance for success than they did in the Eighties and Nineties, but I also think audiences are very selective in the musicals they'll watch. Moulin Rouge, Chicago, and now Dreamgirls were hits because audiences liked their stories and liked the songs. I think this explains the failure of Rent. I don't think the average American necessarily finds a year in the lives of artistically inclined Twentysomethings living in New York to be particularly interesting. And as for the songs, I have yet to hear one that I have actually liked.

crackers and cheese said...

Just yesterday, I found out about the Sweeney Todd movie after watching the 2001 concert version of the musical. I was so excited to see Tim Burton attached to it! However, Depp seems young to play Sweeney Todd, but I sure hope he can do Sondheim's music justice.

crackers and cheese said...

PS - I almost blogged about the movie, but you beat me to it :)

Cindy said...

have you seen this?"
http://blog.christianitytoday.com/outofur/archives/2007/01/sundance_film_f.html