Sweeney Todd Sweeney Todd Sweeney Todd is a fictional character who first appeared as the villain of the Victorian penny dreadful serial "The String of Pearls" (1846–47). The tale became a staple of Victorian melodrama and London urban legend, and has been retold many times since, most notably in the Tony award–winning by Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler. Claims that Sweeney Todd was a historical person are strongly disputed by scholars, although possible legendary prototypes exist. In the original version of the tale, Todd is a barber who dispatches his victims by pulling a lever as they sit in his barber chair.
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007 film) reminded of Edward Scissorhands frantically shaping hedges into animal topiaries 18 years ago... and all of the twisted beauty we would've missed out on had [Burton and Depp] never met." In "Rolling Stone", Peter Travers awarded it 3½ out of 4 stars and added, ""Sweeney Todd" is a thriller-diller from start to finish: scary, monstrously funny and melodically thrilling ... [the film] is a bloody wonder, intimate and epic, horrific and heart-rending as it flies on the wings of Sondheim's most thunderously exciting score." As with "Time", the critic ranked it fifth on his list of the best movies of