Oh, THANK YOU. SOMEONE WHO UNDERSTANDS. I indulged in this extended rant because I came across so many reviews who had one of two attitudes:

1) "Burton plus Depp? Clearly an INSTANT MASTERPIECE! A+++!"
2) "Musicals are a bit silly at the best of times, and this Sondheim's guy's not exactly flush with the hummable tunes."

I could almost understand Attitude #2, since this version DID cut out the opening number and much of the lush melody. But Attitude #1? That's just lazy.

Out of interest, whereabouts did you decide to eject the disk? I was tempted to give up when they gave Rickman the come-and-have-a-go line "You threaten me, boy? Here I stand!" Is it POSSIBLE to misread the Judge's character more egregiously?



P.S. Re your icon - loved the movie (I never thought I'd laugh so hard at the line "He tried to rape me!") but was v. disappointed by what happened to Cyclona: just when we understood what triggered her behaviour, she still had to answer to the demands of conventional "justice". I personally found it most UNjust. But hey, that flaw apart, it was cool - thanks for the rec!