For your viewing pleasure

In lieu of more thoughtful content, I thought I'd write up a few mini-reviews of recent movies I've seen, in little particular order except how quickly they enter my hectic little mind.

Sweeney Todd - I wanted to see this one in theatres, but alas, did not. Finally saw it tonight. Ah, it was worth the wait. It's the darkest, goriest, most morbid musical I've ever seen (solid praise, coming from me), with a solid cast. Johnny Depp may have been behind much of my initial desire to see the movie, but Helena Bonham Carter played the spooky Mrs. Lovett well. The atmosphere of the movie is also well done, with mostly washed-out gray tones (garish red Kill Bill-esque blood aside).

The Visitor - Saw this in the theatre, but I didn't see any commercials for it--never heard of it until I was searching movie listings. It's an underrated film, but worth searching out. Some viewers complained it was too political, and there is an element of that to the plotline--any movie that deals with post-9/11 immigration policy can't help but avoid it. But it's only one part of a beautiful story about people being thrown together by circumstance and making the most of those connections forged. Kudos for a romance subplot that is delicately understated and all the more beautiful for it.

Phantom of the Opera - I thought I would like this one; I was prepared to. Alas, I found it underwhelming. I like musicals and Andrew Lloyd Weber's work, but this one, in spite of lavish props and settings, didn't translate to movie well.

Mirrormask - I'm a fan of Neil Gaiman's, which was how I heard of this one. A fantasy movie, it's your basic good v. evil story. What makes it worth the while are the stunning special effects. I don't mean to indicate that the story is flat or unimaginative--far from it--but it is very much eye candy. Don't worry, a little cotton candy every now and then won't hurt.