Into the Woods (1 Viewer)

[classicmovieguy]

I've yet to muster the courage to see "Sweeney Todd". The soundtrack album (which I unloaded a while ago) was too 'horrific' for me.

 

[Ejanss]

Isn't A Little Night Music approachable? The film was terribly botched, but it works beautifully on stage, and I saw the original production, plus countless others. It would take a real butcher to "ruin" Smiles of a Summer Night.

It's.....okay, if you like Bergman set to music, but it's easy to see why Harold Prince didn't move on to film.

I guess "A Funny Thing/Forum" would count as Sondheim too, but that's going too far back.

 

[Bob Cashill]

There's a far better movie in A Little Night Music but I don't see it ever happening.

 

[JohnMor]

I was quite happy with the film version of Sweeney Todd, although I would have preferred a different Mrs. Lovett, at least musically. Bonham-Carter's voice was a too wan for the role, although I do realize that in a film it's less necessary than on stage.

 

[Mike Frezon]

I've always felt Company was an accessible Sondheim play. About as straight-forward as you'll get.

 

[GlennF]

And the version of Company with Neil Patrick Harris, Patti LuPone, Martha Plimpton, Christina Hendricks, Jon Cryer, Stephen Colbert and others is excellent! If you are a fan of Sondheim and have not seen this yet - check it out!

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

I wish they would have just hired Bernadette Peters to play the Witch. She's only a year older than Ms. Streep and I liked her take on the character a lot better.Chris Pine was the real suprise for me, especially when it came to the singing. Very well done.You'd expect Anna Kendrick to be terrific as Cinderella, and she was.Christine Baranski was brilliant casting as Cinderella's wicked stepmother. The other Broadway vets were very good in their supporting roles as well. I thought Molly Ephraim did a marvelous job balancing the wholesome quality of Little Red Riding Hood with the humor in the 2002 revival. Lilla Crawford's take on the character was a bit more cutting, but it worked well for the film.I thought on the whole Act I worked really well. Act II was more problematic, especially the loss of "No More". And Rapunzel's story just kind of ends.

I was quite happy with the film version of Sweeney Todd, although I would have preferred a different Mrs. Lovett, at least musically. Bonham-Carter's voice was a too wan for the role, although I do realize that in a film it's less necessary than on stage.

I agree. The Tim Burton film was a very effective telling of the tale, with all of the energy and pathos and Victorian melodrama intact. It's not the version you want to own the soundtrack for, but the movie holds you in the story from beginning to end. I do like my Mrs. Lovetts a bit older.

 

[Tim Glover]

I loved it...Really creative and captivating. My crush on Emily Blunt has increased! She was awesome and can sing! Did feel the 3rd act was a little bit of a letdown. Not huge. The first 2/3 is so full of life and wonder that I figured there had to be a little letdown. But it recovers and it's a quite enjoyable experience.

Is there anything Meryl Streep CANT do? Wow she's amazing. The greatest actress we've ever seen.

Solid 9.5/10. Want to see again. Wonderful wonderful surround sound by the way. Tremendous dynamics.

 

[David Weicker]

Follies, Company, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum aren't approachable???

 

[Ejanss]

Follies, Company, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum aren't approachable???

Company, with its bored unhappily-mating 70's urbanites straight out of a New Yorker cartoon, is just about the LEAST danged mainstream/approachable Sondheim this side of Sunday in the Park with George.
Follies, I can't speak for, but it's from the same era.

And while Funny Thing at least has Richard Lester add the burlesque touch to the movie version, it's sort of in the opposite direction, but still nothing you'd put on the same table as Sweeney and Woods.

 

[Wayne_j]

I greatly enjoyed this movie but agree that the last third was a bit weak.

I think it would have been better if they kept more of the mysterious man plot and the song No More.

As to why cast Streep instead of Bernadette Peters? Meryl has a tendency to get academy awards nominations just for appearing in a halfway decent movie that opens in November/December. Of course, Meryl was excellent in this role.

 

[MatthewA]

And while Funny Thing at least has Richard Lester add the burlesque touch to the movie version, it's sort of in the opposite direction, but still nothing you'd put on the same table as Sweeney and Woods.

Pity they couldn't have kept more of the score.

 

[JohnMor]

Pity they couldn't have kept more of the score.

Oh, they could have alright. They just didn't. Sad excuse for a film, really. A real waste of great source material and a wonderful cast, IMO.

 

[Bob Cashill]

Maybe it'll be remade, something unlikely to happen with A Little Night Music. Only that, Woods, and Todd are filmmable Sondheims; other than concert stagings it's hard to see features in the likes of Company or Follies.

 

[Patrick Sun]

The last half-hour "Into the Woods" just seemed to drag on and on, plus the dour color palette made it not as visually interesting to my eyes. I liked some of the singing, but some voices almost bordered on shrill on ocassion (mainly Anna Kendrick's singing voice at times).

Wasn't too crazy about the child actors playing Little Red Riding Hood, or Jack, either.

I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.

Maybe if it was a little shorter in running time, I'd like it a little more.

 

[Wayne_j]

The soundtrack at home is never shrill, it was in a couple of spots in the theater. I blame the theater's sound system.

 

[Garysb]

It was odd that they included a little bit of "Night Waltz" from "A Little Night Music" into the score of the "Into The Woods" movie. As a Sondheim fan, familiar with his music that was a bit jarring.

I would love to see a film version of "Follies" but I don't know how they could open it up for the movies. The entire show takes place in a theater about to be torn down inhabited by ghosts of the characters when they were young. Not sure how you could make that cinematic.
Probably the best they could do is film a stage version for PBS.

The movie is already up for preorder on Amazon. No release date yet.

 

[Garysb]

Rapunzel's story in the movie is the only one that was close to the original. She got her happy ending. I read where the creators felt her fate in the stage play, which happened off stage, might come across as a joke so they changed it. I also miss the song "No More": and even though the character of the Mystery Man was cut from the film. I think they could of found someone for the baker to sing it to.

I don't think the second act of the stage musical worked as well as the first act. In the movie the second act is truncated and where most of the changes from the stage play happen.

 

[Ejanss]

Rapunzel's story in the movie is the only one that was close to the original. She got her happy ending. I read where the creators felt her fate in the stage play, which happened off stage, might come across as a joke so they changed it.

What did they change it to, in the later versions? I only saw the original tour/PBS airing where

Spoiler

already a bit hysterical, she ended up as collateral damage of the Giant's Wife's destruction,

although offstage.

I would love to see a film version of "Follies" but I don't know how they could open it up for the movies. The entire show takes place in a theater about to be torn down inhabited by ghosts of the characters when they were young. Not sure how you could make that cinematic.
Probably the best they could do is film a stage version for PBS.

Well, no, you couldn't, aside from PBS (and all they ever do nowadays are concert versions), but that sure didn't stop Richard Attenborough with the A Chorus Line movie. Didn't help it, neither.

Most of the Harold Prince stagings are too stagebound, which is why the whole premise of the chorus had to be cut from Sweeney Todd's movie, and most of the point and one of Sondheim's most recognizable numbers was lost in the process.

 

[MatthewA]

I would love to see a film version of "Follies" but I don't know how they could open it up for the movies. The entire show takes place in a theater about to be torn down inhabited by ghosts of the characters when they were young. Not sure how you could make that cinematic.

You could easily have the ghosts appear via CGI.