When I think of Johnny Depp, I think of the enormous talent that the man has. He has many successes. Also many failures, but I try to weigh a man’s brilliant films with his not so brilliant films like a scale.
His collaborations with Tim Burton, in my opinion, are not his greatest. I enjoyed Jack Sparrow as much as the next person, I loved his performance as Johnny Dillinger in Public Enemies, and his role as J.M. Barrie in Finding Neverland is his most emotional to date. As I look at these movies, I do not see the name of Tim Burton attached to these films. This is not to say that I didn’t love his take as the Mad Hatter or as the demon barber, Sweeney Todd, but every other role he has done with Tim Burton I did not care much for.
Edward Scissorhands is Tim Burton’s favorite movie that he did. The problems in this movie, however, are so many that it is impossible to list them all. This is not Depp’s best; he has vacant expressions that make us as an audience feels nothing except for the first time we meet him. He has no power behind his dialogue which is lost in the craziness of the film. The dialogue is short, unmoving, fast, choppy, and boring.
In Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, his performance is too creepy to describe. The movie is too weird and that is all I can say. The only thing good, and it isn’t enough to redeem the movie, is Depp’s creepy performance as Willy Wonka.
Sweeny Todd and Sleepy Hollow are Tim Burton’s two best films. The singing in the former is phenomenal, but the songs are chaotic. Whenever they sing, the melodies move around so much that it is incoherent. Depp would sing a chorus of one song and Carter would sing the song of another so fast to another song that is off beat to Depp’s and then they meet suddenly at one note that the two songs have in common and hold. This is the only problem with the movie, but it isn’t Burton’s fault, it is Steven Sondenheim’s fault. Johnny Depp is really good, along with the rest of the cast. The only reason to not see this movie is the bloodiness and goriness of the film. Sleepy Hollow only has one problem and that is the goriness. Every time the Headless Horseman slices off of person’s head, we actually see it. The horror could be so much more moving if we don’t see it. But again, Johnny Depp is good, but not his best performance.
Chocolat is great, but not Johnny Depp’s best. A movie that revolves around a woman who comes to a small French village during Lent and opens up a chocolaterie, Depp’s character is sorely underused. He plays a “pirate”, a river wandering gypsy who stops by the village and falls in love with the heroine. Johnny Depp is great, along with the rest of the cast which includes Alfred Molina, Dame Judi Dench, and Carrie Ann Moss.
Public Enemies has many good things about the movie, but all of them are outweighed by its horrendous editing. Depp is incoherent as Johnny Dillinger; he mumbles when he talks and it is so difficult to hear and understand what it is he is saying. The movie itself is not long, but the whole time you think it could be twenty to thirty minutes shorter. When I saw it in the theatre, I saw several people looking at their watches and nodding their heads as they fell asleep. I did the same thing.
Lastly, Finding Neverland is Depp’s greatest performance outside of the Pirate films. His role as J. M. Barrie was so heartbreaking, it deserved so many of the awards that Depp was nominated for but never won. Also, this movie has the greatest performance by Kate Winslet (and I am no fan of Winslet). Neverland is magical in every way. Some might say it is boring and hard to get into, but when you sit back and simply watch it for what it is worth, anyone can fall in love with Depp’s amazing portrayal.
See it: Finding Neverland, Chocolate, Sleepy Hollow, and Sweeney Todd (if you don’t mind a little bit of gore).
Don’t see it: Edward Scissorhands, Public Enemies, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
Next time: Iron Man and Iron Man 2
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