History YMMV / SweeneyToddTheDemonBarberOfFleetStreet

** Johanna can also be interpreted as being genuinely in love with Anthony or just using him as a means to escape the Judge. The 2007 film, for example, goes with the latter.

* SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments:
** As tragic as the whole thing is, it's actually pretty sweet that [[spoiler:Lucy spends her days hanging around her old house, or the house where her daughter is now living. She doesn't remember or recognize Johanna, but she still has enough maternal instinct left to want to be near her]].
** While Sweeney doesn't kill a man who comes in with his daughter mostly for [[PragmaticVillainy practical reasons]], some productions have him give her a piece of candy or something, [[PetTheDog which is nice]].
** If you take a more favorable interpretation of Anthony, his part of "Johanna (Reprise)" becomes this, as it becomes a vow to Johanna, who at this point is locked away in a madhouse with God-knows-what being done to her, [[IWillFindYou that he]] ''[[DeclarationOfProtection will]]'' [[AlwaysSaveTheGirl find and rescue her]], [[{{Determinator}} no matter what]].

* RetroactiveRecognition: Hey, that's [[Literature/TheTwilightSaga Caius]]/[[spoiler:[[Series/StrangerThings Vecna]]]] playing Anthony!

* NarmCharm: Compared to Creator/LenCariou or George Hearn, it's clear that Creator/JohnnyDepp isn't a trained singer, but he more than makes up for it by displaying the tragedy and insanity of Todd perfectly.

* The relationship between Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett has been played in all sorts of different ways over the years, and while she's obviously very into him, it varies between productions on how much he's into her. (Sondheim himself said in a letter to a fan that he wrote the musical believing them to be sleeping together, but at the same time he didn't attribute much importance to it.) It even carries through to the closing moments of the show: [[spoiler:in the original 1979 production Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett go off in separate directions, him glaring at her and her departing in fear, while in the 2023 revival Sweeney and Lovett walk to the back of the stage, clasp hands, share a glance and jump down into their graves, and implicitly into Hell, TogetherInDeath.]]

* The relationship between Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett has been played in all sorts of different ways over the years, and while she's obviously very into him, it varies between productions on how much he's into her. (Sondheim himself said in a letter to a fan that he wrote the musical believing them to be sleeping together, but at the same time he didn't attribute much importance to it.) It even carries through to the closing moments of the show: [[spoiler:in the original 1979 production Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett go off in separate directions, him glaring at her and her departing in fear, while in the 2023 revival Sweeney and Lovett walk to the back of the stage, clasp hands, share a glance and jump together down into their graves, and implicitly into Hell, TogetherInDeath.]]

* CrossesTheLineTwice: "A Little Priest" crosses multiple lines, as it not only has Todd and Mrs. Lovett singing about killing people and putting them into pies, but also cracking numerous terrible {{pun}}s about their potential victims.

* CreepyAwesome[=/=]EvilIsSexy: Sweeney Todd, a sunken-eyed, gaunt, and ruthlessly murderous barber played by Johnny Depp.

* CrossesTheLineTwice: "A Little Priest" crosses multiple lines, as it not only has Todd and Mrs. Lovett singing about killing people and putting them into pies, but also cracking numerous terrible puns about their potential victims.

** The scene where Mrs. Lovett [[spoiler:locks Toby in the meat-grinder basement so Sweeney can kill him]]. It's made clear that Mrs. Lovett understands what she's doing, since she's crying throughout. Creepy. [[spoiler:Though, she probably crosses it even earlier when she deliberately hides the truth about Lucy from Sweeney]].

* WTHCastingAgency: The original is a notoriously difficult score, yet the cast here is made up almost entirely of non-professional singers. However, it's worth noting that this is the ''only'' film adaptation of any of Sondheim's works that he fully approved of.

* TrueArtIsAngsty: Much like ''Film/BatmanReturns'', this film's horror, violence, and nihilism are a shining example of what happens when you allow Creator/TimBurton to go as dark as he wants to.

** The casting of Sweeney Todd himself varies from actor to actor -– George Hearn's Todd is [[BoisterousBruiser powerfully built, with a boisterous,]] pitch-black sense of humor. [[LaughingMad His cackles]] after his HeroicBSOD (or VillainousBreakdown / [[VillainousBSOD BSOD]] in this case) song end up matching Mrs. Lovett's StepfordSmiler evil. On the other hand, Creator/JohnnyDepp's Todd is a waif of a man. He's a quiet, haunted misanthrope ''before'' he snaps, and a barely-functional sociopath after, having to be led around and prodded into action by [[TheDarkChick Dark]] GenkiGirl Mrs. Lovett.

* IncestSubtext: Todd's "Johanna (Reprise)", hinting it would be dangerous for him to meet Johanna if she looks too much like her mother...

** For the Victorian audience, this story made a simple and normal trip to the barber's, or a pie shop, very creepy. For the typical modern audience, it made the straight razor unsettlingly best known as a weapon of murder; and even though the modern viewer has far less need to worry that their barber's going to slit their throat, the story amps up the dread that someone who's apparently completely sane and mundane will suddenly turn on you when you're defenceless and least expecting it -- or tamper in some dangerous or disgusting way with your food.

* RetroactiveRecognition: Hey, that's [[Literature/{{Twilight}} Caius]]/[[spoiler:[[Series/StrangerThings Vecna]]]] playing Anthony!

** For the Victorian audience, this story made a simple and normal trip to the barber's, or a pie shop, very creepy. For the typical modern audience, this story has made the straight razor unsettlingly best known as a weapon of murder; and even though the modern viewer has far less need to worry that their barber's going to slit their throat, the story amps up the dread that someone who's apparently completely sane and mundane will suddenly turn on you when you're defenceless and least expecting it, or tamper in some dangerous or disgusting way with your food.

** For the Victorian audience, this story made a simple and normal trip to the barber's, or a pie shop, very creepy. For the typical modern audience, this story has made the straight razor unsettlingly best known as a weapon of murder, and even though the modern viewer has far less need to worry that their barber's going to slit their throat, the story amps up the dread that someone who's apparently completely sane and mundane will suddenly turn on you when you're defenceless and least expecting it, or tamper in some dangerous or disgusting way with your food.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Creator/AlanRickman as Judge Turpin and Creator/TimothySpall as the Beadle.

** While Sweeney doesn't kill a man who comes in with his daughter mostly for [[PragmaticVillainy practical reasons]], some products have him give her a piece of candy or something, [[PetTheDog which is nice]].

** Todd probably more so. True, his [[KillEmAll method of vengeance once he snaps]] doesn't invite much sympathy, but his reasons for snapping? Just try not to feel the least bit sorry for him -- you'll probably find it's nearly impossible.

* BrokenBase: As is normally the case with shows, trying to discuss whoever played the title role (or Mrs Lovett) the best ''will'' bring the normally-peaceful fandom into an uproar, particularly when limited to the versions available on film. There's also a minor BrokenBase over which concert version (2001 or 2014) is better in terms of spectacle and telling the story. Similarly, the "child Toby" vs "mentally challenged Toby" debates quickly tend to become this.

* HoYay: In the movie, there seem to be overtones of this between Beadle Bamford and Judge Turpin, mostly coming from Bamford's end, though it IS kinda odd that he seems to spend so much time with the judge...
** Notably, in the stage musical it's made clear in the reprise of "The Barber and His Wife" that both Turpin and Bamford have a thing for Lucy. In the movie, however, the lyrics are changed so that only the Judge's affections are mentioned.

* ParanoiaFuel: For the Victorian audience, this story made a simple and normal trip to the barber's, or a pie shop, very creepy. For the typical modern audience, this story has made the straight razor unsettlingly best known as a weapon of murder, and even though the modern viewer has far less need to worry that their barber's going to slit their throat, the story amps up the dread that someone who's apparently completely sane and mundane will suddenly turn on you when you're defenceless and least expecting it, or tamper in some dangerous or disgusting way with your food.

-->''Perhaps today, you gave a nod''\\

* HarsherInHindsight: A character played by Creator/JohnnyDepp suffering for years on a false charge.