I trained as a singer and actor, and currently teach singing as a specialist teacher at primary scho...
I trained as a singer and actor, and currently teach singing as a specialist teacher at primary school level, as well as for Stagecoach Theatre Arts. I'm also doing up a flat that I bought with my Fiancee in March and pontificating at my leisure...
Member since:17.02.2003
Reviews:35
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Chicago is a glossy, slick musical written by John Kander and Fred Ebb. The show was originally only semi successful and has been revived several times.
Perhaps one of the most interesting things is that no matter when you see it or saw it, the subject always remains topical.
As a fan of musical theatre, I was very very keen to see this film, and to see how well the show translated to the medium. Having now seen it, I think I can say that the answer is "very very well!". In fact, in some ways the film outshines the musical - particularly in the way it clarifies the opening of the show.
For those who are not familiar, the show is about murderesses and the story of Roxie Hart, an aspiring show girl who shoots her lover in a jealous rage. It concerns her imprisonment and the way that she and her lawyer use the legal system and the gullability of the general public to get her off scot free.
On a deeper level the show is about America and the way that popularity and money can outweigh morality and justice in that country. Echos of this story abound in such high profile cases as the O J Simpson murders.
Ultimately for me, it is here that the film fails slightly. The focus is clearly on the story of Roxie Hart, but many of the events in the stage show which bring out the politico-social comment are missing.
Mary Sunshine for example, an agony aunt who is prominent in the stage show and who has her own song, is sidelined in the film and played by a woman - usually this part is played by a man who is revealed as such in the trial to prove that "not everything is always as it seems" and that manipulating the press is easy for a slick lawyer.
However the story is presented excellently with slick Fosse style choreography and fantastic costumes. Catherine Zeta-Jones shows us just how she got where she is today, and returns to her song and dance origins. Vocally she is magnificent, easily rivaling Ute Lemper and Bebe Newith and giving the sort of oomph that previously only Chita Rivera (whom the part was written for) could give. Chita in fact makes a cameo appearence in the film!
Renee Zelwegger performs magnificently although vocally she is not as punchy as Gwen Verdon or Ruthie Henshall. She also seems very very skinny in this show. But she has clearly worked hard and it shows in all of the routines that come from her character's head.
The supporting cast are excellent, although Richard Gere did appear to turn into a cheeky chirpy Dick Van Dyke sort of cockney in his opening number for no apparent reason. I was also a little disappointed that Billy Flynn's trademark belt at the end of Both Reached for The Gun was not present (usually the high note is held on for 15-20 seconds).
Queen Latifa was excellent as Mama Morton and it is worth seeing the film if only to gasp at her glitzy dress which seems to defy all laws of physics. Amos, Roxie's tireless, faithful and ultimately dim husband is also performed well.
Some of the stage show songs are cut (Me and My Babie, When Velma Takes the Stand and Class) but overall this film is terrific entertainment and shows what can be done in a film musical. I think we have finally entered a new period of enlightenment and escaped the "Evita" disease of making a movie musical like a pop video.
Go and see this film if you like a show!
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Production Year: 1999 - Music / Performing Arts - Original Language: English - Classification: Exempt - Starring: Donny Osmond, Joan Collins, Richard Attenborough
Adapted from the long-running stage version, this big-screenChicagois a non-stop singing ... more
and dancing extravaganza that may well herald the welcome revival of the film musical. When the part-time lover of wannabe star Roxie (Renee Zellweger) is murdered...
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![Chicago [DVD] [2003]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/79224345.jpg "Chicago [DVD] [2003]")
Feb 26th, 2003
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