Movies
Chicago
 Description:
Jazz baby murders her lover and gets sent to jail. The rest is a circus
- flashbulbs, singing, corruption, dancing, sleazy lawyers, plotting, jailbirds,
and surviving. What happens isn't nearly as important as the style they
show off doing it. Gotta love Fosse.
We went to see Chicago on Superbowl Sunday so the theater was nicely
empty. If it had been a bit emptier, I think all three of us (me, Crystal,
& Gina) would have been up and dancing. It was so hard to sit still,
not sing along, and be quiet. I loved ALL the songs. Catherine Zeta-Jones
and Renee Zellweger were magnificent - the force of personality, desperation,
and cunning that came out in each of their dance numbers was wonderful.
John C. Reilly, as the forgotten, abused, and used husband, ripped your
heart out. And, oh my god, Richard Gere should always play slimy bastards
- he does it soooo well. Whether he was tap dancing his way through a trial
(literally and figuratively) or extolling the virtues of the justice system
as a big circus, he kept me glued to the screen. Taye Diggs (YUMMY!!!),
Christine Baranski, and Lucy Liu were also excellent in smaller parts.
I want the clothes, I want Renee's hair, and I wish life really were a
musical even though I can't sing. If you like musicals, you'll love this
one - the numbers are well choreographed and filmed (great full body shots)
and the music is classic. I mean, you have to love 6 women on death row
singing about how "he had it coming"! If you don't like musicals, I don't
know what to say. This was such a definitive example of the genre that
I can't really tell if you could enjoy it anyway. I adored it. I will buy
the soundtrack and the dvd. You should too.
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