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Chicago
Review by Jane Robertson (Jane's bio)
Directed by Rob Marshall
Play by Maurine Dallas Watkins
Lyrics by Fred Ebb
Screenplay by Bill Condon
Catherine Zeta-Jones . . . Velma Kelly
Renee Zellweger . . . Roxie Hart
Richard Gere . . . Billy Flynn
Queen Latifah . . . “Mama”
John C. Reilly . . . Amos Hart
Lucy Liu . . . Kitty
Christine Baranski . . . Mary Sunshine
Taye Diggs . . . Bandleader
Colm Feore . . . Harrison
MPAA: Rated PG-13 for sexual content and dialogue, violence, and thematic elements.
There's a paddy wagon full of reasons to see this movie: If you've missed rousing musicals. If you like Catherine Zeta-Jones or Renee Zellweger or Richard Gere. If you thought you didn't like Queen Latifah. If you have no idea who John C. Reilly is.
The three headliners will leave you open-mouthed. Nothing you've seen any of them do before will prepare you for what they deliver this time. You'll hardly believe how far outside their safe boundaries these established stars are willing to step. And with what vigor and verve they conquer new territory!
The way Zeta-Jones (The Mask of Zorro, America's Sweethearts) belts out “All That Jazz,” you'd think she's lip-synching—but she's not. Zellweger's sinuous prance will remind you of Marilyn Monroe a lot more than it will Bridget Jones or Nurse Betty. And when the man we knew as an officer and a gentleman shifts into vaudeville Gere (Primal Fear, Unfaithful), he zips along like a roadster on a gin run.
The second tier of performers will blow you away too, especially Queen Latifah (Brown Sugar, “Spin City”) and John C. Reilly. Latifah (“Mama”) cozies up to the mike as a red-hot singer, then cools down fast as a prison matron on the take—making the switch with an authority that says this performer now deserves respect. Reilly (Amos Hart) has one of those faces you think you've seen, and you have, in The Perfect Storm, The Good Girl, Gangs of New York, and many more. But he will be nameless no longer, not after you've watched his wistful turn as “Mr. Cellophane.”
Almost every member of the cast, when interviewed, points to the director and choreographer both as a friend and as something akin to a creative midwife. Rob Marshall is described as creating a sense of family, a nurturing environment that took the risk out of taking risks. What's so impressive about this praise is that Marshall never directed a movie, and only one TV production, before Chicago. His work has largely been in the theater, and it seems to be from this experience that he spun his cocoon for this film, showing cast and crew how to unite the way they sometimes can for stage productions.
Marshall's helping hands were Maurine Dallas Watkins, who wrote the 1927 play; Fred Ebb, who wrote the lyrics and adapted the book for the 1975 Broadway musical; and Bill Condon, who wrote this screenplay. Condon has been devising screenplays (The Devil and Daniel Webster), sometimes directing them (Gods and Monsters), for more than 20 years.
Of course, it's impossible to talk about Chicago without mentioning the late Bob Fosse, the direct force behind the 1975 production and the indirect one behind the recent revival. His heart beats again in the tempo and energy of the film version.
This is indeed an exuberant movie, the kind that wakes you up the next morning humming the tunes. Its downside is its subject matter. There's a whole cellblock full of women who've killed their men (“he had it coming . . .”). Worse, some of those murderesses, notably Thelma Kelly (Zeta-Jones) and Roxie Hart (Zellweger) are out to profit from their crimes in a town that thrives on scandal. Worse again, there's a lawyer (Gere) with no principles and no apologies who's willing to help them.
It's all tongue-in-cheek, of course, and pokes plenty of fun at a public eager to dine on swill. But those who can't bring themselves to smile at crime, even when it's the subject of satire, should probably pass up this one. Unfortunately, they'll miss a colorful and dynamic production, one of Hollywood's best in years.
Copyright 2003, Jane Robertson. All Rights Reserved. Used by permission.
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About Jane Robertson: A staff editor for the nature magazine Snowy Egret, Jane has written for various Midwestern periodicals and the Southern Baptist Convention's Ambassador Life. Her book about a Scottish immigrant, Hope Was Worth the Risk, was published in 1995. She contributed to the Dawkins Project's upcoming CeLEBRATIONS: Notes to My Grandfather.
E-mail Jane |
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