I saw that Chicago took a lot of awards on the Golden Globes the other night, so Friday night I went to see what all the fuss was about.
I and about 12 other folks had to sit through about 10 minutes of commercials before the movie started. Not trailers, mind you, but commercials. Message to theater owners; if I want to see commercials with my movies, I'll wait until they hit HBO. I've already shelled out $7 for a ticket, and $7 more for popcorn and a coke; I don't need you shilling more crap on my dime.
When I go to the movies, one of my favorite parts is the coming attractions. Sadly, many times they are more interesting than the movie I'm there to see. This night was an exception, probably because of the main movie. I don't think studios are going to pitch XMen2 at an art house. One movie, The Quiet American looks good, although I have a hard time picturing Brendan Fraser as a CIA agent. BUt it has Michael Caine, and although I haven't forgiven him for On Dangerous Ground or Miss Congeniality yet, I do still try to see anything he's in.
The other trailer of note was for The Hours, which I'll wait to miss on video.
Chicago tells the story of chorus girl Roxie Hart (Renee Zellweger) who winds up in prison after murdering her lover. While there she meets her idol, Velma Kelly (Catherine Zeta-Jones), also in jail for murdering her husband and sister. The two women share a fast talking smooth operating lawyer, Billy Flynn (Richard Gere), who promises to get them off, and make them famous. The movie also stars the ubiquitous John C. Reilly, who plays Roxie's somewhat less than bright husband, and Queen Latifah as the prison matron, Mama. It may well be nearly impossible to make a movie in Hollywood without giving Reilly a part. I'm beginning to think the only reason Peter Jackson filmed The Lord of the Rings in New Zealand was to get away from Mr. Reilly.
Roxie: "Jesus, Mary and Joseph!"
Mama: "You talkin' to the wrong people, girl!"
The above quote is the heart of this movie. It celebrates the venality of man, so we watch with a feeling akin to the fascination we feel when passing a car wreck on the side of the road; we know it's going to be ugly, but we want to see just how ugly. There's a difference between exploring the darker side of our natures, as in The Gangs of New York, and celebrating it, as in this movie. In Chicago, there is not a single charater I cared about. Roxie is vain, manipulative, and grasping from start to finish, as are Velma and Billy. Mama is as corrupt as they come, and Roxie's husband Amos is too dim to be counted as loyal.
What keeps us involved in the show is the music and the dancing, which is top notch throughout. All three leads perform admirably, including Gere, who at times seems to channel Robert Preston's Harold Hill. (As an aside, if you want to remake The Music Man, Gere would be a much bette choice than Ferris Bueller.) The singing and dancing were top notch, with the surprise performance being Reilly's song, Mr. Cellophane, the only touching moment in the movie.
3 out of 5. I'd like to give this movie a higher rating, because it was so well done, but the incessant cynicism wore me down after a while.
Posted by Rich at January 26, 2003 3:21 AMI have yet to make it out to see "Chicago", though I look forward to it.
I am in complete agreement with you on the subject of Michael Caine. I made the same mistake with "On Deadly Ground" when it first came out. The only reason I showed up to view that horrid exercise in filmmaking was to see Michael Caine. I had hoped he would bring a touch of class to a movie that was obviously going to be more than a bit lowbrow. I mean, after all, he even managed to make "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" memorable, you know. Oh well.
Still, I will be viewing "Chicago" soon.
Let me know what you think of it. I just re-read my review, and it seems a little too harsh. Chicago is a cynical piece of work, so I guess it's not surprising that I didn't get involved with any of the characters. But to me, a dark piece like this works better when you do have some human anchor in the piece, someone you can relate to. The War of the Roses is a good example; the bitter cynicism was much more effective because the characters started out as likable.
Posted by: rich on January 27, 2003 10:42 AM