Review of Burlesque (2010) by Doctor S — 25 May 2012

As a musical, Burlesque shines; as a story, there's not much to it. Iowa girl heads to LA seeking fame on the stage where she finds an opportunity at a burlesque club in financial trouble Can it be saved before the bank forecloses? We've seen this oh-so-tired premise a thousand times, and while that can't be forgiven at least they come up with a rather unique & clever resolution.

Christina Aguilera survives in her screen debut as Ali, not being asked to do too much on the acting front. The times things go really wrong is the clumsy romance she develops with Cam Gigandet - those scenes seem written by a junior high student, whereas the rest of the script is surprisingly good with some genuine feeling. Very weird contrast. Point of example is the fond relationship between club owner Cher and her stage manager Stanley Tucci. They both deliver quality performances, but as many have implied, this movie could serve as a PSA against the dangers of Botox with Cher's face frozen in a single expression. Kristen Bell is largely wasted and ineffectual as the bad girl.

This may be the last place we see the slinky Aguilera as the toll of motherhood and divorce have since swelled her figure. Always been amazed that such a huge voice could emanate from such a petite body! These songs are terrific, perhaps the best soundtrack for any musical, and there are a lot of them. Cher contributes two impressive tunes and Xtina belts out the rest which range from jazz lounge to RnB to electropop. I'm a little disappointed they didn't record her singing live though, especially since the reason Ali gets her break is because she can sing and not just lipsynch like the other performers. Oh well, the kinetic stage show probably made that option highly problematic.

I would recommend listening to the soundtrack which I give 4 stars even if you aren't an Aguilera fan because the songs aren't typical of her recordings and really demonstrate what a great singer she can be outside of the pop sphere. It's certainly a damn sight better than her Bionic released the same year. And if you are a fan, then by all means check out the movie, you'll surely enjoy a lot of it.