Review of Chicago (2002) by Geralt W — 22 Feb 2011

I'm usually slightly skeptical of musicals, unless we're talking about Disney. So to hear that Chicago actually managed to win an Academy Award for Best Picture definitely raised my curiosity.

It's obvious by how highly I've rated it that, yes, I quite liked it. I guess what made this movie for me was the exceptionally inspired casting. Renee Zellweger, Richard Gere, Catherine-Zeta Jones and Queen Latifah are absolutely perfect in their respective roles.

The story itself is actually pretty pessimistic if you think about it. It's a dark satire on how the media can influence the justice system (or even override it completely), a fact that is pretty valid even today. The fascinating fact is that this musical had no true "hero" to speak of, only villain protagonists: Roxie and Velma are both murderers who feel no remorse for their crimes and selfishly long for fame and fortune, and Flynn is immoral and manipulative, the stereotypical "scumbag lawyer". The only two sympathetic characters are the Hunyak (who is the only innocent woman in Cook County to actually be executed for the crime she didn't commit) and Amos (who, while well intentioned, is so naive and clueless that I just threw up my hands saying "You know what buddy, it's your bed, go sleep in it"). Oddly enough, these characters were still interesting to watch, even though they were completely immoral.

But this is a musical after all, so how about the songs? Well, they were all very solid. The only ones I didn't enjoy were "Mr. Cellophane", which was so dull that I actually can't remember much of it, and "I Can't Do it Alone", which I couldn't really get into for some reason.

I really liked all of Flynn's songs. Richard Gere portrays him absolutely perfectly and ads such charisma to the character that you can't help but grin a little. "All I Care About" is a perfect example. The hypocrisy here is astounding, and it's obvious he's saying the exact opposite of the truth. The whole song seems to be sort of a wink to the audience and does a marvelous job of introducing the character to us.

"We Both Reached For the Gun" is also hilarious. The way they visually portray Flynn as having a power of manipulation that verges on mind control is ingenious. The image of the reporters as puppets and him literally pulling the strings is brilliant. And him as a ventriloquist with Roxie as the puppet is another smart visual metaphor. Her make-up during those scenes also helps. This song does lose a few points for being a bit too repetitive for my taste and because I didn't really care for Mary Sunshine's voice. Still, a very nice tune.

"Razzle Dazzle" has some of the funniest lines in the whole movie, mainly during the spoken bits, particularly Flynn questioning Amos and the "I object""I haven't even asked a question" bit.

"When You're Good to Mama" was also a very solid song. Although Mama Morton was a fairly minor character in this adaptation, this song tells you pretty much all you need to know about her. Everything, from the melody to the lyrics and the visuals fit her character perfectly, and Queen Latifah plays her role with such confidence and swagger, making it very effective.

But the absolute highlight for me was "The Cell Block Tango". For me it was hands down the best song in the whole damn movie. I like tango-style melodies in general, and this one was no exception. Lyrically, it's the best example of the dark, satirical humor that characterizes the entire movie. I, for one, can't help but crack up at lines like "We broke up because of artistic differences: he saw himself as alive, I saw him dead". And the choreography here is simply superb, particularly during the first two choruses. They also used colors very effectively; notice when the Hunyak comes out, she has a white piece of cloth, as opposed to the red ones used by the other five, signifying her innocence. What I don't understand is why they didn't leave Velma's story for last. That part is a bit more mellow, but Catherine Zeta-Jones completely steals the show when the tempo picks up again. Her intensity and energy alone make for a memorable performance.

The rest of the songs weren't great, but not bad either. All in all, I can honestly say that after seeing this, I'll have to revise my policy and be more open-minded as far as musicals are concerned.