Chicago hit the big-screen as a big hit with big stars. While this may be the making of a typical Hollywood blockbuster with no plot, this is where Chicago shines brightly above the rest. It is a creative screenplay entwining written script with that of a musical.
The musical scenes stood out and were amazingly integrated so that the flow did not shift at all. Catherine Zeta-Jones, Renee Zellweger, and even Richard Gere hit their notes and danced their heels off. I was left waiting for the curtains to close as the scene ended, as the line between theater and screen started to thin.
The scenes were well choreographed and very hot; they definitely pleased any male viewer in the audience. This only added to the feeling of the 1920s and of the way Chicago worked as a town, it helped bring you back to that period, where the only way women made a good living was by selling what they had.
The acting was great, though at first Gere seemed to be a very strange choice for Billy Flynn, at least musically, he pulled it off well in the end. Zeta-Jones was absolutely flawless as the manipulative, sexy Velma Kelly. Zellweger pulled off the sweet, manipulative Roxie Hart, but with a few changes, she could have done it better.
The performance of “All That Jazz” was very entertaining and definitely draws the crowd in as it was meant to, but nothing beat the performance of “Mr. Cellophane” by John C. Reilly. That was definitely the most entertaining part; sadly it was cut short for its movie rendition. Queen Latifah also put on a great act, it was sad she couldn’t have done more singing.
The most difficult part of combining the musical into the film was adding in some of the songs for Roxie. They ingeniously decided to use it as a way of showing us a deeper part of her character by mixing them into her daydreams throughout the film to show her feelings. It meshed so fluidly that I got lost in the circus the film created.
If there was ever a movie worth seeing twice at a price of $9.00, Chicago makes the cut. It definitely entertains. Actually, it finds a way to “Razzle Dazzle” the whole audience and leave them wanting more.
