Chicago [2003] (REGION 1) (NTSC)

Chicago has transferred well to film, seamlessly merging Dennis Potter-esque dream sequences with the action. Though the stage show uses sets sparingly, here the look has been heavily influenced by the only successful musical of recent times, Moulin Rouge, with heavy velvets and drapery offering a rich feel to the murky underworld of 1920s Chicago clubs. The hot question is: can the movie stars cut it as performers? Surprisingly, it is Zellweger who looks most comfortable in the part, regardless of her awkward dancing. Zeta-Jones is just that little bit too butch to be believable as a flapper girl, despite her stage school roots, and lacks a certain panache. But one thing is in her favour: she's believable as the ultimate starlet bitch. Gere does not fare much better, with his tap-dancing sequence littered with cutaways (mercifully his dancing and singing is kept to a minimum). The real show-stealer is Queen Latifah, whose matron of the cells is perfect and her singing spot-on. More than anything else, though, this film will whet your appetite to see the original on the West End stage. --Nikki Disney

On the DVD:Chicago on DVD demonstrates that the producers of Rob Marshall's Oscar-winning film obviously took to heart the lyrics "Give 'em the old Razzle Dazzle", as the widescreen 1.85:1 anamorphic transfer is rich with the lush colours, vibrant tones and sparkling audio that wowed audiences in the cinema. If only the extras had been given the same treatment. There's nothing like the plethora of special features that greeted fans of Moulin Rouge here; there is a grand total of three: a passable director's commentary, a deleted song, "Class", which is so dull you don't question why it didn't make the final cut, and a making-of feature, which is entertaining but nothing new. All in all, there's a very disappointing and unimaginative selection. --Kristen Bowditch

Customer reviews:

Enjoyable but inconsistent, 2008-09-12
Renee Zellweger (Cold Mountain) stars as Roxie Hart, a woman who has always dreamed of being in the spotlight and when she murders a man; she is sent to Death Row and seeks the help of lawyer Billy Flynn to get her out of trouble and into the spotlight.

Winner of 6 Oscars including Best Picture, Chicago is one of the noughties most recognized musicals, filled with plenty of entertainment, catchy songs and strong performances, if not the best written plot.

Zellweger gives a good performance as attention seeking Hart, filled with exquisite dancing and acting. Her character is exceptionally annoying all the way through, so unbelievably stubborn and self-centred, and can be frustrating to watch.

It is the support cast who the plaudits most go to. Zeta Jones (The Mask of Zorro) won an Oscar for her supporting role as Velma Kelly, another performer on Death Row seeking the spotlight, and is the best character of the film, filled with class and sophistication she is a joy to watch.

John C Riley (The Aviator) delivers on acting and singing levels too with an Oscar nominated performance.

The plot is very inconsistent, with plenty of lapses and too many songs filling unnecessary points during the film. The dialogue is quirky and enough to make up for these lapses, as is the catchy tunes including the brilliant All That Jazz.

The film is mostly set in Death Row, but ironically we do not see much of the dealings or hardship happening, not a true reflection of prison life.

Watch out for a few comparisons to other films, including Latifah' s character resembling a female Red from Shawshank Redemption, her performance helps emulate something of a hard prison life, but otherwise prison life is portrayed as being simple and easy.

Costume design and settings are well established, as is the brilliant lighting which goes a long way in plenty of the songs, including Roxie's vision of her own show, and all the women explaining why they're in prison.

The plot is leading up to a big trial and when it gets there it is major disappointment. As it begins, Richard Gere's impressive tap dancing sequence plays in the background, but it completely ruins the moment of the trial and will give viewers a headache, an awful disappointing climax to an enjoyable well acted musical drama.

7/10

I DON'T NORMALLY LIKE MUSICALS BUT I LIKED THIS ONE, 2007-08-19
My favorite Academy Award winning Best Picture of the decade thus far, Chicago is a cinematic extravaganza that comes along only once in a long, long time. Richard Gere, Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Queen Latifah, Christine Baranski, John C. Reilly and others explode on screen with music, talent and heaps of fun, in a sarcastic and very ironic look at show business, fame, crime and the thin line that runs between them.

When you come to think about it, the plot is OK, but what really makes this musical light up with fire and passion are the singing bits carried out by the talented cast. Come to think of it, I've only seen the film 4-5 times, but I've heard the soundtrack 20 or 30 times more than that, and it keeps getting better, and more entertaining, each and every time.

Richard Gere is absolutely stunning as Mr. Billy Flynn, the slick attorney who represents the homicidal rising star, Roxie Hart (Zellweger), in a murder case that creates a media frenzy circa the sparkling 1930's. When Gere smooth sings his way through 'We Both Reached for the Gun", you'll wonder why this manly man of an actor didn't turn to Jazz and music from the get go. Zellweger, who's always been a chameleon in her respective roles, fits perfectly into the role of Roxie, the smoking hot murderess who'll doing anything for fame and publicity (even... err, especially, murder). If you need to be convinced, listen to her perform "Roxie", and you too will fall for her. However, the girl who really steals the thunder from her fellow cast members is Catherine Zeta-Jones in her Academy Award winning role of Velma Kelly, the rough murderess who's been through the star-murder-fame road before Roxie has, and now has some advice to give to her fame struck cell-mate (hear also track number 8 in the soundtrack "I Can't do it Alone"). Also in this musical are the always enjoyable (and only "real" singer in the cast) Queen Latifah as the slick prison warden Matron Mama Morton, and hilarious character actor John C. Reilly as Roxie's sap of a husband (hear "Mister Cellophane").

There's been a blessed resurrection of musicals in Hollywood throughout recent years, and while Moulin Rouge might have been the first light that reignited in the interest in the genre, Chicago is the true beacon that shined the way for all the others to follow. And while films like Rent, The Phantom of the Opera and Hairspray might be worthy entries in the genre, Chicago stands high, high above them as a refreshing celebration of music, fame, irony and stardom. If it were up to me, the title of this film would have been Hollywood rather than Chicago.