Musicals are one of my personal favorite film genres. And "Chicago" is one of the best, especially in the last decade. If you for whatever reason do not like musicals, then still give "Chicago" a try because I occasionally watch science fiction movies. Anyways, this film came out 8 years ago, was directed by Rob Marshall and walked away with 6 Academy Awards including Best Picture. It's Chicago in the 1920s. Velma Kelly (Catherine Zeta-Jones) is a successful nightclub performer who kills her husband and her sister. She end up in a women's prison on Murderer's Row with Roxie Hart (Renee Zellweger). Roxie Hart killed her lover and is an aspiring performer. Matron Mama Morton (Queen Latifah) is the warden of the prison and Billy Flynn (Richard Gere) is the lawyer who is trying to get Velma and Roxie out of jail, since they kind of might get executed. Everything about this film is incredible. The four main cast members are phenomenal and can all act, sing, and dance, which is a truly beautiful thing. We learn from this that Renee Zellweger can sing very well when she puts her mind to it. The choreography is also beautiful and you can definitely picture this being on the stage. This makes perfect sense since it originated on Broadway. The transition from stage to screen was pretty darn seamless. Also, this may be one of the best soundtracks that I have heard in a musical, with such memorable numbers as "All that Jazz," "Roxie," and "Cell Block Tango" (my personal favorite scene in the entire film). One of my favorite aspects of the entire movie, besides the things I just raved about is the fact that most of the musical numbers occur in Roxie's head. I thought this was an extremely creative way of integrated songs into the plot. They flowed so well and never once felt awkward. My least favorite part is definitely John C. Reilly's solo song, but only because I get extremely bored during it. The direction and editing in this film was also phenomenal and Rob Marshall really went all out. Each frame is just stunningly lit, composed, everything. So in case you didn't know I love this movie and highly recommend it. Everything that makes a good movie, or musical is present here, and much more. Also, calling these things quick reviews are still some of the biggest lies I try to pull.
-Joseph Sbrilli
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