New movie reviews, DVD reviews, interviews, and all things film.

Follow Me

• Dark Shadows ***
• Darling Companion **1/2
• God Bless America ***
• Marvel's The Avengers ***1/2
• ReGeneration ***
• Sound of My Voice ***
• The Pirates! Band of Misfits ***1/2
• The Raven ***
• Safe **1/2
• The Lucky One 1/2*
• 4:44 Last Day on Earth **1/2
• Blue Like Jazz **
• The Cabin in the Woods ***1/2
• Damsels in Distress ***1/2
• Lockout **1/2
• The Three Stooges ***
• The Turin Horse ****
• We Have a Pope **1/2
• American Reunion **
• Goon ***
• More

• Bird of Paradise
• Maniac Cop
• Miss Representation
• Mother's Day (2012)
• Murder Obsession
• Tim and Eric's Billion Dollar Movie
• Underworld Awakening
• The Vow
• Clueless
• Haywire
• Hit!
• Men in Black
• New Year's Eve
• The Red House
• More

• Peter Lord
• Abel Ferrara
• Nicholas Sparks
• Whit Stillman
• Sean Hayes
• Terence Davies
• Peter Lord Interview
• Juan Carlos Fresnadillo
• Taika Waititi
• Will Ferrell
• Interview: Ewan McGregor [SF Examiner]
• Interview: the 'Project X' stars [SF Examiner]
• Interview: Oren Moverman
• Interview: Rachel McAdams
• Interview: Ti West
• Interview: Elizabeth Banks
• 2011: The Year's Best Films
• Year's Best DVDs and Blu-Rays
• San Francisco Film Critics Circle Awards
• The Decade's Ten Best Films: 2000-2009
• My Top 100 Films [Updated]
• My Top 60 Directors [Updated]
• Christmas Movies
• Essential Halloween & Horror Movies
• Cult Movies
• More Features and Interviews

• Have Yourself a Movie Little Christmas, by Alonso Duralde
• Not Quite a Memoir: Of Films, Books, the World, by Judy Stone
• James Agee: The Library of America Collection, by James Agee
• Just Making Movies, by Ronald L. Davis
• More Books

• Home
• Reviews A-C
• Reviews D-F
• Reviews G-J
• Reviews K-M
• Reviews N-Q
• Reviews R-T
• Reviews U-Z

The online film magazine Combustible Celluloid offers new movie reviews, DVD reviews, film reviews, actor interviews, actress interviews, director interviews, film books and all things cinema related for the thoughtful and passionate. Online for ten years! Over 3000 reviews!

SEARCH MOVIES / CELEB

Chicago (2002)

Rating: 3 Stars (out of 4)

All That Jazz

By Jeffrey M. Anderson

Buy Chicago on DVD

This razzle-dazzle of a musical treads on Moulin Rouge territory but is more refreshingly old-fashioned. Renee Zellweger walks in Ginger Rogers' shoes as Roxie Hart, a singer/dancer who enhances her fame by committing murder and going to prison. Richard Gere surprises as her slick lawyer who sings and dances with gusto, and Catherine Zeta-Jones knocks 'em dead as Roxie's prison-mate. Choreographer Rob Marshall makes his feature debut, toning town the Fosse-ness and keeping things snappy. Queen Latifah and John C. Reilly shine in supporting roles. Chicago won the 2002 Oscar for Best Picture, though it probably didn't deserve it nearly as much as Gangs of New York, Far from Heaven, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, 25th Hour, Minority Report, Adaptation or The Pianist did.

DVD Details: In 2005, Miramax released a new 2-disc "Razzle-Dazzle" Edition, complete with a commentary track, deleted musical number, the history of Chicago, extended musical performances, a VH1 "behind the movie" special and several more featurettes.

Starring: Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta Jones, Richard Gere, Queen Latifah, John C. Reilly, Christine Baranski, Taye Diggs, Lucy Liu
Written by: Bill Condon, based on a play by Maurine Dallas Watkins, and on the musical by Bob Fosse and Fred Ebb
Directed by: Rob Marshall
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sexual content and dialogue, violence and thematic elements
Running Time: 113 minutes
Date: December 25, 2002