Chicago

The trickling waterdrops, the thumping footsteps of the warden, the recurring tap of fingernails, the sudden flicker of a matchstick—the innocuous sounds of a prison cell gradually combine into a musical rhythm. And a song is born, even in captivity. If you love musicals, Chicago certainly sings. The tunes are infectiously hummable, dances fired with foot-tapping exuberance and the choreography, colours, sets and costumes together make for the best of American showmanship and spectacle that is gloriously mounted on the glamourous shoulders of its leading stars, specially the sensational Zeta-Jones and a jaunty Gere. But there's a bit more. Chicago mixes the traditional Hollywood musical with burlesque and the noir. Forget the romance of West Side Story, the sweet sentimentality of Sound of Music, or even the boundless joy of Gene Kelly's Singin' in the Rain. Chicago's about decadence, betrayals, rivalries, ambitions and murders and executions that are staged for "pleasure and entertainment". It's about finding music in the grimness of life, about the dark heart of all the cheer and delight.

The waifish and innocent-looking Roxie Hart (Zellwegger), a chorus girl with starry ambitions, meets her ideal—vaudeville artiste Velma Kelly (Zeta-Jones)—in prison where both of them have landed for homicide charges. With a little help from the materialistic Matron Morton (Latifah) and the rakish, greedy lawyer Billy Flynn (Gere), and after a few impediments from jealous Kelly, Roxie embarks on her journey to freedom and to stardom. What impresses most is the structural inventiveness of the film, how the sunshine and spirit of song-'n-dance numbers is intercut with the evolving plot—Kelly's cabaret merges with Roxie's covert love session, the police procedural gets encompassed in a song as Roxie changes her opinion about her husband—from funny honey to crummy, dummy hubby. The pick of the set-pieces belong to Gere—his Billy effortlessly tap-dances his way to convince the jury and manipulates the media like a puppet to convince them of Roxie's innocence. Chicago's so engrossing that you even forget to reach out for the Coke n' popcorn. Now isn't that entertainment!

US top 5

1. Bringing Down the House
2. Agent Cody Banks
3. The Hunted
4. Tears of the Sun
5. Chicago

Indian Top 5

1. Khushi
2. Saathiya
3. Kuch To Hai
4. Dum
5. Dil Ka Rishta

Courtesy: Film Information