July 20, 1992
CHICAGO
Screenplay by Herbert Ross, Music by John Kander, Lyrics by Fred Ebb
Synopsis by Brian Aldrich
AMOS, a mechanic, narrowly misses the St. Valentine's Day massacre as he gets off early from work to buy his wife, ROXIE, a present. At home, Roxie is having an argument with her lover, FRED, and kills him. When the police arrive, Amos says he killed the guy who was a burglar. When it is revealed that Roxie was having an affair with Fred, she confesses to the crime. An opportunistic reporter, JAKE, gets the scoop on her story for his paper and promises to put her in touch with BILLY FLYNN, a top criminal lawyer.
Roxie becomes a big media star. Amos hustles up the $5000 to pay Flynn to defend her. She could care less for him and makes eyes and offers at anyone who can help her. In jail, she is befriended by a couple of other female murderers who make her wise about how to beat the rap. Meanwhile, Flynn comes up with a defense for Roxie: She'll pretend to be innocent and virginal. She shot Fred because he wouldn't leave her alone and she was pregnant with her husband's child.
Meanwhile, a Hollywood producer DOUGLAS comes to town and negotiates with Roxie and Flynn for the movie rights to her story. Eventually, the case goes to court. She impresses the jury with her story and is acquitted. She becomes a big Hollywood star and gets together with Jake.
Summary Criticism: While the story is a little thin, this is a musical, which forgives a multitude of sins. The story is fun and humorous, but the songs don't advance the narrative as much as just complement the story.
Chicago (2002) - imdb
No comments:
Post a Comment