Rating: 
Summary: Typical Fosse Forté
Review: All style and no substance. The only bright spot of the movie is Renée Zellweger, truely a great performance (and I am not even a Zellweger fan) however, Richard Gere's performance is way over done. He really needs to get some more acting lessions under his belt or perhaps it's due to a weak script. I purchased the DVD expecting a lot more from a movie that won 6 Acadamy Awards including Best Picture and I am going to promptly sell this turkey back. I do not recommend this movie, if you have to see it, rent it. A real disappointment.
Rating:
Summary: please shoot me
Review: Like Moulin Rouge this movie is not for heterosexual males.
Rating:
Summary: Celebrating murder, lies and deceit
Review: I don't often feel compelled to write my own review of anything on Amazon, especially one for a movie so mainstream and often analyzed as Chicago. After all, how many of these reviews are you really going to read, out of the hundreds available? My opinion is - read one and you've read them all. But after just watching this movie on DVD and having scanned through the hundreds upon hundreds of reviews on Amazon for it, I was amazed to find only one reviewer who seemed to view this film with the same dismay and disappointment that I did.
When I first heard of this movie I was excited to see it. Having unexpectedly fallen in love with Moulin Rouge I was looking forward to the next big musical that Hollywood had to offer. Both my Mother and sister (among many others) saw it in the theater and said they really liked it. My sister even said she liked it more that Moulin Rouge, so I was even more anxious to see it. Having two small children makes it hard to get to the theater for anything other than Disney releases, so I had to wait for this movie to come out on DVD before finally getting to watch it, which I lamented many times to my husband.
What a disappointment! Upon retrospect I am glad now that I didn't waste the $[...] it would have cost to see this movie in the theater.
The entire storyline of Chicago consists of character after character committing and/or defending and glorifying every major mortal sin there is, namely murder and adultery. Renee Zelweger's character kills her lover when the relationship suddenly goes sour and the rest of the film revolves around her rise to stardom gained by this heinous act. So many things about this movie appalled me that I could not possibly break them all down one by one and dissect them here. But the thing that bothered me most about all of it was the way Roxie Hart (Renee Zellweger) alternately used and neglected her husband in order to get the attention she wanted. When she finally accomplishes gaining freedom from prison she immediately discards her poor sap of a husband by dismissing him the way you would swat away a fly buzzing in your ear, without a second thought about it.
The song and dance numbers obviously revolve around the storyline, and are catchy enough, but I find myself repulsed whenever I realize I am walking around with one of the tunes in my head. Why does everyone seem so taken with this movie and its soundtrack? Does no one hear the message being given in the songs simply because they are catchy and have pretty dance numbers attached to them? It was not entertaining for me to watch the characters sing and dance about murder (They had it comin'), spousal manipulation (Funny Honey), bribery and extortion (When You're Good to Mama), jury manipulation (Razzle Dazzle), and countless other offenses. Would we be so blind as to be entertained by a big budget musical pulled off by the KKK, or how about a musical about animal abuse and murder? Outrageous? Yes. This is how Chicago struck me. How can everyone be so in love with this movie? Create a whole bunch of songs we can sing along to and have beautiful people dance to them, no matter the content of said song and dance, and suddenly you have the best movie of the year. Huh.
Yes, let's sing and dance in praise of the lowest acts human beings can commit against each other and call it entertainment, art, a masterpiece. The success and popularity of Chicago speaks volumes about what our society considers not only acceptable but also enjoyable. With all the violence we are exposed to on a daily basis, apparently the way we have chosen to deal with it is to embrace it, put a song to it and bring it into our homes.
Rating: 
Summary: Everything A DVD Should Be
Review: I loved the movie and I love the DVD. Sure Rob Marshall keeps everything moving--perhaps too fast. But in the end, you're astounded by Catherine Zeta-Jones' superb Velma. You know that if everybody from this cast performed a song from this show live on Broadway, everybody would get nice applause, but Zeta-Jones would receive a standing ovation. She's got the energy, the dancing, the stage chops to make her center of attention. All the rest of the fine cast are never less than professional. In the case of Queen Latifah, we have a young performer the camera loves and she's nearly on Zeta-Jones' level. Their cut duet which is an extra on this extra-packed DVD is sensational. I have enjoyed Renee Zellweger in many films over the past six or seven years, but she's not a natural born musical comedy performer. She works hard, and when she's not singing or dancing, her actress skills serve her well. But next to Zeta-Jones in their dazzling finale, she simply working too hard. And I wish she'd gained a few more pounds. Zeta-Jones looks as willowy as her glorious figure will allow, but Zellweger is painfully thin. You gotta give Richard Gere credit. He goes completely against type and delivers a surprisingly wonderful performance. The quick cuts, and zooming scenes made me almost as dizzy as I was watching MOULIN ROUGE. Rob Marshall does know he's got to work with an audience of short attention spans. But the film's energy is contagious. It's gorgeously filmed and beautifully mounted. I had my doubts when the filming was announced. I was exhausted by all the previous stars attached to this film. Not since finding Scarlett O'Hara has casting been so difficult. The DVD packaging is sensational. Get it for Zeta-Jones' gloriously gorgeous Velma, and enjoy a cast going gamely through their paces. The movie musical ain't dead yeat. More please.
Rating:
Summary: It's all Subjective
Review: Director Rob Marshall did an excellent job translating this Broadway musical to the big screen. He took the story and made it his own by coming up with his own concepts like the "fantasies" idea, doing exciting editing, and casting big stars that are multi-talented. The stars may not be the greatest singers or dancers, but they were good enough for this movie. All those negative reviewers were expecting this movie to be a clone of their own personal favorites. I'm glad it wasn't or then it wouldn't be a Rob Marshall original. If you expected a typical Broadway musical, then of course you'd be disappointed. You might as well just see the musical on stage. Also, I noticed that those who liked Moulin Rouge did not like Chicago and vice versa. Like one reviewer said, these are two completely different musicals with different story lines and music. I personally liked Chicago more because it was more exciting to me in terms of music and style and overall fun to watch. But everybody's a critic and it's all subjective. You like it or you don't. I would recommend watching this movie with an open mind. Don't be jaded...forget about all those other musicals you've seen, and just watch this movie and you just may enjoy this movie afterall.
Rating:
Summary: I LOVE IT!!!!!
Review: I'm not into musicals, but this movie actually had me singing the songs! I love this movie! I can't stop watching it! 5 stars? I give it a million stars!!! I love the way they have a conversation by doing a music number or show emotions and tell the stories by music. I loved it and my entire family loved it! I'm so proud of this movie!
Rating: 
Summary: NOT A GOOD MOVIE!
Review: I don't know what all the hype is about this movie. The money I spent to rent this movie was by far the WORSE way to use my money! It is NOT even a good musical! Save your money and rent something else!
Rating: 
Summary: I felt like clapping
Review: Before I had to sit down and watch this movie I groaned. Let's be honest, after years of seeing Richard Gere in fairly nondescript movies I now had to accept he was a singer and a dancer too? Or Catherine Zita Jones - sings? And whilst not a passionate fan of musicals, I can say that I have certainly have enjoyed some of the old classics over the years. All I can say is that when the movie had finished I felt like applauding, it was over too soon, it was very very good. So if musicals are your thing then you will not be ashamed to admit that this is in your collection. Well worth the investment.
Rating:
Summary: Now that's Chicago ! (4.5 out of 5)
Review: Within the movie, you can feel the Fosse stage charisma for what parts crave dancing / singing, and a few others, while other scenes do mix in well as movie made moments. The characters are more than fine and dandy, carrying tunes with golden voices, attitude, and a lot of sweat. Zeta-Jones steals the show throughout as the woman of women in show buisness "Velma Kelly". Her vixen stares to the audience and her commanding strong voice (wow!) is showstopping ! But don't stop the show! Renee Zellweger's voice almost equals Jones, her Roxie Hart becoming a yearner for the fame and attention of show buisness and the media. Even Hart's confused husband who can't make up his mind about his murdering wife (John C. Reiley) carries the favourite tune, 'Mr. Celophane' and makes it sound so vaudeville perfect. Also check out the beautiful Queen Latifah, making sure all of her little girls in the prison ward she runs stay in line, for a litte cash. Just call her 'Mama'. Man, can she sing ! Richard Gere is an above average singer and good tap dancer, but makes his best as a lawyer who never loses. My favourite moments is when our cool bandleader comes around. Taye Diggs always has his voice heard in any part/room/moment of the movie when a song is starting. His smooth voice, and smooth intro's of anyone and any song was neat to anticipate. The man! Every environment/place/room was set to the tea for a flapper and jazz era story. That's Chicago.
Rating: 
Summary: Movie good...DVD disappointing
Review: I am a huge theatre fan and am absolutely thrilled at the idea that the movie musical is making a comeback. I've read over a few of the other reviews here and agree with many of them. I do not believe Chicago should have received the Oscar even though it is a fabulous movie (Moulin Rouge is the definite standout here although I am not going to get into a diatribe over the differences here.) However, again, this is a great movie and a credit to it's genre. The direction and editing are great, the music video feel is wonderful given today's audience penchant for this. The acting is fantastic...a true ensemble work. Having performed on stage in the role of Hunyak I have a special place in my heart for this show. My only disappointment in the movie itself is that the satire that is so prevalent in the stage production seems overwashed by the "razzle-dazzle" of the movie itself. The only real comparison I will make to Moulin Rouge in regards to this is that the Moulin Rouge DVD was a dream come true. All the extras from the rehearsals to costumes to unedited dance numbers and different camera angles was a true gift to those of us who love to get into our movies. I'm disappointed that Chicago did not follow suit. While I am happy that the deleted scene of Class is here (although a version of the movie with it edited in vs. just a music video would have been preferable) I am highly disappointed at the overall DVD. It's a movie I believe worth owning...just don't expect too much from the DVD itself.
| 
