Chicago

Four and a half stars. Highly recommended. Award-level stuff.

Chicago: sex, liquor and jazz. The characters are sleazy, selfish and morally bankrupt caricatures, but the cast tackle them with such relish and exaggerated glee that you love them anyway. The song and dance numbers--most of which actually play out in Roxie's imagination--are flawlessly executed, and brilliantly interwoven with the main story. It's a snide look at corruption, ambition, and the fleeting nature of fame. It's also a cynical black comedy, and a masterpiece of good old-fashioned entertainment. On every level, it works, it snaps, and it sizzles. Go see it now.