'Chicago' is all that jazz

As recent movie awards and nominations make it out to be, "Chicago" really is all that jazz. The musical, adapted from Bob Fosse's Broadway hit of the mid '70s, treats murder like a slap on the face, and by the end of the film, viewers have not only forgotten how many men have been put under, but also that they should care about these deaths enough to want the killers to be punished. In fact, there are few killers as forgivable as Roxie Hart (Renee Zellweger) and Velma Kelly (Catherine Zeta-Jones). One of the highlights of the film is the "Cell Block Tango," in which each murderess justifies her actions. By the end of the song, if you are not shaking your head in agreement with them, you are at least snapping your fingers or tapping your feet. If you can take your eyes off the screen long enough to look around the theater, you will notice that everyone is smiling. Those smiles only increase when the invincible lawyer Billy Flynn (Richard Gere) takes the stage, and by the end of the movie, you are willing to overlook the inadequate striptease he performs in his first number. Director Rob Marshall uses the perks of film wisely, intermingling shots of the characters both in true character and in dance costume. One of the best examples of this is when "Mama" Morton (Queen Latifah) enters the movie, and the director switches between scenes of her in the bland costume of her profession as a prison guard and scenes of her dolled-up in green sequins and enough cleavage to act as a makeshift isolation cell, should anyone get too rowdy. The only character that neither begins as a butterfly nor makes the metamorphosis from caterpillar to butterfly by the end of the movie is Amos Hart, Roxie's husband played by John C. Reilly, the man who seems to have a bit part in every successful movie since "Magnolia." After his rendition of "Mr. Cellophane," any female member of the audience would be willing to call him off the screen and offer him a seat on her lap for the duration of the movie. Besides, everyone needs somebody to hold his or her hand as the anticipation of Roxie's trial verdict builds. "Chicago" is more than just the same old song and dance, and it will have you dancing into the theater to see it again and again. The movie is currently playing at Regal Downtown West 8. Rating: A