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Roxie Hart
1942's Roxie Hart is the cynical and sizzling black comedy about murder, betrayal, and the power of the media that brings new meaning to phrases like "Innocent until proven guilty", "the pen is more powerful than the sword", and "justice is blind." The film also turns out to be an analysis of the often clear connection between the law and show business.
This film, allegedly based on a true story, stars Ginger Rogers as the title character, the married flapper in 1920's Chicago, whose show business aspirations are dashed when she shoot her lover and is sent to jail, even though her devoted, dim bulb of a husband originally confesses to the crime. Roxie is assured that she will be OK because no woman has ever been hung in the history of Cook County and one of the primary reasons for that is a fast-talking attorney named Billy Flynn (Adolph Menjou) who is also defending a cellmate of Roxie's named Velma. When Roxie's husband, Amos, asks Billy to take the case, he doesn't ask if Roxie is guilty or innocent, he just asks if Amos has five thousand dollars. Even though Amos doesn't have all the money, Billy still takes the case and constructs a case for Roxie, not based on the facts, but on making her a darling of the media that no jury would dare to convict.
This story actually first came to the screen in 1927 with Phyllis Haver playing the title role in a film that was actually based on a play by Maurine Watkins. Thirty-three years after this film, the story found life again onstage as a Broadway musical called Chicago that starred Gwen Verdon and that musical became a movie in 2002 and won the Oscar for Best Picture, but, if the truth be told, that musical is a pale imitation of this shockingly dark comedy that is completely unapologetic in its cynicism regarding the conceptions of law and justice.
Nunnally Johnson's screenplay accurately skewers a justice system that has proven before and since this film how justice can be manipulated by the media. It's a little unsettling that this Billy Flynn's approach to getting Roxie off centers on creating a sympathetic image and a new fake background for her and her guilt or innocence actually becomes a non-issue. If this film is your first exposure to this story, I can safely say that you will get through at least half of this film unsure as to whether Roxie is guilty or innocent which is the exact intent of this story I'm sure. In Chicago, we witness the death of Fred Casely, but in this film, we don't witness the crime.
The character of Roxie is a lot of fun and there's no way the viewer cannot get completely behind her and especially the way she embraces the whole idea of her defense as a gateway to her show business career. I loved her first meeting with the press in jail where she had all the reporters doing the Black Bottom, or during the trial when every time the jury was looking at her, Roxie made sure that her skirt was hiked high enough to expose her lovely knees. There's a great moment during the trial where the press rush to the stand to photograph Roxie and the judge gets up behind her and gets in the shot.
Ginger Rogers is terrific as Roxie, but it was Adolph Menjou's dazzling turn as Billy Flynn that was the most memorable part of this comedy for this reviewer. Menjou's richly complex performance as the slick and insensitive attorney is easily the best work of his I've seen. George Montgomery was also quite charming as the young reporter who falls for Roxie and there's even a brief appearance by William Frawley, who would later gain fame as Fred Mertz on I Love Lucy. Fans of the 2002 musical should definitely take a look at this more biting view of the same story.
1942's Roxie Hart is the cynical and sizzling black comedy about murder, betrayal, and the power of the media that brings new meaning to phrases like "Innocent until proven guilty", "the pen is more powerful than the sword", and "justice is blind." The film also turns out to be an analysis of the often clear connection between the law and show business.
This film, allegedly based on a true story, stars Ginger Rogers as the title character, the married flapper in 1920's Chicago, whose show business aspirations are dashed when she shoot her lover and is sent to jail, even though her devoted, dim bulb of a husband originally confesses to the crime. Roxie is assured that she will be OK because no woman has ever been hung in the history of Cook County and one of the primary reasons for that is a fast-talking attorney named Billy Flynn (Adolph Menjou) who is also defending a cellmate of Roxie's named Velma. When Roxie's husband, Amos, asks Billy to take the case, he doesn't ask if Roxie is guilty or innocent, he just asks if Amos has five thousand dollars. Even though Amos doesn't have all the money, Billy still takes the case and constructs a case for Roxie, not based on the facts, but on making her a darling of the media that no jury would dare to convict.
This story actually first came to the screen in 1927 with Phyllis Haver playing the title role in a film that was actually based on a play by Maurine Watkins. Thirty-three years after this film, the story found life again onstage as a Broadway musical called Chicago that starred Gwen Verdon and that musical became a movie in 2002 and won the Oscar for Best Picture, but, if the truth be told, that musical is a pale imitation of this shockingly dark comedy that is completely unapologetic in its cynicism regarding the conceptions of law and justice.
Nunnally Johnson's screenplay accurately skewers a justice system that has proven before and since this film how justice can be manipulated by the media. It's a little unsettling that this Billy Flynn's approach to getting Roxie off centers on creating a sympathetic image and a new fake background for her and her guilt or innocence actually becomes a non-issue. If this film is your first exposure to this story, I can safely say that you will get through at least half of this film unsure as to whether Roxie is guilty or innocent which is the exact intent of this story I'm sure. In Chicago, we witness the death of Fred Casely, but in this film, we don't witness the crime.
The character of Roxie is a lot of fun and there's no way the viewer cannot get completely behind her and especially the way she embraces the whole idea of her defense as a gateway to her show business career. I loved her first meeting with the press in jail where she had all the reporters doing the Black Bottom, or during the trial when every time the jury was looking at her, Roxie made sure that her skirt was hiked high enough to expose her lovely knees. There's a great moment during the trial where the press rush to the stand to photograph Roxie and the judge gets up behind her and gets in the shot.
Ginger Rogers is terrific as Roxie, but it was Adolph Menjou's dazzling turn as Billy Flynn that was the most memorable part of this comedy for this reviewer. Menjou's richly complex performance as the slick and insensitive attorney is easily the best work of his I've seen. George Montgomery was also quite charming as the young reporter who falls for Roxie and there's even a brief appearance by William Frawley, who would later gain fame as Fred Mertz on I Love Lucy. Fans of the 2002 musical should definitely take a look at this more biting view of the same story.