Posts Tagged ‘vaudeville’

Chicago (2002)

Saturday, November 29th, 2008
Genres: Comedy | Crime | Drama | Musical
Countries: Germany | USA
Actors: Taye Diggs | Cliff Saunders | Catherine Zeta-Jones | Renée Zellweger | Dominic West | Richard Gere | Jayne Eastwood | Bruce Beaton | Christine Baranski | Roman Podhora | John C. Reilly | Colm Feore | Rob Smith | Shawn Wayne Doyle | Steve Behal | Robbie Rox | Chita Rivera
Directors: Rob Marshall
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Fame hungry Roxie Hart dreams of a life on the Vaudville stage, and spends her nights jazzing it up in the bright lights of Chicago, continually hoping that she’ll find her lucky break, and be shot into 1920’s stardom, so able to flee her boring husband Amos. In awe of seductive club singer Velma Kelly (who is subsequantly arrested for the murder of her husband and sister - after discovering their affair), Roxie meets Fred Cassely a man who convinces her he can ‘make her showbiz career take off’. However after Roxie has undergone the ‘casting couch’ treatment, and Fred has had his wicked way with her, he reveals that he has no more connections in showbusiness than she does. This is the final straw for Roxie, and her constant anger at rejection explodes. She shoots Fred Cassely and kills him. Upon discovering her infidelity, Roxie’s husband Amos refuses to take the blame for the murder and Roxie is sent to jail, pending hanging. In jail she finally meets tabloid darling Velma Kelly, currently receiving huge media attention for the double murder she committed earlier in the tale. Sharing the clink with Velma, are a collection of other sly females, all awaiting trial for the murders of their own partners. Velma is aloof to Roxie, however the prison Warden Mrs Morton offers Roxie the opportunity of representation by slick Chicago lawyer Billy Flynn. Billy is more a showbiz P. R agent than a legal lawyer and minipulates the tabloids into thinking Roxie is no more than an innocent ‘good time girl’ who took the wrong path, than a scheming murderess. The tabloids go crazy for the new girl on the cell block, and Roxie finally becomes a star. However due to Roxie’s new found fame, Velma is forgotten about. She is forced to approach Roxie with an offer of a part in her Vaudville act (filling the gap left by her murdered sister), but Roxie turns down her offer flat, thinking she needs no support in topping the bill. However, just as Velma’s star fell, so does Roxie’s, when Go-to-hell Kitty arrives at the jail on a multiple murder charge, the press forget Roxie and now she and Velma are in the same boat. With one more trick up her sleave Roxie manages to bring the media attention back onto her, and her day in court arrives. Billy is now ready to play the ultimate showman!

The Sunshine Boys (1975)

Wednesday, July 2nd, 2008
Genres: Comedy
Countries: USA
Actors: Walter Matthau | George Burns | Richard Benjamin | F. Murray Abraham | Howard Hesseman | James Cranna | Ron Rifkin | Fritz Feld | Jack Bernardi | Santos Morales | Archie Hahn | Sid Gould | Tom Spratley | Sammy Smith | Dan Resin
Directors:
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Al Lewis and Willy Clark were once a popular vaudeville comedy team called Lewis and Clark, also known as The Sunshine Boys. After forty-three years as a team, they parted company over eleven years prior on not too friendly terms as Willy wanted to continue his career whereas Al wanted to retire. They have not spoken since. Willy’s nephew, Ben - a talent agent - has been trying to find acting jobs for his uncle since with little success as Willy’s age and declining ability is showing. But a lucrative opportunity comes up when one of the major networks is producing and airing a special on the history of comedy, and want The Sunshine Boys to appear. Ben has to try and convince the comedy team to reunite for just this one gig. Ben has to try and manage the individual quirks and personalities of each of The Sunshine Boys while putting on a good face to the network that there is harmony within The Sunshine Boys comedy team. Ben also has to manage the lives of two men in the twilight of their lives.

Road to Bali (1952)

Monday, March 31st, 2008
Genres: Comedy | Musical
Countries: USA
Actors: Bing Crosby | Bob Hope | Dorothy Lamour | Murvyn Vye | Peter Coe | Ralph Moody | Leon Askin | Michael Ansara | Besmark Auelua | Herman Cantor | Larry Chance | Jack Claus | Harry Cording | Bob Crosby | Roy Gordon
Directors: Hal Walker
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Having to leave Melbourne in a hurry to avoid various marriage proposals, two song-and-dance men sign on for work as divers. This takes them to an idyllic island on the way to Bali where they vie with each other for the favours of Princess Lala. The hazardous dive produces a chest of priceless jewels which arouses the less romantic interest of some shady locals.

King Kong (2005)

Monday, April 2nd, 2007
Genres: Action | Adventure | Drama | Fantasy | Thriller
Countries: New Zealand | USA
Actors: Naomi Watts | Jack Black | Adrien Brody | Thomas Kretschmann | Colin Hanks | Andy Serkis | Evan Parke | Jamie Bell | Lobo Chan | John Sumner | Craig Hall | Kyle Chandler | Mark Hadlow | Geraldine Brophy | David Denis
Directors: Bryan Singer | Peter Jackson
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Set in the 1930s, this is the story of a young and beautiful actress Ann Darrow from the world of vaudeville who finds herself lost in depression-era New York and her luck changes when she meets an over-ambitious filmmaker Carl Denham who brings her on an exploratory expedition to a remote island where she finds compassion and the true meaning of humanity with an ape Kong. The beauty and the beast finally meet their fate back in the city of New York where the filmmaker takes and displays the ape in quest of his fame by commercial exploitation which ultimately leads to catastrophe for everyone including a playwright Jack Driscoll who falls in love with Ann and plays an unlikely hero by trying to save her from Kong and her destiny.

Mrs Henderson Presents (2005)

Friday, March 16th, 2007
Genres: Comedy | Drama
Countries: UK
Actors: Judi Dench | Bob Hoskins | Will Young | Kelly Reilly | Thelma Barlow | Christopher Guest
Directors: Stephen Frears
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Recently widowed well-to-do Laura Henderson is at a bit of a loose end in inter-war London. On a whim she buys the derelict Windmill theatre in the West End and persuades impresario Vivian Van Damm to run it, despite the fact the two don’t seem to get on at all. Although their idea of a non-stop revue is at first a success, other theatres copy it and disaster looms. Laura suggests they put nudes in the show, but Van Damm points out that the Lord Chamberlain, who licenses live shows in Britain, is likely to have something to say about this. Luckily Mrs Henderson is friends with him.

Singin’ in the Rain (1952)

Wednesday, February 14th, 2007
Genres: Comedy | Musical | Romance
Countries: USA
Actors: Gene Kelly | Donald O'Connor | Debbie Reynolds | Jean Hagen | Millard Mitchell | Cyd Charisse | Douglas Fowley | Rita Moreno
Directors: Stanley Donen
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Glorious classic film musical. 1927: Don Lockwood and Lina Lamont are the darlings of the silent silver screen. Offscreen, Don, aided by his happy-go-lucky friend and piano accompanist, Cosmo Brown, has to dodge Lina’s romantic overtures, especially when he falls for chorus girl Kathy Selden. With the advent of sound in motion pictures, it is decided to turn Don and Lina’s new film into a “talkie” and a musical at that. The only problem is Lina’s voice, which mere words cannot describe. Thus, Kathy is brought on to dub her speaking and singing voice in secret, and Don’s on top of the world. But then Lina finds out…