| Director: | Rob Marshall |
| Screenplay: | Bill Condon |
| Producer: | Martin Richards |
| Cinematography: | Dion Beebe |
| Editing: | Martin Walsh |
| Distributor: | Miramax Films |
| Runtime: | 113 minutes[1] |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Budget: | $45 million[2] |
| Gross: | $306.8 million |
Chicago is a 2002 American musical crime comedy film based on the 1975 stage musical of the same name which in turn originated in the 1926 play of the same name. It explores the themes of celebrity, scandal, and corruption in Chicago during the Jazz Age.[3] The film stars an ensemble cast led by Renée Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Richard Gere. Chicago centers on Roxie Hart (Zellweger) and Velma Kelly (Zeta-Jones), two murderers who find themselves in jail together awaiting trial in 1920s Chicago. Roxie, a housewife, and Velma, a vaudevillian, fight for the fame that will keep them from the gallows. The film marks the feature directorial debut of Rob Marshall, who also choreographed the film, and was adapted by screenwriter Bill Condon, with music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb.
Chicago received critical acclaim, with particular praise for the performances of the cast. The film went on to win six Academy Awards in 2003, including Best Picture, making it the first musical to win Best Picture since Oliver! in 1968.[4] For her performance, Zeta-Jones won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, the British Academy Film Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, and the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Supporting Actress.[5] Zellweger won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy or Musical, and Gere won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. Chicago was the tenth-highest-grossing film of the year domestically in the United States.
In 1924, housewife Roxie Hart watches vaudeville star Velma Kelly perform ("Overture/All That Jazz") at The Onyx, a Chicago nightclub. Seeking stardom, Roxie begins an affair with furniture salesman Fred Casely, who claims to know the manager. After the show, Velma is arrested for killing her husband and sister upon catching them in bed together. A month later, Casely admits to Roxie that he lied about his connections in order to sleep with her. Enraged, she shoots him dead. She convinces her gullible husband, Amos, to take the fall by telling him she killed a burglar in self-defense. However, when evidence of Roxie's infidelity is uncovered, Amos recants and tells the police that Casely was dead when he arrived home ("Funny Honey"). Roxie is arrested, with District Attorney Martin Harrison declaring she faces execution by hanging.
At Cook County Jail, Roxie is sent to Murderess' Row, supervised by the corrupt Matron "Mama" Morton ("When You're Good to Mama"). She learns the backstories of the other women there, including her idol Velma ("Cell Block Tango"), who rebuffs her attempts at friendship. On Morton's advice, Roxie engages Velma's lawyer, the brilliant Billy Flynn ("All I Care About"). Flynn and Roxie manipulate the press, reinventing Roxie as an originally virtuous Southern woman corrupted by the city's decadent nightlife; she claims that she had the affair with Casely because Amos was always working, but repented and left Casely for Amos, and Casely jealously attacked her ("We Both Reached for the Gun"). The press believe the story; praised by the public as a tragic heroine, Roxie becomes an overnight sensation ("Roxie"). Velma, unhappy at losing the public's attention, tries to convince Roxie to join her act, replacing her murdered sister ("I Can't Do It Alone"), but Roxie, now the more popular of the two rivals, snubs her.
Meanwhile, when wealthy heiress Kitty Baxter is arrested for murdering her husband and his two mistresses, the press and Flynn instantly shift their focus to her. To Velma's surprise, Roxie quickly regains the spotlight by claiming pregnancy. Amos is ignored by the press ("Mister Cellophane"), and Flynn, to generate more sympathy for Roxie, convinces him that the child is Casely's, and that he should divorce Roxie in the midst of her predicament. Roxie decides to fire Flynn, believing she can now win on her own. However, when Katalin Helinszki, a Hungarian woman on Murderess' Row (the only inmate who insists on her own innocence), becomes the first woman in Cook County history to be executed by hanging, Roxie realizes the gravity of the situation and rehires Flynn.
Roxie's trial begins, and Flynn turns it into a media spectacle ("Razzle Dazzle") with the help of sensationalist newspaper reporters and radio personality Mary Sunshine. Flynn discredits witnesses, manipulates evidence and even stages a public reconciliation between Amos and Roxie when she claims the child is his. The trial seems to be going well for Roxie until Velma appears with Roxie's diary, reading incriminating entries in exchange for amnesty in her own case. Flynn discredits the diary, implying that Harrison was the one who planted the evidence ("A Tap Dance"). Roxie is acquitted, but her fame is eclipsed moments later when another woman, who had also shot her own husband, shoots her lawyer outside the courthouse. Flynn admits to Roxie that he tampered with her diary himself, in order to incriminate the DA and also free two clients simultaneously. Amos remains loyal and excited to be a father, but Roxie cruelly reveals that she faked her pregnancy.
Roxie continues to pursue a vaudeville career, with limited success ("Nowadays"). The similarly unsuccessful Velma reapproaches Roxie to suggest performing together as a double act consisting of two murderers. Roxie initially refuses, but later accepts when Velma points out that they can perform together despite their mutual resentment. The two stage a spectacular performance ("Nowadays/Hot Honey Rag"), receiving a standing ovation from an enthusiastic audience that includes Flynn, Morton, the jurors, and other acquitted murderesses.
The film is based on the 1975 Broadway musical of the same name, which ran for 936 performances but was not well received by audiences, partly because of its cynical tone.[8] A film adaptation of Chicago was to have been the next project for Bob Fosse,[9] who had directed and choreographed the original 1975 Broadway production and had won an Oscar for his direction of the film version of Cabaret (1972). Although he died before realizing his version, Fosse's distinctive jazz choreography style is evident throughout the 2002 film, and he is thanked in the credits. The minimalist 1996 revival of the musical proved far more successful, having played more than 10,601 performances (as of December 3, 2023), holding records for longest-running musical revival, longest-running American musical on Broadway and second longest-running show in Broadway history. Its runaway success sparked a greater appreciation of the 1975 original production and renewed stalled interest in a long-anticipated film, which incorporates the influences of both productions.[10]
The original production's musical numbers were staged as vaudeville acts; the film respects this but presents them as cutaway scenes in the mind of the Roxie character, while scenes in "real life" are filmed with a hard-edged grittiness.[11] The musical itself was based on a 1926 Broadway play by Maurine Dallas Watkins, a journalist who had found her inspiration in two real-life Chicago trials she had covered for the press, about two real-life Jazz-era murderers Beulah Annan (Roxie Hart) and Belva Gaertner (Velma Kelly). The George Abbott-directed production, starring Francine Larrimore and Juliette Crosby, ran for 172 performances at the Music Box Theatre, and within a year was adapted to a film, in which Gaertner herself had a cameo. Chicago was produced by American companies Miramax Films and The Producers Circle in association with the German company Kallis Productions. Roxie Hart, also known as Chicago or Chicago Gal, is a 1942 American comedy film directed by William A. Wellman and starring Ginger Rogers, Adolphe Menjou and George Montgomery. The film is an adaptation of the 1926 play.
Principal photography took place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The courthouse scene was shot in Osgoode Hall. Other scenes were shot at Queen's Park, the former Gooderham and Worts Distillery, Casa Loma, the Elgin Theatre, Union Station, the Canada Life Building, the Danforth Music Hall, and the Old City Hall.[12] [13]
See main article: Chicago: Music from the Miramax Motion Picture. Several songs from the musical's original score were cut from the film, primarily due to the musical numbers being figments of Roxie's imagination. "Tap Dance", "A Little Bit of Good", "I Can't Do It Alone" (reprise), "My Own Best Friend", "I Know a Girl", "Me and My Baby" and "When Velma Takes the Stand" were removed, and "Class", while filmed and recorded for the soundtrack album, is a deleted scene on the DVD, as well as present as part of an "extended version" from the film's 2005 broadcast premiere on NBC. An instrumental of "Me and My Baby" can be heard in its spot, where Roxie enjoys the renewed fame after claiming she's pregnant.
Chicago was released by Buena Vista Home Entertainment (under the Miramax Home Entertainment banner) on DVD in Region 1 (USA, Canada, and US territories) on August 19, 2003. It was released in Full Screen and Widescreen. In addition to this release, a two-disc "Razzle Dazzle" Edition was released over two years later on December 20, 2005, and later, on Blu-ray format, in January 2007 and, in an updated release, in May 2011. The release provides a feature-length audio commentary track with director Marshall and screenwriter Condon. There is also a deleted musical number called "Class", performed by Zeta-Jones and Queen Latifah.
Chicago grossed $170,687,518 in the United States and Canada, as well as $136,089,214 in other territories.[14] Combined, the film grossed $306,776,732 worldwide,[14] which was, at the time, the highest gross of any film never to reach #1 or #2 in the weekly box office charts in the North American markets (Canada and United States—where it peaked at #3). Worldwide, Chicago was the highest grossing live action musical with $306 million, a record that was then broken by Mamma Mia!.[15]
On review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, Chicago holds an 86% approval rating, based on 262 reviews, with an average rating of 8/10. The site's critics consensus states: "A rousing and energetic adaptation of the Broadway musical, Chicago succeeds on the level of pure spectacle, but provides a surprising level of depth and humor as well."[16] On Metacritic, the film holds a weighted average score of 81 out of 100, based on 39 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[17] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.[18]
The cast received widespread acclaim for their performances. Tim Robey, reviewer for The Daily Telegraph, labeled Chicago "the best screen musical for 30 years". He also stated that it has taken a "three-step tango for us to welcome back the movie musical as a form". Robey also wrote "this particular Chicago makes the most prolific use it possibly can out of one specific advantage the cinema has over the stage when it comes to song and dance: it's a sustained celebration of parallel montage".[19] Roger Ebert gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, calling it "big, brassy fun".[20] However, other reviews claimed that there were issues with the film being too streamlined, and minor complaints were made about Marshall's directing influences.[21]
| Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Academy Awards | Best Picture | Martin Richards | [22] | ||
| Best Director | Rob Marshall | ||||
| Best Actress | Renée Zellweger | ||||
| Best Supporting Actor | John C. Reilly | ||||
| Best Supporting Actress | Queen Latifah | ||||
| Catherine Zeta-Jones | |||||
| Best Adapted Screenplay | Bill Condon | ||||
| Best Art Direction | Art Direction: John Myhre; Set Decoration: Gordon Sim | ||||
| Best Cinematography | Dion Beebe | ||||
| Best Costume Design | Colleen Atwood | ||||
| Best Film Editing | Martin Walsh | ||||
| Best Original Song | "I Move On" Music by John Kander; Lyrics by Fred Ebb | ||||
| Best Sound | Michael Minkler, Dominick Tavella, and David Lee | ||||
| AARP Movies for Grownups Awards | Best Breakaway Performance | Richard Gere | [23] | ||
| Amanda Awards | Best Foreign Feature Film | Rob Marshall | |||
| American Choreography Awards | Outstanding Achievement in Feature Film | Rob Marshall, John DeLuca, Cynthia Onrubia, Joey Pizzi, and Denise Faye | |||
| American Cinema Editors Awards | Best Edited Feature Film – Comedy or Musical | Martin Walsh | |||
| American Film Institute Awards | Top 10 Films | ||||
| Art Directors Guild Awards | Excellence in Production Design for a Period or Fantasy Film | John Myhre | [24] | ||
| BET Awards | Best Actress | Queen Latifah | |||
| Black Reel Awards | Outstanding Supporting Actress | Queen Latifah | [25] | ||
| BMI Film & TV Awards | Film Music Award | Danny Elfman | |||
| Boston Society of Film Critics Awards | Best Supporting Actor | John C. Reilly | [26] | ||
| Best Supporting Actress | Catherine Zeta-Jones | ||||
| British Academy Film Awards | Best Film | Martin Richards | [27] | ||
| Best Direction | Rob Marshall | ||||
| Best Actress in a Leading Role | Renée Zellweger | ||||
| Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Queen Latifah | ||||
| Catherine Zeta-Jones | |||||
| Best Cinematography | Dion Beebe | ||||
| Best Costume Design | Colleen Atwood | ||||
| Best Editing | Martin Walsh | ||||
| Best Make-Up and Hair | Judi Cooper-Sealy | ||||
| Best Original Film Music | Danny Elfman | ||||
| Best Production Design | John Myhre | ||||
| Best Sound | Michael Minkler, David Lee, and Dominick Tavella | ||||
| British Society of Cinematographers Awards | Best Cinematography in a Theatrical Feature Film | Dion Beebe | [28] | ||
| Canadian Network of Makeup Artists Awards | Best Make-Up Artist for a Feature Film | Jordan Samuel | |||
| Best Hairstyling for a Feature Film | Judi Cooper-Sealy | ||||
| Central Ohio Film Critics Association Awards | Best Supporting Actor | John C. Reilly | [29] | ||
| Chicago Film Critics Association Awards | Best Actress | Renée Zellweger | [30] | ||
| Cinema Audio Society Awards | Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for Motion Pictures | Michael Minkler, Dominick Tavella, and David Lee | [31] | ||
| Costume Designers Guild Awards | Excellence in Period/Fantasy Film | Colleen Atwood | [32] | ||
| Critics' Choice Awards | Best Picture | [33] | |||
| Best Supporting Actress | Catherine Zeta-Jones | ||||
| Best Cast | |||||
| Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Awards | Best Film | ||||
| Top 10 Films | |||||
| David di Donatello Awards | Best Foreign Film | Rob Marshall | |||
| Directors Guild of America Awards | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures | Rob Marshall | [34] | ||
| Edgar Allan Poe Awards | Best Motion Picture | Bill Condon | [35] | ||
| Evening Standard British Film Awards | Best Actress | Catherine Zeta-Jones | |||
| Florida Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Song | "Cell Block Tango" | [36] | ||
| Gold Derby Film Awards | Best Motion Picture | Martin Richards | [37] | ||
| Best Director | Rob Marshall | ||||
| Best Actress | Renée Zellweger | ||||
| Best Supporting Actor | John C. Reilly | ||||
| Best Supporting Actress | Catherine Zeta-Jones | ||||
| Best Adapted Screenplay | Bill Condon | ||||
| Best Art Direction | John Myhre and Andrew M. Stearn | ||||
| Best Cinematography | Dion Beebe | ||||
| Best Costume Design | Colleen Atwood | ||||
| Best Film Editing | Martin Walsh | ||||
| Best Original Song | "I Move On" – John Kander and Fred Ebb | ||||
| Best Ensemble Cast | |||||
| Best Motion Picture of the Decade | |||||
| Best Supporting Actress of the Decade | Catherine Zeta-Jones | ||||
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | [38] | |||
| Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Richard Gere | ||||
| Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Renée Zellweger | ||||
| Catherine Zeta-Jones | |||||
| Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture | John C. Reilly | ||||
| Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture | Queen Latifah | ||||
| Best Director – Motion Picture | Rob Marshall | ||||
| Best Screenplay – Motion Picture | Bill Condon | ||||
| Golden Reel Awards | Best Sound Editing in a Musical Feature Film – Music | Annette Kudrak, E. Gedney Webb, Ellen Segal, Kenton Jakub, and Missy Cohen | [39] | ||
| Best Sound Editing in Domestic Features – Dialogue & ADR | Maurice Schell, Gina Alfano, Laura Civiello, Hal Levinsohn, and Louis Bertini | ||||
| Golden Schmoes Awards | Best Actress of the Year | Renée Zellweger | |||
| Best Supporting Actress of the Year | Catherine Zeta-Jones | ||||
| Best Music in a Movie | |||||
| Golden Trailer Awards | Best Music | ||||
| Grammy Awards | Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media | Chicago: Music from the Miramax Motion Picture Randy Spendlove, Ric Wake, and Dan Hetzel | [40] | ||
| Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media | "I Move On" – John Kander and Fred Ebb | ||||
| Japan Academy Film Prize | Outstanding Foreign Language Film | ||||
| Key Art Awards | Student Competition: Trailer | Chicago – Sarah Broshar | |||
| Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards | Best Actress | Renée Zellweger | [41] | ||
| Best Supporting Actor | John C. Reilly | ||||
| Makeup Artist and Hair Stylist Guild Awards | Best Period Makeup – Feature | Jordan Samuel, Patricia Keighran, and Edelgard K. Pfluegl | [42] | ||
| MTV Movie Awards | Best Female Performance | Queen Latifah | [43] | ||
| National Board of Review Awards | Top 10 Films | [44] | |||
| Best Directorial Debut | Rob Marshall | ||||
| New York Film Critics Circle Awards | Best First Film | [45] | |||
| New York Film Critics Online Awards | Best Film | [46] | |||
| Online Film & Television Association Awards | Best Motion Picture | Martin Richards and Harvey Weinstein | [47] | ||
| Best Director | Rob Marshall | ||||
| Best Actress | Renée Zellweger | ||||
| Best Supporting Actress | Catherine Zeta-Jones | ||||
| Best Adapted Screenplay | Bill Condon | ||||
| Best Cinematography | Dion Beebe | ||||
| Best Costume Design | Colleen Atwood | ||||
| Best Film Editing | Martin Walsh | ||||
| Best Original Song | "I Move On" | ||||
| Best Adapted Song | "All That Jazz" | ||||
| "Cell Block Tango" | |||||
| "Mr. Cellophane" | |||||
| "We Both Reached for the Gun" | |||||
| "When You're Good to Mama | |||||
| Best Production Design | John Myhre and Gordon Sim | ||||
| Best First Feature | Rob Marshall | ||||
| Best Casting | Ali Farrell and Laura Rosenthal | ||||
| Best Cinematic Moment | "Cell Block Tango" | ||||
| Best Ensemble | |||||
| Best Makeup | |||||
| Best Sound | |||||
| Online Film Critics Society Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Catherine Zeta-Jones | [48] | ||
| Best Costume Design | Colleen Atwood | ||||
| Best Editing | Martin Walsh | ||||
| Best Breakthrough Filmmaker | Rob Marshall | ||||
| Best Ensemble | |||||
| Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards | Best Picture | ||||
| Best Director | Rob Marshall | ||||
| Best Actress | Renée Zellweger | ||||
| Best Supporting Actress | Catherine Zeta-Jones | ||||
| Best Cinematography | Dion Beebe | ||||
| Best Costume Design | Colleen Atwood | ||||
| Best Film Editing | Martin Walsh | ||||
| Best Newcomer | Rob Marshall | ||||
| Best Acting Ensemble | |||||
| Producers Guild of America Awards | Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures | Martin Richards | [49] | ||
| Russian Guild of Film Critics Awards | Best Foreign Actor | Richard Gere | |||
| Best Foreign Actress | Renée Zellweger | ||||
| Satellite Awards | Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | [50] | |||
| Best Screenplay – Adapted | Bill Condon | ||||
| Best Original Song | "Love Is a Crime" | ||||
| Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture | Christine Baranski, Taye Diggs, Colm Feore, Richard Gere, Mýa, Lucy Liu, Queen Latifah, John C. Reilly, Renée Zellweger, and Catherine Zeta-Jones | [51] | ||
| Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role | Richard Gere | ||||
| Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role | Renée Zellweger | ||||
| Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role | Queen Latifah | ||||
| Catherine Zeta-Jones | |||||
| Southeastern Film Critics Association Awards | Best Picture | [52] | |||
| Teen Choice Awards | Choice Movie Actress – Drama/Action Adventure | Queen Latifah | |||
| Choice Movie Hissy Fit | Lucy Liu | ||||
| Choice Movie Liar | Renée Zellweger | ||||
| Choice Movie Villain | Richard Gere | ||||
| Choice Breakout Movie Star – Female | Queen Latifah | ||||
| Utah Film Critics Association Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Catherine Zeta-Jones | [53] | ||
| Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards | Best Director | Rob Marshall | [54] | ||
| Writers Guild of America Awards | Best Adapted Screenplay | Bill Condon | [55] | ||
Along with Moulin Rouge! (2001) and 8 Mile (2002), Chicago is often credited with ushering a re-emergence of the musical film genre in the 21st century.[56] Following the success of Chicago, many musical films have been produced for theatrical release, with several adapted from stage productions of Broadway and the West End, including Phantom of the Opera, The Producers, Rent, Dreamgirls, Hairspray, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Mamma Mia!, Nine, Les Misérables, Rock of Ages, The Last Five Years, Into the Woods, Cats, and more. The 2013 film Sunshine on Leith was also adapted from a stage production, originating with Scotland's Dundee Repertory Theatre.
Japanese rock band Buck-Tick named their 2010 album Razzle Dazzle after the film's song of the same name.[57]
Many of Chicagos cast and crew have gone on to work in succeeding musicals, including director Marshall (Nine, Into the Woods, Mary Poppins Returns, The Little Mermaid), writer Condon (writer-director of Dreamgirls, director of Beauty and the Beast, writer of The Greatest Showman), costume designer Atwood (Sweeney Todd, Nine, Into the Woods), and actresses Zeta-Jones (Rock of Ages), Latifah (Hairspray), and Baranski (Mamma Mia!, Into the Woods).