The Dark Side of Fame

Fame has a short attention span. One day, almost everyone around the world is talking about you, and the next day you are left in the shadows of the next shining star. In Chicago, this is highlighted in an exaggerated manner. In the last viewing of the film today, it started out with Roxie's trial. Her lawyer, Billy Flynn, only cared about money, but he also said that his clients never lose their court cases. This held true when Roxie was proclaimed innocent. Normally, being given an innocent verdict is pretty exciting, but this was no so for Roxie. She wasn't directly upset that she had won the case, but she was upset that now, everything was over, and this included her fame. Chicago was "done" with her, readjusting its focus on another woman, who had walked out of the courtroom with a gun in her hand, shooting several people. I immediately had a flashback to when Roxie had shot her husband, and when the imprisoned women told their stories of why they murdered their husbands as well. I thought "these women are crazy", because who in the right mind walks down the steps of the courtroom shooting people in broad daylight?

Now that this next woman was under the spotlight, Roxie's fan base had flocked away yet again. How would she get it back this time? Velma Kelly was the answer to her dilemma. But at first, Roxie was so hesitant to work with her, saying "I hate you", while giving her a sassy facial gesture. If that were me, I would've felt the same way, because Velma was rude to Roxie earlier on in the film when she had still been famous. At that time, Roxie was struggling to become famous, and Velma didn't even attempt to help her. But now she expects Roxie's help? That's ridiculous, and I'm glad Roxie didn't continue to let Velma use and abuse her. But here's the thing: despite the hostility between them, they both needed each other. Neither of them were famous anymore, and it would be very hard for Velma or Roxie to become solo performers. So, why not perform a duet?

In an exciting finish, Roxie and Velma brought a beautifully balanced amount of energy to the stage. As I was watching it, I couldn't help but notice their amazing dance moves, and I thought to myself that it must have taken some serious choreography and practice to pull this off. Both of them danced nearly identically; it was great.

Regardless of the well-executed performances throughout this film, I couldn't help but frown upon the way fame works. While Chicago may be a movie, many aspects of it are strikingly realistic. In real life, there are countless cases when celebrities (Justin Bieber anyone??) commit a crime or, in simple terms, do something stupid in order to regain their former glory. That's how the system works: people tend to prefer the negatives over the positives, especially the Media. Chicago brings up the fact that this cycle of fame is nothing new, it has existed for nearly a century, if not longer. To me it's ridiculous, but it's not going to stop any time soon.