Post by klep on Sept 24, 2018 6:58:10 GMT -6
MOVIE OF THE WEEK for 9/24: Cabaret
MUSICALS WEEK!
The most important message of Cabaret is almost entirely relegated to the background for most of the film.
Set in Berlin during the Weimar Republic, Cabaret ostensibly follows the relationship drama around ambitious cabaret performer Sally Bowles (Liza Minelli). Sally has dreams of movie stardom, but whether because she overestimates her own abilities or the likelihood of being 'discovered' in the club she seems to be stuck where she is. She meets a boy who's new in town (Michael York as Brian Roberts), and after a false start or two they ignite a passionate romance. Eventually a young baron Maximillian (Helmut Griem) intrudes on the romance - creating titillation and jealousy on the part of both Sally and Brian - before leaving the scene. The fallout from their love triangle ultimately shatters the ideas of a relationship Sally and Brian had built in their minds, and they part ways.
But while this all goes on in the permissive pocket of Berlin society surrounding the cabaret, something dark is going on in the background. We see it first in the bouncing of a brownshirt from the club. It's a feel-good moment, we laugh at the asshole being kicked to the curb. But after some time passes, more frivolity in the club is jarringly crosscut with that same brownshirt and his friends brutally beating the bouncer outside. The message is clear - The Nazis are here, and cannot be ignored.
But life at and around the cabaret goes on like nothing is wrong. The problem is ignored or dismissed as they while the days away. Maximillian even suggests that the Nazis are useful idiots - they'll get rid of communists and then will be expelled in turn. But they keep popping up, in greater numbers, greater brazenness, and greater acceptance. Before long it even intrudes into their circle, with Sally's landlord spouting anti-Semitic garbage and a number at the club equating a gorilla with a Jew.
When Cabaret starts, the club is a joyous, carefree place - somewhere you could get away from your troubles for a while. It starts with the Master of Ceremonies (Joel Grey) welcoming us with a bright and cheery song. The film also ends with that song, but this time it's discordant. Upsetting. And the camera pans to show the many brownshirts in the crowd. The cabaret used to be a place to escape, now it is a place of denial. Pretending the fascists didn't exist was fun, but only until it wasn't.
OUR NEXT MOVIE OF THE WEEK for 10/1: Some Like It Hot
ALWAYS THE BRIDESMAID WEEK!
At long last next week we'll be covering the Billy Wilder comedy classic Some Like It Hot with Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon, and of course Marilyn Monroe. Some Like It Hot is available for rent from Amazon Video, though it is not free for Prime members, and it is also available on Filmstruck's Criterion channel.
The NEXT PICTURE SHOW PODCAST is taking a break due to TIFF.
MUSICALS WEEK!
The most important message of Cabaret is almost entirely relegated to the background for most of the film.
Set in Berlin during the Weimar Republic, Cabaret ostensibly follows the relationship drama around ambitious cabaret performer Sally Bowles (Liza Minelli). Sally has dreams of movie stardom, but whether because she overestimates her own abilities or the likelihood of being 'discovered' in the club she seems to be stuck where she is. She meets a boy who's new in town (Michael York as Brian Roberts), and after a false start or two they ignite a passionate romance. Eventually a young baron Maximillian (Helmut Griem) intrudes on the romance - creating titillation and jealousy on the part of both Sally and Brian - before leaving the scene. The fallout from their love triangle ultimately shatters the ideas of a relationship Sally and Brian had built in their minds, and they part ways.
But while this all goes on in the permissive pocket of Berlin society surrounding the cabaret, something dark is going on in the background. We see it first in the bouncing of a brownshirt from the club. It's a feel-good moment, we laugh at the asshole being kicked to the curb. But after some time passes, more frivolity in the club is jarringly crosscut with that same brownshirt and his friends brutally beating the bouncer outside. The message is clear - The Nazis are here, and cannot be ignored.
But life at and around the cabaret goes on like nothing is wrong. The problem is ignored or dismissed as they while the days away. Maximillian even suggests that the Nazis are useful idiots - they'll get rid of communists and then will be expelled in turn. But they keep popping up, in greater numbers, greater brazenness, and greater acceptance. Before long it even intrudes into their circle, with Sally's landlord spouting anti-Semitic garbage and a number at the club equating a gorilla with a Jew.
When Cabaret starts, the club is a joyous, carefree place - somewhere you could get away from your troubles for a while. It starts with the Master of Ceremonies (Joel Grey) welcoming us with a bright and cheery song. The film also ends with that song, but this time it's discordant. Upsetting. And the camera pans to show the many brownshirts in the crowd. The cabaret used to be a place to escape, now it is a place of denial. Pretending the fascists didn't exist was fun, but only until it wasn't.
OUR NEXT MOVIE OF THE WEEK for 10/1: Some Like It Hot
ALWAYS THE BRIDESMAID WEEK!
At long last next week we'll be covering the Billy Wilder comedy classic Some Like It Hot with Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon, and of course Marilyn Monroe. Some Like It Hot is available for rent from Amazon Video, though it is not free for Prime members, and it is also available on Filmstruck's Criterion channel.
The NEXT PICTURE SHOW PODCAST is taking a break due to TIFF.