Burlesque

            What is Burlesque? It’s the modern movie musical, a genre that I am happy to see becoming popular again. It’s about Aly from Iowa who decides to leave her small town and make it big in LA. As it is with all young performers, she finds it hard to find work until she finds the Burlesque Lounge on the famed Sunset Boulevard. There she meets Tess (Cher), her best friend Sean (Tucci) and a cute bartender named Jack.

            While I won’t get into the whole storyline just in case you want to see it for yourself, I will say that the production numbers make this a must see. I know the Hollywood foreign press giving a nomination to Burlesque puzzled some people, but after seeing this film I am not surprised. It has an okay storyline, it’s something we’ve seen before, but what makes this film surprisingly good? Christina Aguilera.

            At first I was a bit skeptic about Burlesque. Sure, Christina Aguilera is an awesome singer but can she act? Some of us did see Crossroads with Britney Spears and we all know that Mandy Moore has turned into a fine and successful actress. After seeing Burlesque, I am quite please with Xtina and look forward to seeing her in more projects. She didn’t look like she was trying to act, it just flowed naturally and totally believable as Aly. Plus, she belts out a number of songs and it gave her a safe place to make her feel comfortable.

            Cher, what can I say about Cher that hasn’t been said before? She has a number called Last of Me and it stops the show. It shows the vulnerability of the character of Tess, who is on the brink of losing it all. You can beat her with all the emotional abuse you want but you can’t keep a strong woman down. It’s the very essence of Cher.

            Now the bright spot of Burlesque is Stanley Tucci and I’m not saying this just because he has the same last name as my great-grandparents. He gives the advice, delivers the comic relief and is the glue that holds the cast together. He weaves in and out of all storylines. There is a reason he is Gary Marshalls’ go to guy in his movies.

            Now the important question, should I see this movie? Yes! Now you don’t have to go to the theatre to see it. It’s all right to wait for the DVD release but you should see it.  I don’t see this movie getting many more nominations at the Oscars, but it could pull some costume and of course original song nominations. But all in all a very good and surprising film.