Lucybespro It is a performances centric movie

LouHomey From my favorite movies..

ShangLuda Admirable film.

Lachlan Coulson This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

JohnHowardReid A joyous satire on political and judicial corruption, lovingly directed by "Wild Bill" Wellman from producer Nunnally Johnson's incisively re-worked, cleverly adapted script. The original 1927 play is not so much a comedy as an exaggerated melodrama. Johnson has added all the laughs and most of the satire. Wellman whips it along at a cracking pace. Despite the film's comparatively short running time, it's loaded to the limit with foolery and fun and such wonderfully inventive touches as the riddle of gun-fire over the montage of newspaper headlines; Menjou dis-arranging his hair before addressing the jury; the judge never missing a jump to have his photograph in the papers; Menjou spoiling for a fake fight, urgently asiding to the attendant, "Come on, Jake!"; Chandler rehearsing his lines and gestures - and that's naming but a paltry few of the highlights which are capped by the whole jail breaking into the "Black Bottom".It's often said that comedy was not Wellman's forte. What nonsense! Wellman is a superb farceur, whipping the plot and dialogue along frenziedly, getting terrifically off-beat performances from players normally stiff or stolid or nauseatingly sweet, tearing mileage from Ihnen's crowded sets and Shamroy's appealingly sharp camerawork. The dazzling choreography is the snappiest work Hermes Pan has ever done.All in all, Roxie Hart is one of the forties' fastest comedies. I'd rate it even funnier than His Girl Friday, which shares the same wide-open Chicago setting.

edwagreen At first it's hard to conceive of Ginger Rogers as a brunette, with a wad of gum in her mouth, talking like she came out of Brooklyn, New York. Nonetheless, you will get used to her and she gives quite an amazing performance as the damsel up on charges for murder.This movie is a tribute to sensationalism and that even accused murderers will do anything to keep themselves viable in the news.A year after her gut-wrenching Oscar nominated performance in the memorable "How Green Was My Valley," Sara Allgood is reduced and wasted in the role of Mrs. Morton. The part was greatly lengthened for Queen Latifah.Highlights include Ginger and George Montgomery dancing to the Rock Bottom. Sara and Spring Byington, as the lady reporter, Mary Sunshine, try to keep up with the tapping. Byington never looked younger than in this film.William Frawley looks like a younger Fred Mertz here and does some pretty good scene stealing as the bartender and juror member.

MartinHafer The film begins with a newspaper reporter lamenting that they don't make crimes like they used to. He then begins to tell the story of "Roxie Hart"--a woman accused of murder who was one of the last great murder stories in Chicago. Then, the story begins in earnest as the setting is now 1927. Roxie is a very low-class dame and whether or not she or her husband or a third party committed the crime is uncertain. But, since Roxie is apparently a total idiot, the newspaper reporters convince her to take the rap because it would make an interesting story (is anyone THAT dumb?!).Throughout the film, the men all act almost like the wolf in a Tex Avery cartoon--and apparently the fact that she may have killed someone is irrelevant. The guys just want to ogle her gams (that's "legs" in gangster lingo)! And, when the case comes to court, once again all the men in court are fixated on her extreme sex appeal (though I didn't get it--she wasn't THAT hot--just kind of low-class and slutty).While I understand that this comedy was the basis for the very popular play and film, CHICAGO, I couldn't understand what people saw in the movie that led them to want to remake it--especially since it had very few laughs. Much of this is due to the very grating and over-the-top performance by Ginger Rogers. This routine was supposed to be funny, but I just wanted her to stop talking as well as constantly chewing gum with a wide open mouth! The bottom line is that very, very, very broad acting and writing made this film look like distorted and one-dimensional caricatures, not people. A dreadful example of the "humor" in the film is the fight scene between Roxie and another prisoner--all accompanied with sound effects of cats fighting and hissing. Uggh!The bottom line is that I really hated this film since it was so annoying and ridiculous. If you want subtlety, believability or laughs, then I suggest you try some other film--ANY other film.UPDATE: Despite my despising "Roxie Hart", I did finally see the musical version of this film, "Chicago". I was surprised how good it was and how they actually had some great songs, acting and improved the story. It's well worth seeing, though I am shocked at one reviewer who said this 1942 movie is better than the 2003 Best Picture Oscar-winner, "Chicago". I just don't see this...

jimkis-1 Other reviewers have noted it too -- this film is a major disappointment, especially if you are a Ginger Rogers fan. Which I am. But that's not to say I don't recognize that not every film she made was a gem. Indeed, she made her share of turkeys. This is not quite a turkey but it comes close. The problem is the studio. 20th Century Fox did not have the flair for comedy MGM, Columbia, or Ginger's old haunt RKO, where she made all her wonderful films with Astaire. First off, Ginger is a little too old for the part. She was 31 or 32, had gained some weight since the Astaire years, and was in her brunette/black hair period -- which was far from attractive. The use of gauze over the camera lens is evident in all her closeups, because she just was no longer the radiant young thing she was in her 1930s films. Ginger could do screwball comedy, and in The Major and the Minor, directed by Billy Wilder -- who knew how to do a comedy -- she shines. Here, she and all the comedic talents in the cast, are wasted by (1)a lackluster script and (2)heavy-handed direction by a man who did better with drama than comedy. One comes to Roxie Hart expecting a lot, but it just isn't there, and the whole show is dragged down by George Montgomery's non-acting. The character actors try to save the film -- William Frawley and Phil Silvers were outstanding in other films and on TV. But here their efforts fall flat. I have read that Barbara Stanwyck was the first choice for Roxie but I doubt if she could have saved it. And the constraints of 1942 censorship rendered the whole story of "Chicago" so antiseptic it is a wonder it has any following at all. Finally, it is rumored this version is not the original 1942 release -- which reportedly featured much saucier dancing. Having said all that, I would still prefer to watch this over the obnoxious and somewhat repugnant film "Chicago" recently released on an unsuspecting public.