Starring Liza Minnelli, Joel Grey, Michael York, Helmut Griem and Marisa Berenson
Screenplay by Jay Allen based on writings by Joe Masteroff, John Van Druten and Christopher Isherwood
Directed by Bob Fosse
US 1972
124 mins
The BFI is currently running a wonderful season of musicals in its Southbank theatres and re-releasing a number of pictures around the UK including 'Singing' In The Rain' and 'Tommy'.
Among the myriad artists they are celebrating is Bob Fosse - the brilliant maverick choreographer and director whose short but glittering cinema career includes 'Sweet Charity', 'Lennie' and 'All that Jazz'.
Fosse's most famous movie is 'Cabaret' - the 1972 masterpiece that made a superstar of Liza Minnelli and rebooted the musical - moving it from studio spectacular to grungy real life locations - blending 'divine decadence' with hard-hitting satire and glorious song and dance numbers.
Based on the experiences of writer Christopher Isherwood in pre-war Berlin and the play 'I Am A Camera' by John Van Druten - 'Cabaret' tells the tale of Sally Bowles, an exuberant ex-pat American performing in the sleazy Kit Kat Club and her tangled relationship with Brian Roberts - the shy British academic who becomes her neighbour, friend and lover.
Top drawer performances and Fosse's dynamic choreography and direction make for an iconic and unforgettable cinematic experience - the comings and goings at the Kit Kat all conducted against the ominous backdrop of the creeping Nazi tide. One scene where a young boy sings 'Tomorrow Belongs To Me' is chilling and horribly relevant in our current times.
You may have seen it before but this modern classic never disappoints...
