Film / Musical Drama
Superb!Cabaret is a 1972 American musical drama film directed by Bob Fosse. Starring: Liza Minnelli, Michael York, and Joel Grey.
The film is set in Berlin during the 1931 Weimar Republic, under the presence of the growing Nazi Party. The musical numbers all take place inside the club, with one exception: "Tomorrow Belongs to Me", the only song sung neither by Grey's character of the Kit Kat Klub's Master of Ceremonies nor by Minnelli's character of Sally Bowles.
Liza Minnelli and Joel Grey sing medley from Cabaret
Main Cast:
- Liza Minnelli as Sally Bowles
- Michael York as Brian Roberts
- Helmut Griem as Baron Maximilian von Heune
- Joel Grey as Master of Ceremonies
- Fritz Wepper as Fritz Wendel
- Marisa Berenson as Natalia Landauer
Brief Plot Summary:
In Berlin in 1931, American cabaret singer Sally Bowles (Liza Minnelli) who performs at the Kit Kat Club meets British reserved academic and writer Brian Roberts (Michael York), who is finishing his university studies. Despite Brian's confusion over his sexuality, the pair become lovers, but the arrival of the wealthy and decadent playboy Maximilian von Heune (Helmut Griem) complicates matters for them both. This love triangle plays out against the rise of the Nazi party and the collapse of the Weimar Republic.
A subplot concerns Fritz Wendel, a German Jew passing as a Protestant, who is in love with Natalia Landauer, a wealthy German Jewish heiress who holds him in contempt and suspects his motives. Through Brian, Sally advises him to be more aggressive, which eventually enables Fritz to win Landauer's love. However, to gain her parents' consent for their marriage, Fritz must reveal his religion; the two are married by a rabbi.
The rise of fascism is an ever-present undercurrent throughout the film, tracked through the characters' changing actions and attitudes. While in the beginning of the film, a Nazi is expelled from the Kit Kat Klub, the final shot of the film shows the cabaret's audience dominated by uniformed Nazis. The rise of the Nazis is also demonstrated in a rural beer garden scene. A blonde boy sings to an audience of all ages ("Tomorrow Belongs to Me") about the beauties of nature and youth. It is revealed that the boy is wearing a Hitler Youth uniform.
Trivia:
Cabaret brought Liza Minnelli, the daughter of Judy Garland and Vincente Minnelli, her own first chance to sing on screen. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress. With Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actor (Joel Grey), Best Director (Bob Fosse), Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction, Best Sound, Best Original Song Score and Adaptation, and Best Film Editing, Cabaret holds the record for most Oscars earned by a film not honored for Best Picture. It is listed as number 367 on Empire’s 500 greatest films of all time. Cabaret opened to glowing reviews and strong box office. It also won Best Picture citations from the National Board of Review and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, and took Best Supporting Actor honors for Grey from the National Board of Review, the Hollywood Foreign Press, and the National Society of Film Critics. In 1995, Cabaret was the ninth live-action musical film selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
Video Credit:
Money Makes the World Go Round, with Liza Minelli and Joel Grey. From Cabaret. YouTube uploaded by zeitdiebemagazin. Accessed August 13, 2023.
Image Credit:
Original movie poster for Cabaret. en.wikipedia.org/wiki.
Resources:
Cabaret (1972 Film) DVD (Tel's personal copy)
Cabaret (1972 Film). en.wikipedia.org
(c) December 2016. Updated August 13, 2023. Tel. Inspired Pen Web. All rights reserved.
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