Original “Chicago” shines on DVD

By Christopher P. Jacobs
Staff Writer

Even though the high-definition BluRay disc is well on its way to establishing itself as the home video format of choice, production costs are still high enough that a substantial number of movies continue to be released only in the DVD format, especially when it’s a smaller company putting them out.

Such is the case with this summer’s excellent DVD release by Flicker Alley of the rare original Cecil B. DeMille film version of “Chicago,” a great comparison to double-feature with the Oscar-winning 2002 musical remake (which is already on BluRay as well as DVD). Fargo-Moorhead audiences had the fortunate opportunity to see this silent screen adaptation of the darkly satiric 1926 stage play at MSUM’s Summer Cinema Series.

Now it’s available for all to see on DVD in a strikingly beautiful high-definition transfer directly from a 35mm nitrate print that we can only hope will make it to BluRay eventually so we can see even more of the fine textures that are visible even in this standard-def edition. The DVD includes a newly recorded music score by the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra, compiled from authentic period movie music. Orchestra members even add sporadic sound effects, such as alarm clocks, car horns, and the sexy jingle bells on Roxie’s garter.

DeMille’s 1927 incarnation of “Chicago” stars Phyllis Haver as death-row murderess Roxie Hart, whose lawyer (played by Robert Edeson) charges her a huge sum of money to get her a highly publicized trial and acquittal. The Velma character (Julia Faye) is less prominent. The action centers more around Roxie and her husband Amos (Victor Varconi), who breaks into the lawyer’s safe to steal back the money. Memorable character actor Eugene Pallette plays Casely, the lover she murders. There’s also a subplot with a housemaid (Virginia Bradford) not in other retellings of the story.

Haver was noted for light and sassy romantic comedies, and gets in some nice bits here, but her Roxie is actually harder-edged than either Ginger Rogers or Reneé Zellweger in the two remakes. Roxie is not intended to be a glamorized character by any means, and does not come off that way, as she does in the 1942 and 2002 versions.

This “Chicago” came out just one year after the original stage play and was actually filmed during the period that the story is set. This gives it a more authentic contemporary “current events” flavor than either of the remakes, both of which tend to look back quaintly at the “roaring 20s.” That was the decade when Prohibition made committing federal offenses the not-particularly-secret hobby of average Americans. It gave rise to high-profile organized crime, transforming criminals into celebrities, with the news media capitalizing on any sensational crime or scandal they could find to build their circulations. This is what the play and original movie were reacting against. Although the recent musical captured this theme nicely, its flashy spectacle couldn’t help but give it the some of that same glamour it was satirizing.

The “Chicago” disc includes a photo gallery of well over 200 production stills from the film and newspaper articles about the stage play, as well as a featurette about the real “Roxie Hart” and the original murder trial. It would have been nice to have an audio commentary track, but there is another disc with two worthwhile bonus films.

One of the best bonus features in this two-DVD set is a 64-minute documentary called “The Golden Twenties,” made in 1950 as part of a March of Time series, and incorporating numerous newsreel clips while various voice-over commentators describe the significance of the era’s politics, sports, culture, and entertainment. While a bit softer in picture quality than “Chicago,” these old newsreels still look amazingly good, much clearer than in most documentaries.

The second DVD also includes an award-winning student-made documentary from 1985 called “The Flapper Story.” This half-hour film (made on 16mm) combines interviews with women who grew up in the 1920s with numerous film and music clips illustrating the era. In addition, there’s a well-produced 16-page illustrated booklet that helps make up for the lack of a commentary track. It includes an article on the court case and its inspiration on the playwright who covered it while she was a newspaper reporter, an article on the film itself and why it was likely directed as well as produced by DeMille, and an article on the creation of this new music score.

Flicker Alley’s DVD-only release of the original 1927 “Chicago” should be a must-buy for any fans of the 2002 movie or the stage musical. CHICAGO (1927) on DVD: Movie: A / Video: A+ / Audio: A / Extras: A-

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