Giannina Posted December 30, 2006 Share Posted December 30, 2006 I got a gazillion ballet/dance DVD’s for Christmas and I’m starting to wend my way thru them. Today I watched “Liza with a ‘Z’”. I saw this when it was originally telecast 34 years ago and loved it then; I was thrilled when it was released on a DVD format. Let me preface this review by saying that”Caberet” is one of my favorite movies, and I think the MOST perfect moment in all of movie history is Liza Minnelli and Joel Grey singing “Money Money Money” in “Caberet”. When “Liza With a ‘Z’” was telecast I feel that Liza Minnelli was at her peak. In trying to recapture/repeat that peak she has lost the appeal she had for me. I recently saw her in a straight dramatic role on “Law and Order” and she was wonderful. OK; the DVD. I cried with joy thru most of it. “I Gotcha” is a blend of jazzy music and Fosse choreography, and I’ve found little to beat it. It is soooo Fosse. What spoiled it on the DVD was the jumping camera. It would have been so much better to have that camera pointed center front and STAY THERE. Audience applause mid-dance didn’t help one single bit. None the less it’s hard to beat for a soul-jolting moment of music and dance in perfect harmony. Over the 34 years since its telecast the song/dance “Ring Them Bells” has stayed with me; seeing it again 34 years later didn’t disappoint. This was a show of Fosse choreography rather than recreated Fosse choreography which never seems to measue up. After the2nd segment the show slowed down and calmed down. Still lovely but not something that continually raised me out of my chair. There are “bonus features”, none of which I enjoyed. I highly recommend this DVD to all Minnelli/Fosse fans. Ring Them Bells!! Giannina Link to comment
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