All That Jazz

[fajrdrako]

Yesterday I watched (on DVD) the wonderful movie, "All That Jazz", from 1979.

I'd seen it when it first came out. I'd remembered snatches: most of all I remembered its superb quality, the combination of style and depth, a musical with bite.

It's autobiographical: choreographer Bob Fosse wrote it after he had a heart attack. It's an overview of his life from the perspective of his death. Putting it that way makes it sound less clever than it is.... Let me try again.

All brilliant creative artists are crazy: it goes with the territory. The artist in this case is Joe Gideon, a successful Broadway choreographer, who is working obasessively on a new show while juggling his relationships with his ex-wife, his beloved but often-ignored young daughter, his current steady girlfriend, a few girls in the chorus he's finding time to sleep with, his producers, and - Death: a beautiful, serene woman in white who is helping him to contemplate his life. I wondered if this Death had any influence on Neil Gaiman's personification of death, though of course his Death, though female, wears black and is perky rather than serene.

I love everything in this movie: the spectacular dance numbers, the pacing, juxtaposition of humour and tragedy, the non-judgemental examination of the cruelty of genius and the demands of creation. Between drugs and drink and work and sex, Joe Gideon drives himself to death: conclusions are left for the viewer to make. Is the price of being a genius worth it, or not?

We discussed the theme a little afterwards. maboroshimaki thought the movie might be Bob Fosse's apology for his life. I didn't see apology: I saw explanation - "This is my life. This is how it looked from my point of view." He isn't easy on himself, but he isn't excoriating, either.

Rod Scheider's performance is wonderful. I was also most impressed with young Erzsebet Foldi, who plays his young daughter Michelle. It seems this was the only movie she ever made.

Comments

[velvetglove.livejournal.com]

It's possibly my favorite movie ever, and the first thing I can recall seeing that veered gleefully away from a "happy" ending.

And, yay! I'm glad the DVD is finally out!

"This is my life. This is how it looked from my point of view." He isn't easy on himself, but he isn't excoriating, either.

And while there are obviously things fictional Bob misses out on, things he will always miss out on, I've always felt that the movie does make the point that he's made choices, and would make the same ones over again if he had the chance.

I agree about Ms. Foldi's performance, and over the years I've done searches from time to time to see what else she's done, stage or screen, but they always come up empty.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

the first thing I can recall seeing that veered gleefully away from a "happy" ending.

Yes, and it had too - if Joe Gideon didn't die, there would be no point to it. I can't help thinking of Dylan Thomas' "rage against the dying of the light".

Yes, at *last* the DVD is out.

Yes, he would make the same choices again, even knowing some of them were bad. He lived life on his own terms - which was the only way he could.

Amazing that Erzebet Foldi just disappeared like that, when she was so good here. I wonder why.

[mei-x.livejournal.com]

*surfed in from my FriendsFriends view*

I just wanted to say that I too love All That Jazz. The Death in this movie is beautiful and welcoming to Joe Gideon, because he was always pushing himself towards it. And I agree that this movie wasn't an apology for Fosse's life, but merely a reflection -- showing the good with the bad.

Definitely one of my all-time favorites.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

You know, it's great to know such movies are out there - the ones that are just excellent on numerous levels, however you look at them.

If I hadn't been so tired last night I would have talked more about how the depth of perception in this movie, and the amazing cinematography and choreography, make most movies of today look bland and unimaginative - not to mention lacking in sophistication and intelligence, and afraid of talking about real psychological issues.

[jkluge.livejournal.com]

A marvelous movie -- I've loved it for years, but haven't watched my tape of it in a while. Gotta hunt that up . . . .

While there is no apology in the movie, certainly I do feel there's some natural regret for the more peaceful road not taken. I also agree, though, that Joe Gideon could take no other road.

And, on another post I never got back to answering, yes, I do love your accent. It has just a hint of Scottish . . . well, not brogue, exactly, nothing so strong as that . . . but a hint. *g* It's lovely. Marcelle once explained where your accent hails from, but, of course I've forgotten.

[terdrako.livejournal.com]

I agree: Joe Gideon had many regrets, and the movie is an examination of the price of genius - a difficult life for many people, including himself.

My accent: big grin. Always a mystery. I grew up in Ottawa, which was largely settled (at first) by the Irish and the Scots, and maybe I picked that up and exaggerated it a bit. Not consciously. I have a poor ear for accents and pronunciation in general: the result is I've developed a sort of distinctive accent that sounds a little unusual to everyone. In Scotland, they thought I sounded English. In England, they thought I sounded Irish. Mostly it's Canadian with a bit of a difference.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Just noted how odd it was that the LJ replied here from my other account because I was using the 'c' drive at work - that's kind of cool! I use Terdrako, Aerdrako and Fajrdrako, but mostly Fajrdrako.