Director
Bob Fosse
Leading Actors/Actresses
Liza Minelli, Michael York
Supporting Actors/Actresses
Marisa Berenson, Fritz Wepper, Joel Grey
Genre
Musical
Language
English
Awards
Academy Awards - Best Actress : Liza Minelli, Best Supporting Actor - Joel Grey, Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction, Best Sound, Best Original Song Score & Adaptation, Best Film Editing
Date of Release
February 13th 1972
Producer
Cy Feuer
Setting and Context
Berlin, 1931, as the Nazi regime is starting to exert its stranglehold on Berlin
Narrator and Point of View
No specific narrator, story from the point of view of those whose lives will be devastated by the Nazi regime
Tone and Mood
Partly flamboyant and fun, partly threatening with the flamboyance and fun taking place against the backdrop of the growing threat of the rise of the Nazi regime
Protagonist and Antagonist
Sally and Brian are both protagonist and antagonist to each other
Major Conflict
There is a major conflict between Sally and Brian when both reveal that they have been sleeping with Max
Climax
At the end of the movie we see a row of Nazi officers in the front at the Kit Kat Klub, which suggests the end of the flamboyant and free lifestyle being enjoyed in Berlin
Foreshadowing
The rural biergarten scene shows just the face of a singing boy. He is singing seemingly innocuous lyrics (Tomorrow Belongs To Me) but as the camera pans back we see that he is wearing a brown Hitler Youth uniform, and the lyrics of the song he is singing take a darker perspective and overshadow what is shortly about to happen in Berlin as the National Socialist Party take power
Understatement
The danger presented by the Nazi regime is ever present but understated
Innovations in Filming or Lighting or Camera Techniques
no specific filming techniques or innovations
Allusions
The threat of the Hitler government is alluded to, but never named specifically. It is for the audience to draw a difference in the power of the uniformed characters as the movie progresses
Paradox
Fritz thinks that he is improving his life by admitting his ethnic heritage and marrying Natalia whereas in fact he would have been much safer continuing to pass as a Christian and protecting himself from the National Socialist regime
Parallelism
There is a parallel between Sally's relationship with and expectations of Max, and Brian's relationship and expectations of him, as well as a parallel between the way in which Max views both of them as expendable gigolos
