Cast: Cher, Christina Aguilera, Stanley Tucci, Cam Gigandet
Direction: Steve Antin
Genre: Musical
Duration: 1 hour 40 minutes
Story: Ali (Christina Aguilera), a small town girl with big city dreams, throws off her waitress' attire and hops onto a bus from Iowa to Los Angeles. It doesn't take her long to end up in the Burlesque Lounge, a dance bar that's fallen upon bad days. The owner, Tess (Cher) must find a new talent to fill up the empty chairs so that she can pay her mortgage and send back the land sharks who are ready to prey upon her. Her saviour? Ali, the horse-powered crooner who not only energises the song-dance ensemble but also manages to keep the Burlesque family together.
Movie Review: Watch it for Cher and Christina Aguilera. Between the two of them, they create magical mayhem with songs that have become itune anthems: Welcome to Burlesque, But I'm A Good Girl, You Haven't Seen the Last of Me, Express, Bound to You...numbers that remain with you long after curtain call. Watch it for the atmospherics. The Burlesque Lounge may be in sin city but it is innocent and pure, with its gentle peek-a-boo of skin in gossamer and its mildly suggestive gestures and lyrics. No dirty business here, for a bunch of bartenders and girls who merely want to make a decent living. And yes, they do marry the guy if they get pregnant. But most importantly, they live and fight like one big happy family which keeps its troubles to itself and fights back fiercely against a disruptive world.
It may have a predictable plot and a done-to-death drama, but Burlesque keeps you attentive with its colours, cadence and canvas. Not forgetting both Cher and Christina who perfectly slip into the shoes of the doyen and the diva.