Aug 21, 2018
On today's show, we have another musical entry for the Flixwise Favorites List. This time UW-Madison Media and Cultural Studies graduate student, Austin Morris, is pitching Steve Antin's 2010 cultural artifact, Burlesque for inclusion in our little pantheon. In order for Burlesque to make the cut, Austin must convince host, Lady P, and our guest panelist Assistant Professor and Reverse Shot film critic, Matt Connolly, that this cinematic oddity is one of the greatest films of all time.
All three panelists agree that Burlesque features some questionable aesthetic and narrative choices, however, they all agree that the film's flaws only deepen their appreciation. While the film's weakness are multitude it does have a number of superlative elements - the primary one being that it provides a sufficiently shiny platform for one of the world's most indelible pop icons to sing and vamp for two hours. Much as we love Xtina, we are of course referring to the Cher, who swoops in and claims our affections like they're Hollywood Hills "air rights."
Obviously, a sizable portion of the episode is devoted to Cher-ing thoughts on the Mamma Mia 2 star, but the panel does eventually take time to highlight some of the other standout performances, including Stanley Tucci's turn as Sean, and the dog-whistling presence of Alan Rickman. Plus, they delve into various queer readings of the text, which includes comparisons to other notorious backstage dramas, All About Eve and Showgirls, and talk about whether Burlesque's value as camp classic should translate to greater recognition in mainstream canons.