|
SWEET CHARITY opens in New York. Directed by Bob Fosse. Adapted from Fosse's hit Broadway musical by Peter Stone. Lavish reinterpretation of Fellini’s 1957 film Le Notti di Cabiria, Fosse's directorial debut stars Shirley MacLaine as Charity Hope Valentine, an irrepressable, hopelessly romantic, nightclub taxi dancer who spends her down time away from the glitz and footlights wistfully reflecting on her ongoing seduced and abandoned love life. Despite the sheer, choreographed-to-perfection exuberance of the Cy Coleman and Dorothy Fields-penned show tunes (notably Hey, Big Spender and The Rhythm of Life), which MacLaine, Chita Rivera and a hippie, trippy Sammy Davis Jr. belt out in show-stopping profusion, the film is a box-office failure. An alternate ending is a featured extra on the DVD release.
