Que le spectacle commence !

Une comédie musicale très provocatrice et aguicheuse sur le fait de profiter de la vie à fond en regard de la possibilité de mourir. Sur le processus de création et sa singularité. Sur une vanité sans limites. L’histoire que Bob Fosse nous raconte à l’écran est relativement sombre, mais il le fait d’une façon détachée et divertissante. Le film est soutenu par le jeu de l’acteur Roy Scheider, dont le directeur, sous le poids d’une vie tumultueuse et de lourdes charges de travail, se dirige vers sa propre perte. Peut-être était-ce intentionnel, mais la fin était trop longue à mon goût. Par ailleurs, je suis enchanté d’avoir pu voir ce film sur grand écran et profiter d’une expérience enrichie. [KVIFF 2018] (02/07/2018)

I was expecting a musical about how a musical is made, and I got the epitaph of a hurried man. I didn't catch Bob Fosse either with Cabaret and Lenny, so his multi-genre farewell caught me quite unprepared. It is not really a musical film in the true sense of the word, perhaps not even a drama, romance, or family film. It's actually a combination of everything intentionally wrapped in a knot of depression with extra points for editing that was ahead of its time. With such a subject, the whole experience could be melancholic, nostalgic, and maybe even tearful, if there was time for it. From beginning to end, there is constant strain in rehearsals and in the private lives, to the point that your T-shirt is soaked through with the burden of the somber themes. There are countless knives in the back from the screenplay, but that torn look of Roy Scheider, a man with big ones who knows how many times (and believe me, many times) he has failed, is deeply ingrained in me forever. (21/11/2020)

The filmography of Bob Fosse may not be filled with titles, but nevertheless, this creator is considered the main architect of modern American musical art of the second half of the 20th century. All That Jazz is his creative peak, where he managed to utilize decades of work on theater stages, and personal experiences with the artistic environment from an early age to exhausting tours and demanding mature age premieres when only another groundbreaking performance was expected from him. Everything is here - love, infidelity, marital breakdown, artistic compromises in eternal conflict with producers, stress, depression, alcohol and stimulant drugs, endless rehearsals, artistic searching, and constant doubts about his work and the work of others. Anyone who watches All That Jazz will have all the temptations that American musicals can offer - beautiful women, catchy melodies, amazing choreographies, but also espionage, kitsch, and musical clichés. This film provided Roy Scheider with a life-changing role, as he became the embodiment of the real Bob Fosse and gave a stunning performance. Unlike its older siblings from the 1930s-1950s, All That Jazz is much more exploratory and original. I think it is capable of captivating even a viewer to whom this genre otherwise means nothing. Overall impression: 95%. (03/09/2012)

An example of how a musical can be a powerful work that has an unconventional, dramatic story. Music and singing can express basically everything, even slow dying, which one actually causes oneself just by not being able to stop. Bob Fosse made a film about himself and prepared his own requiem, which makes "All That Jazz" even more powerful. Excellent Roy Scheider and especially unforgettable musical and dance moments. Even death can be beautiful and artistically magnificent under certain circumstances. And if not death, then at least farewell. (16/12/2013)

A painful moment of dying accompanied by captivating music that energizes, arranged in masterful choreography that takes your breath away. And Roy Scheider in the role of a lifetime, who seems not to be acting, but actually dying. The cinematography is magical, the editing flirts with genius, and the film shines as beautifully as only 1970s cinema can. A musical, a reflection of the times, a biography... two hours of a wasteful genre span, but which tells the entire story in an unspoiled way, to finally enter mercifully into the arms of the friendly Mrs. Death. (13/05/2007)