"Show me your Burlesque".

Rating: 8/10 (3 December 2011)

First of all; I didn't know what to expect from this feature. I hoped it would be fun to watch at least. Normally I would discard the idea of watching a movie featuring singers in the leads.
But I was pleasantly surprised to say the least.
As a whole, the film was beautifully shot, the costumes, set decors were all wonderful. Christina Aguilera was never prettier than in this picture.
Concerning Aguilera, I was blown away by her acting (not implying it was Oscar worthy), for the simple, fresh and down-to-earth character, she put out there. She was believable as this nice country girl destined for bigger things - if you know Aguilera's life story, you know what I mean. And she pulled it off to a 't'.
Also a nice refreshing thing this movie did, in my opinion: were the core values it expressed. Although show business, and especially burlesque dancing, have a way of being over-the-top sexy and sometimes promiscuous. A typical story in that setting could have had more sleazy behavior, sleeping around, back-stabbing and such. But no. Even the antagonists had a way of being somewhat nice and apologetic in their own ways.
The clichéd rivalry has a place in this, but although being a cliché in itself it never becomes cliché as itself. You would expect dangerous backstabbing. It never happens like that.
At the end there even is a little plot twist, concerning the fate of the club. It's a semi twist. But it works.
Although I am enthusiastic and glad to have seen this, there is a huge plot hole, I was concerned with. Halfway through the movie Ali saves the show by beginning to sing. It's pretty clear that the mics aren't working, it being a playback show. But still there are mics on stage. So if we forget this one hole, there is an immediate second hole. As if she has a hidden portable mic she is singing, passing the mics to the front of the stage, being completely audible for everyone present. Which isn't plausible.
That said, I had a truly great time watching this. It certainly the best in it's genre (a musical romantic drama).
Certainly worth your time, if you like this sort of thing.