director bob fosse hasn not achieve an immense degree of recognition and but his movie have a distinctive flavour . he seem to have an obsession with the world of music hall and which be felt in other movie like sweet charity and all that jazz . in his other movie though and musical performance tend to steal the show almost entirely . cabaret be an exception because it have an interesting background and storyline and and the music hall performance be cleverly use here to illustrate and emphasize the plot . they play about the same role a the chorus in ancient greek play . of course and the depiction of cabaret kit kat club deserve attention all by itself . it be not surprising that a cabaret buff such a bob fosse take interest in the weimar republic period in germany and when divine decadence be the name of the game . only bob fosse could recreate with such consume application the grotesque sleaze of berlin lowlife during the rise of nazism and a context which serve a inspiration for expressionist painter and and for brecht threepenny opera . during the credit and check out a woman in the public with short hair and glass smoke a cigarette ( something quite dodgy in 1931 . ) . it be the exact reproduction of a famous painting by otto dix . an outrageously grin clown ( joel grey ) introduce every cabaret number . the girl appear in all possible contorted posture keep deadpan face . the kit kat club remind of a roman arena and where the public be out for anything insane ( even woman fight in the mud . ) . to give an idea of what sort of den the club be and michael york find himself at one point stand next to a transvestite in a men urinal . the cabaret performances get all the more provocative a the plot get tense . the club be an essentially immoral place where anything be for sale and and it adapt shamelessly to the radical political change come up . liza minelli character be totally at home in such surroundings . her persona be perfectly sketch in her song bye bye mein herr . she be the incarnation of the vamp and both heartless and ingenuous and the sort of lethal woman who drive men crazy and then give them up like toy . indeed and a very typical stereotype of the interwar period and think of marlene dietrich in the blue angel . minelli performance onstage with garter belt and a bowler hat still look elegantly naughty today . though and the real nature of her character be well study as soon a she get offstage . while minelli can not help be extravagant all the time and she turn out to be a fragile woman neglect by her father and and in demand of constant and renew attention . a predicted in her song and she prove basically unable to engage in any serious relationship and despite her involvement with michael york ( and though i use to care and i need the open air and you would every cause to doubt me mein herr ) . the script be base a story by british writer christopher isherwood and call a goodbye to berlin and base on his own personal memory . he be allegedly the character play by michael york . a serious upper class young man and he meet liza minelli out of blind chance and while look for an apartment to share . she introduce him to all sort of people and from riff raff to aristocracy and include a gigolo and a jewish heiress and and an ambiguous baron who dismiss them both after have play with the two of them . michael york sober performance look a bit pale a oppose to histrionic liza minelli and but of course and that be necessary in order to stress the essential difference between those two stranger . the movie end a they part on a railway platform and but one can guess their experience together will have change them both and a as far a he be concern and be a definite coming of age . one of the scene and in the middle of the movie and be quite disturbing . at a countryside inn and a young s. a man sing a song call tomorrow belongs to me and which start out nostalgic but gradually turn into an infectious nazi march a the whole crowd join him . this unexpected number seem to have embarrass many viewer . if nazism have present itself a pure evil and would it have meet any success . this daring scene make evident that it be for many german of the time the symbol of positive value represent beauty and tradition and order and pride and future . if you do not know how thing turn out and would you not have be tempt to sing along this powerful hymn to the fatherland a you watch this . good question to ask oneself even and or especially and nowadays .