movie musicals – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN – Review by Susan Granger

October 15, 2025October 20, 2025 Susan Granger Bill Condon, Bruno Bichir, Diego Luna, eli roth, jennifer lopez, Joe Crombie, Kiss of the Spider Woman, movie musicals, Tonatiuh

Winner of seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Kiss of the Spider Woman, based on Manuel Puig’s 1976 novel, delves into the complex relationship between two prisoners incarcerated in a cellblock in Buenos Aires, Argentina, circa 1983. Adaptors Eli Roth & Joe Crombie with director Bill Condon (Dreamgirls, Gods and Monsters) have discarded much of the deliberate calculation between the two disparate inmates in favor of sentimentality – skewing the focus on sultry, slinky Jennifer Lopez who vamps it up in full ‘diva’ mode in exuberant, elaborately staged musical numbers.

Reviews

INTO THE WOODS – Review by Susan Granger

December 4, 2014August 9, 2024 Susan Granger 0 Comments anna kendrick, emily blunt, into the woods, meryl streep, movie musicals

Based on the Brothers Grimm’s cautionary tales, James Lapine/Stephen Sondheim’s insightful, slyly comedic, 1987 Broadway musical has been cleverly mounted by Rob Marshall (“Chicago”). Dare I say it’s even better than the stage version? Why? Since Stephen Sondheim’s intricate music and tongue-twisting lyrics are extraordinarily demanding, on-stage, some inevitably get garbled. Whereas, on-screen, everything is crystal-clear.