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‘A strangely forceful hold on me’: why Burlesque is my feelgood movie

The latest in a series of writers on their go-to comfort movies is a look back to the camp pleasures of Cher and Christina Aguilera together at last

As for the car crash part, I was initially disappointed, then increasingly delighted, that it was assembled with wit and sincerity and genuine Hollywood nous, that its songcraft and choreography and visual design were all shinily on point, that Antin could stage a musical number with more snap, dazzle and pop than many of his more prestigious peers. Its story is a slender slip of a thing – equally flimsy when centered on poxy romance or corporate skulduggery, though on the latter front, it did educate a generation of real-estate naifs about the possibilities of air rights. Most importantly of all, however, it sets the stage for a series of escalatingly hilarious face-offs between Aguilera’s callow ingenue and Cher’s careworn but unwaveringly fabulous club owner – with the older, Oscar-winning star handed each one on a diamante platter.

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