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Review

Never having given a truly tantalizing performance on-screen despite having a superstar profile, Madonna finally hits the big time in the movies. She gives an extremely capable performance as Argentina's first lady Eva Peron in this big, splashy, well-crafted adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical.

Though Parker's direction sometimes teeters on overkill, he has staged some knockout musical sequences. Closely following the stage show, the story follows the rise of Eva Duarte from poor beginnings to stardom as a (second-rate) actress to becoming her country's first lady and sometime spiritual voice. Webber acknowledges Eva's status as a controversial figure, but straddles the fence in political terms. Still, the music is his best.

The real surprise is Banderas, who is splendid in both voice and performance as the story's narrator and social conscience.

However, it's Maddie's show all the way, and the icon more than lives up to the task. (How many of you can do the tango while 6 months pregnant and not let on?) For both her performance and sheer persistence (she lobbied for years to snag the role) Madonna received the Golden Globe for Best Performance by a Lead Actress (Musical or Comedy). Take that, naysayers.