Isherwood Wasn’t Pleased With the Film
Christopher Isherwood, writer of The Berlin Stories, upon which the original 1966 musical was based, criticized the film due to what he saw as a negative portrayal of homosexuality. He said that the film treated homosexuality as a kind of “comic weakness… like bed-wetting”. Isherwood’s friend, Jean Ross, who was the basis for the character of Sally Bowles, had an indifferent view of the film.
Liza Minnelli and Joel Grey in ‘Cabaret,’ 1972. Photo by Moviestore Collection / Shutterstock
She said that it wasn’t particularly realistic for the most part but did praise certain elements of the film. She and poet Stephen Spender, a member of Isherwood’s social circle, both agreed that the film painted a much more glamorous picture of Weimar Berlin when compared to the poverty-stricken place they had known.