Funny Girl (film) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search Funny Girl Post-Oscar release poster Directed by William Wyler Produced by Ray Stark Written by Isobel Lennart Based on Funny Girl 1964 musical by Isobel Lennart Jule Styne Bob Merrill Starring Barbra Streisand Omar Sharif Kay Medford Music by Jule Styne (Music) Bob Merrill (Lyrics) Cinematography Harry Stradling, Sr. Edited by William Sands Maury Winetrobe Production company Rastar Distributed by Columbia Pictures Release dates September 19, 1968 (1968-09-19) Running time 149 minutes (Original release)[1] 155 minutes (2002 re-release)[2] Country United States Language English Budget $14.1 million Box office $58,500,000[3] Funny Girl is a 1968 romantic musical film directed by William Wyler. The screenplay by Isobel Lennart was adapted from her book for the stage musical of the same title. It is loosely based on the life and career of Broadway and film star and comedienne Fanny Brice and her stormy relationship with entrepreneur and gambler Nicky Arnstein. The film was produced by Brices son-in-law, Ray Stark. The score is by Bob Merrill (lyrics) and Jule Styne (music). Barbra Streisand, reprising her Broadway role, shared the Academy Award for Best Actress with Katharine Hepburn for The Lion in Winter. In 2006, the American Film Institute ranked the film #16 on its list commemorating AFIs Greatest Movie Musicals. Previously it had ranked the film #41 in its 2002 list of 100 Years ... 100 Passions, the songs People and Dont Rain on My Parade at #13 and #46, respectively, in its 2004 list of 100 Years ... 100 Songs, and the line Hello, gorgeous at #81 in its 2005 list of 100 Years ... 100 Movie Quotes. Contents [hide] 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Musical numbers 4 Soundtrack 5 Production 6 Sequel 7 Hello, gorgeous 8 Jewish representation 9 Critical reception 10 Awards and nominations 11 Home media 12 References 13 External links Plot[edit]Set in and around New York City just prior to and following World War I, the story opens with Ziegfeld Follies star Fanny Brice (Barbra Streisand) awaiting the return of husband Nicky Arnstein (Omar Sharif) from prison, and then moves into an extended flashback focusing on their meeting and marriage. Fanny is first seen as a stage-struck teenager who gets her first job in vaudeville and meets the suave Arnstein following her debut performance. They continue to meet occasionally over the years, becoming more romantically involved as Fannys career flourishes and she becomes a star. Arnstein eventually seduces Fanny, who decides to abandon the Follies to be with Nicky. After winning a fortune playing poker while traveling aboard the RMS Berengaria, Nicky agrees to marry Fanny. They move into an expensive house and have a daughter, and Fanny eventually returns to Ziegfeld and the Follies. Meanwhile, Nickys various business ventures fail, forcing them to move into an apartment. Refusing financial support from his wife, he becomes involved in a bonds scam and is imprisoned for embezzlement for eighteen months. Following Nicks release from prison, he and Fanny briefly reunite long enough to agree to separate. Cast[edit]Barbra Streisand as Fanny Brice Omar Sharif as Nick Arnstein Kay Medford as Rose Brice Anne Francis as Georgia James Walter Pidgeon as Florenz Ziegfeld Lee Allen as Eddie Ryan Mae Questel as Mrs. Strakosh Gerald Mohr as Branca Frank Faylen as Keeney Tommy Rall (uncredited) as the Prince who partnered Barbra Streisand in the Swan Lake ballet parody Chris Cranston (uncredited) as Ziegfeld girl Musical numbers[edit]1.Overture 2.If a Girl Isnt Pretty - Fanny, Rose, Mrs. Strakosh 3.Im the Greatest Star - Fanny 4.Rollerskate Rag - Fanny, Rollerskate Girls 5.Id Rather Be Blue Over You (Than Happy With Somebody Else) - Fanny 6.Second Hand Rose - Fanny 7.His Love Makes Me Beautiful - Fanny, Follies Ensemble 8.People - Fanny 9.You Are Woman, I Am Man - Nick, Fanny 10.Dont Rain on My Parade - Fanny 11.Entracte 12.Sadie, Sadie - Fanny, Nick 13.The Swan - Fanny 14.Funny Girl - Fanny 15.My Man - Fanny 16.Exit Music Although originally released on her 1964 album People, the song People was re-recorded for the movie with a different tempo and additional lyrics. In the 1985 book Barbra Streisand: The Woman, the Myth, the Music by Shaun Considine, composer Jule Styne revealed he was unhappy with the orchestrations for the film. They were going for pop arrangements, he recalled. They dropped eight songs from the Broadway show and we were asked to write some new ones. They didn’t want to go with success. It was the old-fashioned MGM Hollywood way of doing a musical. They always change things to their way of vision, and they always do it wrong. But, of all my musicals they screwed up, Funny Girl came out the best.[4] Because the songs My Man, Second Hand Rose, and I’d Rather Be Blue frequently were performed by the real Brice during her career, they were interpolated into the Styne-Merrill score. Soundtrack[edit] 1968 Original Motion Picture Soundtrack album coverReleased on the vinyl album format in stereo in 1968, the soundtrack was subsequently released in quadraphonic sound vinyl, cassette, and compact disc. The titles Second Hand Rose and Exit Music are omitted from the commercially-released soundtrack editions. Production[edit]Isobel Lennart originally wrote Funny Girl as a screenplay for a drama film entitled My Man for producer Ray Stark, but when he offered it to Mary Martin, she suggested it might work better as a stage musical. Lennart consequently adapted her script for what eventually became a successful Broadway production starring Barbra Streisand.[5] Although she had not made any films, Streisand was Starks first and only choice to portray Brice onscreen. I just felt she was too much a part of Fanny, and Fanny was too much a part of Barbra to have it go to someone else, he said, but Columbia Pictures executives wanted Shirley MacLaine in the role instead. MacLaine and Streisand were good friends and shared a birthday; both actresses rolled their eyes at the idea. Stark insisted if Streisand were not cast, he would not allow a film to be made, and the studio agreed to his demand.[4] Mike Nichols, George Roy Hill, and Gene Kelly were considered to direct the film before Sidney Lumet was signed. After working on pre-production for six months, he left the project due to creative differences and was replaced by William Wyler, whose long and illustrious award-winning career never had included a musical film; he originally was assigned to direct The Sound of Music. Wyler initially declined Starks offer because he was concerned his significant hearing loss would affect his ability to work on a musical. After giving it some thought, he told Stark, If Beethoven could write his Eroica Symphony, then William Wyler can do a musical.[4] Streisand had never heard of Wyler, and when she was told he had won the Academy Award for Best Director for Ben-Hur, she commented, Chariots! How is he with people, like women? Is he any good with actresses? As for Wyler, he said, I wouldn’t have done the picture without her. Her enthusiasm reminded him of Bette Davis, and he felt she represented a challenge for me because she’s never been in films, and she’s not the usual glamour girl.[4] In the films finale, Streisand sings My Man, a tune closely associated with Fanny BriceStyne wanted Frank Sinatra for the role of Nick Arnstein, but the actor was willing to appear in the film only if the role was expanded and new songs were added for the character. Stark thought Sinatra was too old and preferred someone with more class like Cary Grant, even though Grant was eleven years older than Sinatra.[5] Marlon Brando, Gregory Peck, Sean Connery, David Janssen, and James Garner were also considered. Egyptian Omar Sharif was cast to star opposite the Jewish Streisand after Wyler noticed him having lunch in the studio commissary. When the Six-Day War between Israel and Egypt broke out, studio executives considered replacing Sharif, but both Wyler and Streisand threatened to quit if they did. Later, the publication of a still depicting a love scene between Fanny and Nick in the Egyptian press prompted a movement to revoke Sharifs citizenship. When asked about the controversy, Streisand replied, You think the Egyptians are angry? You should see the letter I got from my Aunt Rose![4] Anne Francis was cast in a new role as the lead chorine in the Ziegfield Funnies.[6] Choreographer Herbert Ross, who staged the musical numbers, had worked with Streisand in I Can Get It for You Wholesale, her Broadway debut.[4] Principal photography began in August 1967 and was completed by December.[7] During pre-recording of the songs, Streisand had demanded extensive retakes until she was satisfied with them, and on the set she continued to display her perfectionist nature, frequently arguing with Wyler about costumes and photography. She allegedly had so many of her scenes with Anne Francis cut before the films release that Francis sued to have her name removed from the credits, but lost.[4] Streisand later claimed she never told Wyler to cut anything & the final film reflected his choices, not hers. Francis later said I have no feud with Barbra. But doing that film was like Gaslight. What infuriated me was the way they did things - never telling me, never talking to me, just cutting. I think they were afraid that if they were nice to me, Barbra would have been upset.[8] Sequel[edit]In 1975, Streisand reprised her role of Brice opposite James Caan as Brices second husband, impresario Billy Rose, in a sequel entitled Funny Lady. Hello, gorgeous[edit]Hello, gorgeous are the first words uttered by Streisand in the film. After winning the Academy Award for Best Actress, Streisands first comment when handed the Oscar statuette was Hello, gorgeous. Since the release of the film, Hello, gorgeous has been referenced in several films. The line appeared as the name of Michelle Pfeiffers salon in Married to the Mob. The line was also uttered by the character Max Bialystock in the film and Broadway show The Producers, but the inflection used by Zero Mostel in the 1968 film is different from that used by Streisand in Funny Girl. The line is also regularly peppered through popular culture. In 2005, the line was chosen as #81 on the American Film Institute list, AFIs 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes.[9] Jewish representation[edit]In her book Talking Back: Images of Jewish Women in American Popular Culture, Joyce Antler writes that Streisand has created several rich images of a Jewish woman within film, Funny Girl being one of them. In Funny Girl, Antler writes, Streisand is able to portray a character that is obviously Jewish, and in this role she creates a space for the intelligent Jewish woman to be depicted. When Barbra Streisand appeared in Funny Girl in 1968, for the first time, a Jewish woman was on screen with Jewish features, a Jewish name and Jewish mannerisms. In this role the Jewish woman was presented as smart, comedic, beautiful and talented.[10] Critical reception[edit]In his review in Chicago Sun-Times, Roger Ebert called Streisand magnificent and added, She has the best timing since Mae West, and is more fun to watch than anyone since the young Katharine Hepburn. She doesnt actually sing a song at all; she acts it. She does things with her hands and face that are simply individual; thats the only way to describe them. They havent been done before. She sings, and youre really happy youre there. But he thought the film itself is perhaps the ultimate example of the roadshow musical gone overboard. It is over-produced, over-photographed and over-long. The second half drags badly. The supporting characters are generally wooden . . . That makes the movie itself kind of schizo. It is impossible to praise Miss Streisand too highly; hard to find much to praise about the rest of the film.[11] Variety said Streisand makes a marked impact and continued, The saga of the tragi-comedienne Fanny Brice of the ungainly mien and manner, charmed by the suave card-sharp Nick Arnstein, is perhaps of familiar pattern, but it is to the credit of all concerned that it plays so convincingly.[12] David Parkinson of the film monthly Empire rated the film four out of five stars and called it one of those films where it doesnt really matter what gets written here - you will have made your mind up about Babs one way or the other, but for the rare uninitiated, this is a fine introduction to her talents.[13] The film currently holds a 92% Fresh rating on review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes, with the consensus stating [Barbra] Streisand elevates this otherwise rote melodramatic musical with her ultra-memorable star turn as Fanny Brice.[14] Awards and nominations[edit]In addition to Streisands Oscar win as Best Actress, the film was nominated in the categories of Best Picture, Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Medford, Best Cinematography for Stradling, Jr., Best Film Editing for Sands and Winetrobe, Best Scoring of a Musical Picture for Walter Scharf, Best Original Song for the title tune by Styne and Merrill, and Best Sound.[15] Funny Girl, along with Columbia Pictures other Best Picture nominee and eventual winner Oliver! secured a combined total of 19 nominations; the most nominations for musicals from one studio in a year. Both of which were the only musical films of 1968 that achieved the same level of terrific enthusiasm and acclaim from critics and audiences as other big musicals of the 1960s.[citation needed] Streisand won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, and nominations went to the film, Wyler, and Styne and Merrill for the title song. Streisand was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role, and nominations went to Stradling for Best Cinematography and Irene Sharaff for Best Costume Design. Lennart won the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Written American Musical, and Wyler was nominated for the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing - Feature Film. Home media[edit]The film was released on Region 1 DVD on October 23, 2001. It is in anamorphic widescreen format with audio tracks in English and French and subtitles in English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Georgian, Chinese, and Thai. Bonus features include Barbra in Movieland and This Is Streisand, production information, and cast filmographies. The Blu-ray edition made its world debut on April 30, 2013 with the same bonus material as the DVD release. The Blu-ray release was also concurrent with Streisands most recent film, The Guilt Trip. References[edit]1.Jump up ^ FUNNY GIRL (U). British Board of Film Classification. 1968-10-03. Retrieved 2012-11-17. 2.Jump up ^ FUNNY GIRL (U). British Board of Film Classification. 2002-01-03. Retrieved 2012-11-17. 3.Jump up ^ Funny Girl, Box Office Information. The Numbers. Retrieved 2012-01-09. 4.^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g Funny Girl (1968) - Overview. TCM. Turner Broadcasting System. Retrieved 2014-10-23. 5.^ Jump up to: a b Taylor, Theodore, Jule: The Story of Composer Jule Styne. New York: Random House 1979. ISBN 0-394-41296-6, pp. 226-249 6.Jump up ^ Scott, Vernon (1967-08-25). Honey West now in Funny Girl. The News-Dispatch. Retrieved 2013-10-14. 7.Jump up ^ Barbra Streisand archives 8.Jump up ^ Kleiner, Dick (1968-11-27). Knotts Goes Romantic. The Sumter Daily Item. Retrieved 2013-10-14. 9.Jump up ^ AFIS 100 Greatest Movie Quotes of All Time. American Film Institute. Retrieved 2014-10-23. 10.Jump up ^ Antler, Joyce (1998). Talking Back: Images of Jewish Women in American Popular Culture. University Press of New England. pp. 10, 77, 172. 11.Jump up ^ Chicago Sun-Times review 12.Jump up ^ Variety review 13.Jump up ^ Empire review 14.Jump up ^ Funny Girl at Rotten Tomatoes 15.Jump up ^ The 41st Academy Awards | 1969. Oscars.org | Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. Retrieved 2014-10-23. External links[edit] Wikimedia Commons has media related to Funny Girl (film). Wikiquote has quotations related to: Funny Girl (film) Funny Girl at the Internet Movie Database Funny Girl at AllMovie Funny Girl at the TCM Movie Database Funny Girl at Box Office Mojo Funny Girl at Rotten Tomatoes Funny Girl at Metacritic [hide]v · t · eFilms directed by William Wyler Straight Shootin (1927) · Anybody Here Seen Kelly? (1928) · The Shakedown (1929) · Hells Heroes (1930) · A House Divided (1931) · Tom Brown of Culver (1932) · Counsellor at Law (1933) · Glamour (1934) · The Good Fairy (1935) · The Gay Deception (1935) · These Three (1936) · Dodsworth (1936) · Come and Get It (1936) · Dead End (1937) · Jezebel (1938) · Wuthering Heights (1939) · The Westerner (1940) · The Letter (1940) · The Little Foxes (1941) · Mrs. Miniver (1942) · Memphis Belle: A Story of a Flying Fortress (1944) · The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) · Thunderbolt! (1947) · The Heiress (1949) · Detective Story (1951) · Carrie (1952) · Roman Holiday (1953) · The Desperate Hours (1955) · Friendly Persuasion (1956) · The Big Country (1958) · Ben-Hur (1959) · The Childrens Hour (1961) · The Collector (1965) · How to Steal a Million (1966) · Funny Girl (1968) · The Liberation of L.B. Jones (1970) Retrieved from en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Funny_Girl_(film)&oldid=630998289 Categories: 1968 filmsEnglish-language films1960s comedy-drama films1960s musical comedy films1960s romantic comedy filmsAmerican filmsAmerican biographical filmsAmerican comedy-drama filmsAmerican musical comedy filmsAmerican musical drama filmsAmerican romantic musical filmsFilms about entertainersFilms directed by William WylerFilms based on musicalsFilms featuring a Best Actress Academy Award winning performanceFilms featuring a Best Musical or Comedy Actress Golden Globe winning performanceFilms set in Baltimore, MarylandFilms set in New York CityFilms set in the 1910sFilms shot in New JerseyMusical films based on actual eventsColumbia Pictures filmsHidden categories: All film articles using the film date templateFilm articles using image size parameterAll articles with unsourced statementsArticles with unsourced statements from October 2014Commons category template with no category setCommons category with page title same as on Wikidata Navigation menuPersonal tools Create accountLog inNamespaces ArticleTalkVariantsViews ReadEditView historyMore Search Navigation Main page Contents Featured content Current events Random article Donate to Wikipedia Wikimedia Shop InteractionHelp About Wikipedia Community portal Recent changes Contact page ToolsWhat links here Related changes Upload file Special pages Permanent link Page information Wikidata item Cite this page Print/exportCreate a book Download as PDF Printable version Languagesالعربية Azərbaycanca Deutsch Ελληνικά Español Français Italiano עברית Nederlands 日本語 Polski Português Русский Suomi Svenska Edit linksThis page was last modified on 25 October 2014 at 00:09. 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