The Dolly Sisters
by Irving Cummings
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DVD details
Actor: Betty Grable, John Payne, June Haver, Reginald Gardiner, S.Z. SakallDirector: Irving Cummings
Brand: Fox
Cinematographer: Ernest Palmer
Editor: Barbara McLean
Producer: George Jessel
Writer: John Larkin
Writer: Marian Spitzer
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 1.0; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 1.0
Format: Color, DVD, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 114 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2006-06-13
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: 20th Century Fox
DVD Reviews of The Dolly Sisters
DVD Review: Musical Numbers & Grable Star Power Outweigh Uninspired Material
Summary: 3 Stars
20th Century Fox had an impressive track record with musicals during the 1930s and 1940s, turning out one box office smash after another--but for all their great popularity at the time they were not usually liked by the critics and most film historians tend to be dismissive of them even to this day. There is a reason for that: although they were well designed and well crafted, they were seldom innovative and they existed as star vehicles plain and simple, flyweight creations shot through with lots of American boosterism and jingoism and designed to show off a female star. And in the 1940s that star was Betty Grable.
Grable (1916-1973) knocked around Hollywood for a decade without gaining much attention--but after a stint on Broadway led to the popular 1940 movie DOWN ARGENTINE WAY she was suddenly 20th Century Fox's hottest property. It seems unlikely: she wasn't classically pretty, had a pleasant but not outstanding voice, and was a good rather than excellent dancer--and her acting chops were very limited. But she had that sparkle that can only be described as "star quality," and the public adored her. She became the single most bankable motion picture star of the 1940s.
The 1945 THE DOLLY SISTERS is typical of 20th Century Fox musicals. The story and script are merely serviceable; the production values are expert rather than innovative; the music and choreography are pleasant but not inspired. But absolutely everything about the film works to show case Grable at every possible turn. Everything revolves around the star from start to finish, and although she shares the screen with either June Haver or John Payne in every musical number, neither of them even come close to the status of co-stars. There is only one star in this movie, at that is Betty Grable. Everyone else is merely there for support.
The musical numbers are fun, but this is partly due to the way we look at them today as opposed to how they were received by audiences in 1945; seen today the two major production numbers, "Old Fashioned Girl" and "The Darktown Strutters Ball," are nothing short of screaming high camp, the former featuring a vanity case come to life and the latter a truly jaw-dropping minstrel show with showgirls in blackface and some of the most "do what?" costumes imaginable. Brace yourself for the girl with the watermelon muff and the woman with a stuffed cat on her head!
The musical numbers are fun, and when they come onto the stage the rather prefunctory lighting suddenly surges into brillance, setting off the wild array of color and shape to absolute perfection. But in truth, the musical numbers are only reason to watch THE DOLLY SISTERS, which is so incredibly flyweight that most viewers will find it hard to supress a yawn during the film's so-called "dramatic" moments. The DVD offers a very handsome print of the film, and a few extras--most notably an audio commentary by Drew Casper, whose comments are entertaining if a shade too uncritical for complete acceptance. Yes, I do recommend the movie, but only for 1940s musical fans and Grable fans in particular.
GFT, Amazon Reviewer
Description of The Dolly Sisters
Betty Grable and June Haver pour on the singing, dancing and show-biz razzmatazz in this jaunty tale of sisters who become vaudeville sensations in Europe and America.Grable, then in the fourth year of her decade-long reign as a Top 10 box office star, grabs the spotlight as Jenny, a gifted performer torn by career demands and by her on-again, off-again romance with a Tin Pan Alley tunesmith (John Payne). Laced throughout are songs (including the Oscar® -nominated "I Can't Begin to Tell You") and splashy production numbers that let the GI's favorite pinup girl show off her talents and the gams that Fox, in a noted publicity stunt, had insured for a million dollars.
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