I was never a huge Barbra fan growing up. I know, it’s weird as I’m… basically Albert from “The Birdcage” trapped in an Asian woman’s body.
But I’ve been quite curious about her lately, and thank goodness for TCM’s 31 Days of Oscar! I’ve always wanted to see Funny Girl in its entirety, as I’ve always only managed to get to the part where Nicky shows up. Call it fate, because it sounds more dramatic that way, but I’ve never managed to finish the movie until recently.
Man, Ms. Streissand is cute.
My dad, film collector, is not a fan of Barbra Streissand. So while I had access to his vast collection of racist cowboy Lone Ranger series and every sexy Elvis film in the 60s, this little songbird always managed to slip from my grasp. I’d only have the luxury of seeing glimpses of her on TCM, if I were so lucky.
I think it’s because my dad always thought she was kind of frumpy, which was kind of her thing anyway. Especially in her later films.
I don’t think it was until I saw The Mirror Has Two Faces a couple of years ago that I began to really consider what this lady was about. Side note, I first saw The Mirror Has Two Faces way too young. Similar reaction (or lackthereof) to Love Story. It’s not disrespectful—kids are just idiots sometimes.
Oh, those days when Jeff Bridges still looked like this.
Anyway, Funny Girl. What a great film. I’m a sucker for large theatrical productions, so that’s already in the bag. Ziegfeld Follies weee! But the nice surprise was Omar Sharif. I’ve never seen him in anything else.
(No, I don’t want to watch Lawrence of Arabia right now.)
What a gent. Is it the accent? The moustache du jour? Well, a little bit. But you’ll see how being with Fanny, despite how much he loves her, becomes unbearable as they start drifting apart in each of their own careers/successes/failures. Oh, it’s SO SAD.
Aww...
But it’s just a simple story of what could happen when one person can’t keep up with the other. It’s not about how much you love a person, but the other garbage that comes along with it, like pride and success, and what other people expect from you. It’s so sweet, and I don’t think anyone could have done a better job than Barbra or Omar. It’s one of those films that cannot be remade, or should be, really.
The Glee renditions are painful enough. Let’s leave it at that.
Great songs, great comedy, lovely actors all around. And the very last song Fanny Brice sings, right after she sees Nicky again after eighteen months in prison. Oh, that’s love, alright. I was bawling like a fucking baby by the end of it.