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| More than just a bagel on a plate full of onion rolls |
Biographies
are one of the most simple and celebrated genres in film. In a biography,
viewers can see an example of a person finding success, often against the odds,
with the comforting knowledge that the example is one founded in fact. Because
these films are based in reality, the emotions that they convey often affect
audiences in a way that is more profound than a fictionalized scenario could
accomplish. This accentuated emotion is only increased when such a film also
utilizes the power of song to tell its story. One such film is the 1968 musical
biography Funny Girl, which tells the
rags to riches story of vaudeville and radio star Fanny Brice, a woman whose
comedic talent, gumption, and perseverance made her an artist who was truly
ahead of her time.
The
story begins with comedic star Fanny Brice awaiting her husband’s return from a
two year prison sentence and depicts her reflecting upon the many ups and downs
that have brought her to this point in her life as she prepares for an upcoming
performance. Within minutes, the film launches into a flashback of a teenaged
Fanny setting out to audition at a local vaudeville show as a chorus girl
against the advice of her mother and friends. While her unconventional
looks and lack of dance experience hinder her success at the audition, her
stubborn persistence eventually wins her a spot in the line, and an improvised
performance cements her start as a stage success. While working as a chorus
girl, she makes a brief acquaintance with sophisticated gambler Nick Arnstein,
who provides her with both moral support and her first glimpse
of life beyond the confines of her vaudeville job and upbringing in the slums
of the lower east side. Fanny later reunites with Nick several years later
after her successful debut in the Ziegfeld Follies, and the two are on the
verge of beginning a romance when Nick leaves to participate in a high stakes
poker game on a ship bound for Europe. Heartbroken, Fanny throws herself into
her career only to meet Nick again one year later during one of her one night
engagements. Despite her best efforts to remain guarded, she and Nick finally
embark upon a romantic relationship and eventually marry. As time goes on,
however, Fanny’s career continues to flourish while Nick’s luck finally runs
out, forcing him into a secondary role in their relationship. Fanny’s efforts
to alleviate Nick’s despondence only cause the couple further trouble and
reiterate his dependence upon her, leading him to become involved in a bonds
scam that ultimately results in his imprisonment at the start of the film.
One
of the most effective aspects of Funny
Girl is its sense of realism. While many aspects of Fanny Brice’s life are
condensed or excluded in order to meet the film’s already lengthy running time,
the film excellently captures the struggles that she faced in her attempt to
balance her dual roles of wife and artist. Rather than limit the story’s focus
to Fanny’s rise, the film creates a truly three dimensional portrait of her
through its continuation into her later difficulties and persevering struggle
to pick up her life and begin again. Like many films, the script in Funny Girl,
does deviate from the facts of its protagonist’s story, including ignoring
Fanny’s first marriage and limiting Nick’s criminal activities to one moment of
desperation when in reality he had already served a prior sentence before their
marriage. Despite its inaccuracies, however, the film wisely focuses upon the
later struggles in Fanny’s career without trying to add more color to her early
life, even going so far as to include a scene in which teenage Fanny jokingly
says that she still hasn’t suffered enough to be a great artist. This lack of
sensationalism in the film’s first act allows the story to build until the
crisis in Fanny’s marriage that opens and closes the film, and makes the ensuing drama
more effective. Through its realistic, if not entirely accurate account of
Fanny Brice’s life and career, Funny Girl
tells a story that is both a sobering
account of marital strife and an inspiring tale of artistic and personal
triumph.
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| Hello gorgeous! |
While
the script's songs and inspiring story are compelling, neither would have made a
successful transition to screen without an equally compelling cast. In her
debut role, Barbra Streisand captures the quirkiness, determination, and inner
strength that marked Fanny Brice’s life and career in a way that brings the
1920’s stage star to the modern screen. After viewing just one reel of Streisand’s
performance, it is little wonder that the film’s producer, Brice’s real life
son in law Ray Stark, refused to make the film unless Streisand reprised her
Broadway role. Omar Sharif also provides an exemplary performance as Brice’s
sophisticated love interest turned tormented husband, and perfectly portrays the
toll that life as “Mr. Fanny Brice” takes upon Nick’s self esteem. The supporting cast
round out the film with multi-faceted and scene stealing turns from Walter
Pidgeon as the outwardly stern but inwardly sentimental Florenz Ziegfeld, and Kay
Medford as Fanny’s equal parts good hearted and street smart mother. Through
the combined talents of its cast, the film continues to transport viewers to
the distant glories of New York’s theater scene at the turn of the century and
the all too near difficulties of family and romantic relationships that remain
as complex today as when Fanny and Nick lived through them.
Despite
its title, Funny Girl is worth
watching for more than just a laugh. Through its winning combination of song
and subject matter, the film successfully makes the individual story of a turn
of the century entertainer into a universal tale of an artist's struggle for
personal and professional success. The film’s excellent cast carries the story
and makes its historical content both accessible and relevant to modern
audiences. For a parade that cannot be
rained on, look no further than Barbra Streisand's Oscar winning film debut in Funny
Girl.
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| Taking the Follies where no Zeigfeld girl has gone before |
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