By Jonah Gray
“Guys and Dolls,” the 1955 musical film directed by Joseph Mankiewicz, opens on the bustling streets of New York City backed by an upbeat Broadway tune. Vibrant colors of mint green, cherry red, sky blue and buttery yellow paint the set, and men and women are wearing checkered patterns, pinstripes and polka dots.
Seeing as this is a musical, it’s only logical that these New Yorkers begin dancing through the streets. Quickly, we meet two gambling guys, Benny Southerstreet and Nicely-Nicely, played by Johnny Silver and Stubby Kaye, respectively. These cronies open with our first song, “Fugue for Tinhorns,” where they argue about which horse will be their best bet in the upcoming races.
Enter Nathan Detroit, played by Frank Sinatra. Detroit organizes the floating craps game for the sinners of NYC, and he’s been doing it since he was a “juvenile delinquent.” In fact, he’s got a song dedicated to him in “Guys and Dolls,” where the locals revere him as “good ol’ reliable Nathan.”
Detroit is faced with trouble — Lt. Brannigan is “putting on the heat.” The only place available for shooting craps will cost a $1000 security deposit, that’s over $12,000 in 2023! Detroit has “gotta have the game, or [he’ll] die of shame.” If that’s not enough stress already, showgirl Miss Adelaide, played by Vivian Blaine, is pressuring Detroit into marriage after only dating for 14 years — how can a guy illegally gamble if he’s tied down to a doll?
Under abundant stress, Detroit’s saving grace is spotted across the diner — Sky Masterson.
Masterson, played by Marlon Brando, is known for taking absurd bets, so Detroit tries to weasel a $1000 bet out of him. With their opposing views on whether or not any old doll will do, Detroit bet Masterson he can’t take uptight mission leader Sara Brown, played by Jean Simmons, to Havana, Cuba, for dinner. Sky takes the bait as Detroit thinks he’s made some easy money, but I’ll let you watch the movie to see how the bet turns out.
“Guys and Dolls” is an excellent musical and plays true to the original Broadway production. The musical and dance numbers are well-spaced throughout the film, so neither outweighs the other. Songs range in length and style, with ballads like “I’ll Know” and “Sue Me” to balance the more upbeat numbers like the song and dance of “Luck be a Lady” and, my favorite, “Sit Down You’re Rockin’ the Boat.”
Although this film sits at two hours and 30 minutes, the entire endeavor might as well take 3 hours. It’s clear that this movie is adapted from a setting where intermissions are common. I’m not an avid fan of musicals, but I thought I’d take my chances with “Guys and Dolls.”
After getting just over halfway through, I was feeling a bit burnt out. Perhaps it was because I started the movie at 9:30 pm on a Tuesday. I ended up pausing the movie and going to bed to finish it the next day. I don’t usually take that approach with movies, but I also don’t usually watch two-and-a-half-hour movies.
I do want to emphasize: if you like musicals, this is a must-watch. Overall, I enjoyed “Guys and Dolls” for all its music, the energetic dancing, the bits of physical comedy and the beautiful colors and costumes.
I was very impressed with the captivating performances of Masterson, Detroit, Adelaide, Brown and the entire supporting cast.
This musical is listed as Not Rated on IMDB but would likely be rated PG. “Guys and Dolls” is available for streaming for free on Tubi, Pluto TV, Peacock, Roku and Plex.
