Guys and Dolls (1955)

In New York, a gambler is challenged to take a cold female missionary to Havana, but they fall for each other, and the bet has a hidden motive to finance a crap game.

Director:

Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Writers:

Jo Swerling (book), Abe Burrows (book),

Stars:

Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra

Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Marlon Brando	...	Sky Masterson
Jean Simmons	...	Sergeant Sarah Brown
Frank Sinatra	...	Nathan Detroit
Vivian Blaine	...	Miss Adelaide
Robert Keith	...	Lt. Brannigan
Stubby Kaye	...	Nicely-Nicely Johnson
B.S. Pully	...	Big Jule
Johnny Silver	...	Benny Southstreet
Sheldon Leonard	...	Harry the Horse
Danny Dayton	...	Rusty Charlie (as Dan Dayton)
George E. Stone	...	Society Max
Regis Toomey	...	Arvide Abernathy
Kathryn Givney	...	General Cartwright
Veda Ann Borg	...	Laverne
Mary Alan Hokanson	...	Agatha

Storyline

All the hot gamblers are in town, and they're all depending on Nathan Detroit to set up this week's incarnation of "The Oldest Established Permanent Floating Crap Game in New York"; the only problem is, he needs $1000 to get the place. Throw in Sarah Brown, who's short on sinners at the mission she runs; Sky Masterson, who accepts Nathan's $1000 bet that he can't get Sarah Brown to go with him to Havana; Miss Adelaide, who wants Nathan to marry her; Police Lieutenant Brannigan, who always seems to appear at the wrong time; and the music/lyrics of Frank Loesser, and you've got quite a musical. Includes the songs: Fugue for Tinhorns, "Luck Be a Lady", "Sit Down, You're Rocking the Boat".

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Plot Keywords:

craps | bet | gambler | police | missionary | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Musical | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 January 1956 (Brazil)

Also Known As:

Eles e Elas

Filming Locations:

The Lot - 1041 N. Formosa Avenue, West Hollywood, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$5,500,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Samuel Goldwyn Company, The

Technical Specs

Runtime:

150 min 152 min (with overture and exit music)

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Western Electric Sound System) (magnetic prints) Mono (optical prints)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The songs "A Woman in Love", "Pet Me Poppa" and "Adelaide" were written for the screen version and were not in the original Broadway show. On Broadway, Nathan Detroit (Frank Sinatra) doesn't sing in the title song. That was added for the film to increase Sinatra's singing part.

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Goofs

Sky Masterson's handwriting on the back of the Bible verse card changes between shots.

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Quotes

Sky Masterson: Figuring weight for age, all dolls are the same.

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Connections

Featured in Broadway: The American Musical: Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin': 1943-1960 (2004)

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Soundtracks

"Follow the Fold"
(1950) (uncredited)
Music and Lyrics by Frank Loesser
Played by the Mission Band and sung by them and Jean Simmons
Reprised by the Band outside of Mindy's restaurant
Reprised by the Band outside of a drugstore and sung by them and Marlon Brando
Reprised by the Band outside a bar
Reprised by the Band and sung by the gamblers at the Mission

User Reviews

"Ummm... Filled with such fun good fellowship..."- Nathan Detroit, "Guys and Dolls"

"Guys and Dolls" is a thoroughly enjoyable example of musical comedy at its very best. The acting is impeccable, and what's more, almost believable (for a musical at least), the singing is pretty decent (well, Marlon Brando is another story, but I'll get to that) and the whole thing is just so amusing and entertaining that you'll be singing the tunes and quoting the lines long after you've finished watching it. Critics and viewers seem to sometimes have a difficult time with taking the film too seriously, by this I mean that a) Marlon Brando was not cast because of his singing voice (which was admittedly not good, but bearable), I like to think it was because he had irresistible charm, b) the whole premise is so unbelievable, to which I say, "name me a musical that IS wholly believable", and c) the movie moves too slowly, which is patently absurd, unless one does not have a taste for the slower pace of old movies and long, well articulated dance numbers, and romantic love scenes. This film pre-dates my existence by some 3 decades, but it still manages to rank among my very favorite pieces of movie-making and is an absolute must-see for musical and non-musical fans alike. 10/10