WATCH PARTY: Funny Girl (1968) directed by William Wyler @ Pretlow Library

We'll be up in the 2nd floor conference room for this one.

From the director of Roman Holiday and Ben-Hur, a musical starring Barbara Streisand and Omar Sharif which was nominated for 8 Academy Awards (with Streisand winning Best Actress in her debut role.) (h/t cinephile Lisa C.)

RUNTIME: 149 minutes

SYNOPSIS (via Criterion): Witness the birth of a movie star as Barbra Streisand makes a screen debut for the ages in this musical spectacular. From humor to pathos, she hits every note as popular 1920s singer-comedian Fanny Brice, a young Jewish New Yorker whose spirit and supernova talent propel her to fame in the Ziegfeld Follies, but whose devotion to an unreliable gambler (a charismatic Omar Sharif) brings drama and heartbreak into her life. Adapted from a hit Broadway show and directed by Hollywood master William Wyler, Funny Girl hits emotional highs in unforgettable performances of songs like “People” and “Don’t Rain on My Parade”—moments that won Streisand one of the most richly deserved Best Actress awards in Oscar history.

BLURBS:
"It is hard to praise Ms. Streisand too highly. She turns out, curiously enough, to be a born movie star. It was her voice that made her famous, and that’s fair enough. But it will be her face and her really splendid comic ability that make her a star." - Roger Ebert

"When she is singing--in a marvelous scene on roller skates--when she throws a line away, or shrugs, or looks funny or sad, she has a power, gentleness and intensity that rather knocks all the props and sets and camera angles on their ear." - Renata Adler, The New York Times

"A superb example of Hollywood craftsmanship in which all elements have been blended to perfection with inspired artistry." - Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times