css-89951 Splashy overproduced Fox 50's musical. Merman, O'Connor and Gaynor are under utilized. MM good in 'Heat Wave' number, but languidly irritating in her other two numbers, "Lazy" and "After You Get What You Want". Skip this one!

grizzledgeezer I recently reviewed "Jack the Giant Killer", a blatant ripoff of "Seventh Voyage of Sinbad". I'd never seen "There's No Business Like Show Business", and wasn't aware it ripped off "Singin' in the Rain".The latter was inspired (if that's the right word) by Arthur Freed's desire to exploit the many songs he and Nacio Brown had written. Betty Comden and Adolph Green provided an amusing script about Hollywood's transition from silent films to talkies, and (as they say) history was made.Though MGM was the king of musicals (Freed headed its musical unit), Fox must have longed for the same kind of success. Why not a film tapping Irving Berlin's huge library of successful songs? Unfortunately, the story is nothing more than the usual romantic claptrap, with a young woman (MM) threatening to disrupt a show-biz family. Who cares?Unless you enjoy watching lavish production numbers featuring Berlin's songs, and/or hearing Ethel Merman (whose voice could crack titanium) belt 'em out, there's nothing of interest for most viewers -- then or now. The critics mostly panned it, and the production was so expensive "No Biz" didn't turn a profit. Whatever current respect it holds is probably based more on nostalgia than quality.* It's generally considered the best musical ever made. I find it a bit tedious. It's funny (Jean Hagen is hilarious as the silent actress with a silly voice), but there are too many songs. And Gene Kelly's athletic, self-conscious dancing has never appealed to me.

TheLittleSongbird There's No Business Like Show Business is not a great film. The story is very contrived with the mismatched chemistry between Monroe and O'Connor not ringing true at all, the script is a lot of melodramatic fluff and not much else, the film is a little overlong and Johnny Ray's performance is a failure in almost every regard. What it is though is a decent one, the music, choreography and most of the cast being what salvages it. The score is sumptuous and catchy and Irving Berlin's songs are literally like a song-book collection and a truly delightful one at that, Heat Wave and the title number coming off the best. If you love Berlin's music as I do, you'll love the music here. The choreography is lively but with grace also, Heat Wave just sizzles. Apart from Ray the cast are fine. Marilyn Monroe oozes beauty and sex appeal, with her glory moment being in Heat Wave, as mentioned already the number sizzles just as much as its title and Monroe literally smolders in it. Donald O'Connor dances wonderfully and his acting is quite touching, and the same can be said with Mitzi Gaynor, who provides the emotional moments without feeling fake at all. They are far more believable together than O'Connor and Monroe, and they're good singers too. Dan Dailey performs with much professionalism and Ethel Merman's warm personality and big brassy voice brings thrills up the spine. Walter Lang directs efficiently if more in the musical numbers than the drama ones and the film is a very well-made one, the colours just leap out of you, the costumes and sets look beautiful and the photography compliments all those in a great way. Overall, far from flawless with a few things like the story, script, length and one performance that fall flat but the things that There is No Business Like Show Business gets right are numerous and they do dazzle. 6.5/10 Bethany Cox

mggbikeluvr This is a very nice one. I've seen better. But I've definitely seen worse! If you love musicals (like me), you will adore this movie (also like me). But if you aren't a big fan of musicals to begin with, don't even think about watching this one! It's the most extravagant, over-the-top, extreme musicals I've ever seen. The costumes are colorful, the sets are colorful, and, most importantly, the personalities were colorful! I had never seen or heard Ethel Merman before seeing this film a few months ago. I personally love her. I don't think her voice is the most gorgeous thing I've ever heard. But it's so powerful, you forget she might not have perfect pitch. She's also a great actress, making me laugh often.Dan Dailey was very nice. I had a slight grudge against him. But it's a long story. Let's just say, Donald O'Connor (a co-star in this, and my favorite actor) was in the process of divorce from his wife, the beautiful, yet intolerable Gwen Carter, while making this. Gwen, being pretty clueless, began dating Dailey during the making of this film. I had a negative view on Dailey for quite some time. But, boy, he can sing! And dance, for that matter! His acting is certainly top-notch. I enjoyed him greatly.Johnnie Ray isn't much. Don't get me wrong. He's a remarkable singer. But his acting is so low-key, he almost doesn't seem to care. He can't act, that's for sure. His character isn't even in it that much. But he needed to be there to add to part of the story. But his bad acting can be overlooked because of his singing.Mitzi Gaynor. What can I say? This girl is great. Her dancing is amazing. And she's a cutie! Her acting is much better than I thought. She manages to sing like Merman in one scene, which is quite a feat! She is so good! I loved her! Marilyn Monroe...hmmm...well...let's just say it's a good thing she's gorgeous! Her singing is alright. Nothing to applaud about. But it's just plain "alright". She can't dance. Then again, nobody can dance next to Gaynor and O'Connor! She's not a bad actress. But it's still hard to imagine her and O'Connor as a couple. I think they were both very good looking. But in completely different ways. Monroe's is so prominent, she almost explodes with sex appeal. O'Connor, is more of a "boy next door" style. But they made them work pretty well. Not the worst one screen couple. But certainly not the best. Monroe was good. But the only reason she standed out form the others at all is from her looks, not talent, in my opinion.I saved the best for last: Donald O'Connor. This film shows all of his talents in one movie. His singing is shown in "A Man Chases A Girl". His dancing is shown in anything he dances to. He never disappoints me. His acting really good. The drunk scenes had me laughing out loud. Again, begin partnered with Monroe certainly was something we will never completely understand. But it actually worked out alright. Back to O'Connor. I loved his "Midnight Choo Choo Reprise" with Gaynor. One of my favorites from the film. The "A Man Chases A Girl" is so great, I recommend to go watch it on Youtube right now! He is actually quite graceful, which was a surprise to me. I would have never thought that the loose-limbed, running-up-walls O'Connor could have grace! But believe me, he does! I personally adore his singing voice. This film showcased it quite well. (For better singing from him, Check out "Call Me Madam", also with Merman.) In my opinion, it is O'Connor's performance that single-handedly makes this a great film.So, to summarize, this is a screen-full of greatness! I recommend it very highly. Only, you might want to be careful with little kids about this one. With Monroe involved, there's bound to be something in there. The "Heat Wave" number is probably the most revealing. Also is Monroe's "After You Get What You Want" and Gaynor's Paris version of "Alexander's Ragtime Band". But other than that, a great, great movie! (Mostly because of Donald O'Connor!)