Flawless comedy is played to perfection...

Rating: Null/10 (23 May 2001)

I'm sure no one had to twist arms to get Marilyn Monroe, Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis to sign for the leading roles once they looked at the hilariously witty script by Billy Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond. What must have looked good on paper is even funnier on the screen--the three stars give their all to make this one of the most memorable comedies of all time! ("Dumb and Dumber" fans might not agree!!)
The story begins with down on their heels musicians accidentally witnessing a gangland slaying by mobsters. Naturally, they flee the scene and decide the safest thing to do is disguise themselves as dames by joining an all-girl band in need of two musicians. Complications develop when Daphne (Jack Lemmon) falls for the charms of the band's singer, Sugar Kane (Marilyn Monroe). Hectic goings-on continue throughout the course of the fast-paced yarn, with Daphne being romanced by a sex-starved millionaire (Joe E. Brown) and Tony Curtis getting out of drag to woo Marilyn with his impersonation of Cary Grant. It's screwball comedy at its finest--with some of the punch lines buried under laughter (if you see it in a theater).

The mad pace continues to the very end, with Lemmon deciding to accept the millionaire's marriage proposal--leading to the film's final punch line fadeout.
Deserves its status as one of the best comedies of all time. An ingratiating performance by Monroe (and she CAN and does sing, contrary to someone's earlier comment on her voice), especially good in her scenes with Jack Lemmon's character. As for Lemmon, he all but steals the show once he grabs those maracas and fancies himself kicking up his heels as Daphne. He and Curtis underplay their cross-dressing assignments for the most part--but are still very funny.
The dumbing down of comedy today--with leering one-liners about sex dominating all the dialog and toilet humor being "in"--may leave some with the feeling that this is a mild mannered sex farce. But they're wrong. It's still a sizzler with more class than the dumb, sometimes gross jokes and situations that are the stuffing of the newer comedies like "There's Something About Mary".