Product: Funny Girl [VHS] (1968)
Rating: 5.0
Streisand at her best
It's no coincidence that when Barbra performed live, she looked back upon her repertoire of music and chose things like "People" and "Don't Rain on My Parade" to sing. The score to the Broadway show and this movie is one of the best musical scores ever, no doubt made better by Streisand's incomparable voice. The movie itself is beautifully filmed, and while some of the editing leaves a bit to be desired, it tells the story of the comedic legend Fanny Brice. Brice, whose career Streisand's seemed to have an uncanny likeness, was one of the Ziegfeld legends, and it's fitting that a legend in the making was chosen to play her on the stage and the big screen. Streisand turns in one of her best performances in all of her movies, and her ability to relate to her character is readily apparent in both her acting and her vocal interpretations of the many wonderful songs. While the VHS edition of the movie has been on my shelf for many years, I saw a preview of the DVD and it's simply awesome. Definitely one for the collection, whether you're a Streisand fan or not.