Guys and Dolls

Marlon Brando couldn't carry a tune in a bucket, but that doesn't totally sink 1955's Guys and Dolls, Joseph L. Mankiewicz's colorful, crowd-pleasing, Times Square-set song-and-dancer based on a Damon Runyon story that was later adapted into a Broadway hit musical. Frank Sinatra stars as small-time hustler Nathan Detroit, who bets crafty gambler Sky Masterson (Brando) that the latter can't seduce an all-business Salvation Army missionary named Sarah Brown (Jean Simmons)…which, of course, Brando does, flying her down to Havana for dinner (where the pair join forces for a no-holds-barred brawl). If you're scratching your head trying to remember the great songs from Guys and Dolls, you're not alone: besides "Luck Be a Lady Tonight" (sung, unfortunately, by Brando) and “A Woman in Love,” none are all that memorable (although the title track and "Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat" are both fun). Presented in a “deluxe edition,” the digital transfer is a bit disappointing (the picture looks soft in places and the color occasionally seems washed-out), but the extras are solid—including a pair of featurettes on Guys and Dolls' journey from stage to film—and the DVD is packaged with a colorful 72-page “scrapbook” of vintage photos and posters. Not a top-drawer musical but mildly entertaining, this is recommended. (R. Pitman)[Blu-ray Review—Nov. 6, 2012—Warner, 149 min., not rated, $34.99—Making its first appearance on Blu-ray, 1955's Guys and Dolls sports a nice transfer with DTS-HD 5.1 sound. Packaged in a handsome 42-page digi-book, extras include the retrospective featurettes “From Stage to Screen” (27 min.) and “The Goldwyn Touch” (24 min.), five “More Guys and Dolls Stories” behind-the-scenes featurettes (8 min.), selected musical performances, and trailers. Bottom line: this beloved musical sparkles on Blu-ray.]