The Dolly Sisters (1945) User Reviews (26)

A Couple Of Dolly Pops

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 4 June 2008]

The Dolly Sisters is another of those nostalgic biographical film salutes to a pair of twin sisters from Hungary who became celebrated entertainers in those years before World War I and the Roaring Twenties. Both sisters had a few marriages and suffered many ups and downs in their lives. Of course this being Hollywood we're getting quite a sanitized version of them.

They were in fact identical twins, but 20th Century Fox did not decide to cast one actress in both roles. Originally it was supposed to be Alice Faye and Betty Grable, but Alice took her screen retirement when Darryl Zanuck would not give her more dramatic roles and June Haver was brought in to replace. Both Grable and Haver had their hair done in the same style, wore the same outfits all the time and my guess was that Haver who was slightly smaller wore platforms to give her equal height or almost equal height with Grable.

A lot of interpolated period music is used, but Jimmy Monaco and Mack Gordon wrote one original song I Can't Begin To Tell You which was nominated for an Oscar. It also has the unique distinction of being the only song Betty Grable commercially recorded during her stint at Fox because Zanuck did not like his stars singing for records. She did a vocal with her husband Harry James's band under a pseudonym at the time. Later releases credit Betty. But the big selling record of this song was by Bing Crosby with only a piano accompaniment by Carmen Cavallaro. It was one of Bing's biggest sellers. It's sung at various times in the film by Betty, June and John Payne and a few combinations thereof.

John Payne plays Harry Fox, song and dance man who Grable marries and leaves. In real life they never got back together which is what the film alludes to. Also it shows Fox as being jealous of the success of the sisters. In fact he was a success before they were and Jenny Dolly was accused of marrying him to boost her career. In fact that was an accusation leveled at both sisters who made a few advantageous matches.

In real life there was no happy ending for Jenny Dolly, she committed suicide in 1941, she was in a lot of pain and never recovered from the automobile accident that Betty Grable was shown to have. Rosie Dolly's final marriage was to a department store heir and she survived her sister by 29 years.

Since much was made in real life of the sister's Hungarian ancestry you had to have S.Z. Sakall in this film as their lovable uncle who's constantly losing money at pinochle. My grandfather was a heavy pinochle player as well so it's something I could identify with. Sakall was with Warner Brothers at the time and I'd love to know what Darryl Zanuck had to give in return to Jack Warner for Sakall's services. As always Sakall is his lovable self, you could just reach into the TV to pinch his cheeks.

The Dolly Sisters is a fine nostalgic and sanitized biographical film with a lot of gaudy color for a pair of gaudy sisters. It should only have gone this easy for the real Dolly Sisters.

Shades of "Tin Pan Alley"

[weezeralfalfa · 7/10 · 6 October 2007]

Essentially a more lavish Technicolor remake of the 1940 B&W film "Tin Pan Alley", including two of the stars of the original: John Payne and Betty Grable. Both films have their relative pluses and minuses. I enjoyed the many outlandish costumes of the female stars and of the various extras, a common feature of many 1940s musicals. Grable and June Haver are much more of a sister act than Alice Faye and Grable were in the original, when they mostly performed their own numbers. The troubled on again off again romances, which fill in between musical shows, get awfully tedious, more so than in the original. If Alice Faye had taken Haver's part, as originally planned, it would have been interesting to see if she were again cast as the dominant sister(I doubt it). To me, Faye has more charisma than Haver, but the later makes a more look alike sister for Grable. I really missed Jack Oakie in this one. Frank Latimore was simply not an adequate substitute for Oakie's cheerful comic relief from Payne's serious demeanor. Payne's character is much more of a heel than in the original. That poor foxy woman he led on to believe he cared more for than Grable, left alone in the audience in the final scene, when he was reunited with Grable on the stage!

HellO, Dollys

[writers_reign · 7/10 · 3 August 2007]

No one ever accused a Hollywood biopic of sticking slavishly to the facts and after beginning by blatantly casting two leggy blondes (Betty Grable, June Haver) to portray the real-life short, stocky brunette eponymous twins this biopic fits where it touches. Of course in 1945 no one went to the movies accompanied by a fact-checker, they went to be entertained by a permutation of spectacle, color, song and dance and if there were a few laughs thrown in for good measure so much the better. In those terms this could be counted a hit but those with a more discerning palate would balk at John Payne who was assigned the 'hit' of the score, I Can't Begin To Tell You. Payne was a graduate of the Dick Powell Academy of Joke Singers though in his defense Powell began warbling in the early thirties before there were guys like Sinatra, Haymes and the Eberle Brothers (Ray and Bob) to show how it should be done and it's probably not just coincidence that Powell stopped singing around the time Sinatra established himself. Grable was current Queen of the Fox lot having usurped Alice Faye, who was intended to co-star but wasn't prepared to come out of retirement so instead the role went to newcomer June Haver, who'd had a bit part as a hat-check girl in Faye's last musical, The Gang's All Here, only eighteen months before. Grable was uneasy by this casting as befits the head that wears the crown but it's a testament to her acting skills that none of this comes over on the screen. Perhaps a tad twee for the 21st century but otherwise pleasant and undemanding entertainment.

Grables's Splashiest Technicolor Musical

[MasterLcZ · 14 July 2003]

One of Betty Grables's biggest hits (it grossed over $4 million in 1945) THE DOLLY SISTERS stands as perhaps her splashiest and most lavish musical made at the summit of her career. Originally intended for Alice Faye and Betty, Faye withdrew early in pre-production, not wanting to commit to another exausting musical. Producer George Jessel substituted up-and-coming blonde June Haver, with John Payne (who had worked with Grable numerous times at Paramount and Fox) and Frank Latimore (in a role originally intended for Randolph Scott) as the male-co stars. And although the easy-going Grable usually got on famously with all her female co-stars, June Haver was the exception. It's likely that this was mainly uncharacteristic jealousy on Betty's part - it had taken Grable a decade of hard work to attain her position as Fox's brightest and most bankable actress, while the teenaged Haver had catapulted to stardom in just two years. The fact that none of this animosity shows on screen says a lot for Grables professionalism. As for the storyline...well, to say that it takes great liberties with the lives of its subjects is kind - the real-life Dollys were both small dark brunettes (not leggy blondes), both went through several husbands and Jenny's car accident left her permanently scarred (unlike Grable who gets thru the accident with only a tiny band-aid). Also, the real-life Jenny Dolly was a drug addict who hung herself in 1941 - such elements would certainly be out of place in a bubbly Hollywood musical of 1945! Instead, the film traces the rise and heartbreak of the sisters as they conquer vaudeville, Broadway and Europe, accompanied by numerous nostalgic tunes like "Carolina in the Morning" "Give Me The Moonlight, Give Me The Girl (and leave the rest to Me)" and "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows" and the new James Monaco-Josef Myrow tune "I Can't Begin To Tell You" which was a Hit Parade favorite. What gives the musical its special flavor are its outrageous production numbers by Seymour Felix, which one writer considers to be prime examples of "kitchy vulgarity...monuments to bad taste", which means, naturally that they are irresistably fabulous! "Powder, Lipstick and Rouge" is a Paean to a Make-Up kit ("Beautiful Faces come out of Vanity Cases!") that has to be seen to be believed, and the decidedly un-P.C. "Darktown Strutters Ball" number was usually cut from old TV prints as it featured Grable in Haver in blackface, cavorting around a 'Harlem' set as pig-tailed 'picaninnies' surrounded by chorus girls in hats made of watermelons, dice and playing cards - not until "Springtime for Hitler" in Mel Brooks' THE PRODUCERS was there a musical number that revelled in its tastelessness! Equally eye-catching are the non-stop parade of breathtaking costumes by Orry-Kelly, easily the most lushly glamorous of any Grable film, and both Betty and June look smashing in them. Topping it all off is Fox's succulent Technicolor and elegant set design. Once when a guest on THE CAROL BURNETT SHOW, Grable was asked about a prospective project. She replyed: "It's flashy, it's gaudy, It's vulgar. It's like everything I've ever done. I LOVE IT!" This sums up THE DOLLY SISTERS as well - and you'll love it, too!

Colourful and cheery fun, not hard to see why it became one of 20th Century Fox's most profitable musicals

[TheLittleSongbird · 7/10 · 31 January 2017]

There may be better film musicals out there than 'The Dolly Sisters', but it succeeds very well as colourful fun with enough to put a smile on one's face and clearly knows what it's trying to be and what to do with it.

A huge part of wanting to see 'The Dolly Sisters' was the cast. With the likes of Betty Grable, June Haver, SZ Sakall, Reginald Gardiner, John Payne, there are some talented people here. Also, foibles and all, there is an immense soft spot had for the "Golden Age Hollywood" musicals, a soft spot that has been lifelong held. A fair few of them are flawed in the story department but many are compensated by the music, production values, atmosphere and performances.

While 'The Dolly Sisters' has more merits than it has flaws, the story (if we are to forget that biographically it's very much fictionalised) is as flimsy and predictable as they come and some of the latter parts meander, such as a finale that could have had more oomph. Frank Latimore fails to pass the "remotely amusing" test and further fails to inject much charm or enthusiasm.

Lastly the black face routine is in pretty embarrassing taste now, with a lot of unsubtle and unfunny black stereotypes that feel out of date and not for the easily offended, with very gaudy make-up.

However, the merits that 'The Dolly Sisters' has are numerous. It looks lovely, with only the costumes and make-up in the black face sequence showing signs of cheapness, elsewhere the film is handsomely mounted and photographed beautifully and with such great use of colour. The songs are tuneful and a very pleasant listen, especially "I Can't Begin to Tell You" (Oscar-nominated and not hard to see why) and "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows". They are mostly staged with the right amount of entertainment and intimacy.

Scripting is suitably zesty, and Irving Cummings directs with much assurance. The story is not perfect but has such a cheery charm, a huge abundance of fun and heart that it is difficult to be too hard on it. Betty Grable and June Haver were tailor-made for their roles, and are endearing joys to watch. John Payne sings beautifully and looks more comfortable than in some of his other films, while SZ Sakall is so cuddly and funny and Reginald Gardiner is amusing.

All in all, colourful and cheery fun. 7/10 Bethany Cox

Spectacle Must Be Seen to Be Believed

[LeonardKniffel · 6/10 · 11 April 2020]

Betty Grable was considered quite the hot number in her day-a favorite pin-up girl of American soldiers. I always thought she had a crabby look on her face. Be that as it may, this is one of her biggest hits, probably her most lavish musical, made at the peak of her career. An up-and-coming June Haver also stars. Although it has some basis in the lives of the real Dolly sisters, the film makes no effort to be biographical. It traces the rise and heartbreak of the sisters as they conquer vaudeville, Broadway, and Europe singing tunes like "Carolina in the Morning," "Give Me the Moonlight, Give Me the Girl (and leave the rest to Me)," "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows," and the newer tune "I Can't Begin To Tell You," which was a Hit Parade favorite. If you watch a copy that hasn't been cut, the outrageous production numbers are considered the height of kitsch today, "monuments to bad taste" they have been called, that must be seen to be believed. "Darktown Strutters Ball" features Grable and Haver in with bronzed faces, singing in mutilated French, and cavorting around a Harlem set as pig-tailed 'picaninnies' surrounded by deeply tanned chorus girls in hats made of watermelons, dice, and playing cards. At least the girls are made up to look gorgeous and not foolish. It's quite a spectacle. ---from Musicals on the Silver Screen, American Library Association, 2013

Needs Re-Make Time

[DKosty123 · 6/10 · 31 August 2014]

It's big, it's Technicolor. June Haver and Betty Gable have great legs. The staging and the music are top. The movie made lots of money. What's wrong? This Biographical picture is so fictionalized that it does not do the Dolly sisters the correct way.

Granted doing it better might have to depict suicide which both sisters attempted quite graphically. The real story does deserve more than it gets here. The script is way too Hollywood to give an audience a feel good story and not anywhere near the truth. To me the real sisters are more like the Gabor sisters than depicted here. In real life they are Brunettes and short, not tall and blonde. The best depiction in the movie is Harry Fox.

Neat to see Elmira, NY, mentioned early in the film. Not sure about any real event there as that location does not seem to be in any internet account of any of these folks. It is possible though Elmira has more to do with Mark Twain and later Ernie Davis than the Dolly Sisters or Fox.

Mila Kunis would be the brunette I'd choose to be a Dolly Sister in a remake. She is short and would definitely light up the screen. I am not sure who her twin co-star would be. Aston Kutcher as Harry Fox? I think there are male actors who would be better.

It would be a fun film to do a costume remake of with this generation trying to recreate the past.

This old one is a Grable formula remake. Though it is pretty, I think it could be done even better. I am sure the real story and a more real script would benefit this material.

Chasing cut-rate rainbows, courtesy Fox...

[moonspinner55 · 4/10 · 12 November 2011]

Fictionalized, romanticized tale of the real-life Dolly Sisters, Hungarian siblings who arrived in the States as little girls in 1904 and grew up to be international showgirls. Story reconfigured as a star-vehicle for Betty Grable, who looks terrific and gives one of her better, less unctuous performances. June Haver, as kid sis Rosie, matches up well alongside Grable, yet the two actresses are rarely in sync during their musical numbers; worse, the character of Rosie is under-developed, and her actions in the final reel are unclear. The tacky color production doesn't help but the supporting players do, with John Payne well-cast as songwriter Harry Fox who marries Grable's Jenny before leaving for duty in WWI. The picture's time-line is fuzzy, and the reunion finale is limp, however several of the stage numbers have spirit, particularly a Cotton Club-styled production and a batty Ziegfeld extravaganza. Twentieth Century-Fox did a paste-up job on most of the picture, undercutting the drama with winking camp, but Grable works hard and makes it worthwhile. ** from ****

I'm always chasing rainbows....

[jotix100 · 8/10 · 22 July 2005]

This colorful musical directed with great style by Irving Cummings is a delightful way to spend some happy moments. This 1945 Fox film presents the life of two sisters that became a sensation in America at the beginning of the last century. The music is the best excuse to watch this happy movie.

We first meet the young Dolly Sisters, Jenny and Rose, as they arrive in America from their native Hungary. The girls are talented and soon, they are delighting the vaudeville circuit with their charm and talent. Their career soared after Harry Fox, who later became Jenny's husband, introduces them to the great Oscar Hammerstein, who sees in the women, an amazing capacity to entertain the public of the era.

As played by Betty Grable and June Haver, the Dolly Sisters are irresistible! The real sisters were not blond, but who could fault the stars with the disarming way they act in the musical? Ms. Grable and Ms. Haver are a sight for sore eyes!

As the man in Jennie's life, John Payne plays Harry Fox convincingly. Mr. Payne projects a virile figure and he is perfect opposite the gorgeous Betty Grable. His composition in the movie, "I'm Always Chasing Rainbow" was written by Harry Carroll and Joseph McCarthy whose inspiration is the Chopin's Fantasy and Impromptu in C Minor and it blends perfectly in the composition and in the subtext of the film. There are also appearances by that charming character actor, S. Z. Sakall, who plays the girl's uncle. Also Reginald Gardiner does good work as the Duke of Breck.

This is a fine musical that will delight fans of the genre.

Grable and Haver are the Dolly Sisters!

[JLRMovieReviews · 7/10 · 23 June 2010]

Two sisters and their grandfather come to America from their homeland of Austria and by way of entertaining the diners at a little restaurant, the sisters ultimately become stars on the stage, based on a true story of the real Dolly Sisters who lived in the early part of the 20th century. Here they are played by Betty Grable and June Haver. A love interest for Grable is supplied in the form of John Payne, who helps a lot with his humble disposition, despite the fact his character is quite boastful at the beginning of the film, and the grandfather is portrayed by S.Z. Sakall. Supporting players also include Reginald Gardiner and Sig Ruman.

Their story is given grade-A treatment with a budget big enough for clothes galore and the numbers on stage are extravagantly shown. The songs throughout the film are good, but they are mainly the old ones they sang in the time they lived.

If I had any problems with it, it tends to lose one's interest about a hour into it, with not much real humor (or punch) or any real heart to it. While it may have some sincere performances, it tends to meander, losing its focus from the beginning. It may be trying to be true to certain facts, but ultimately it becomes somewhat uneven.

A more positive thing to say is that it did have a nice closing line and it makes you feel some closure for Grable and Payne. But, in real life, the fate of the Dolly Sisters is too sad to really get into here. At the time of this movie's production and release, one Dolly sister had already died.

So, all in all, you may be pleased from its opulent treatment and the company of good-looking people like Grable, Haver, and Payne, but it's basically a Hollywood bio-pic made in the 40s, and truly not one of the best.

Cure for insomnia

[AAdaSC · 4/10 · 22 October 2016]

Betty Grable (Jenny) and June Haver (Rosie) play the real-life twin sisters of the Dolly variety. Unfortunately, the film delivers a bland affair. The true story would have been way more interesting – the real Jenny Dolly sister had already hanged herself by the time the film was made. So, what we get is a routine musical where people fall in love, separate and then get together again. And of, course, throw in some songs. Voila….we have a musical.

The film is just too long and gets pretty boring. It starts well and the musical numbers are entertaining. Then, once John Payne starts singing, the songs get dreary. We needed better songs. One song in particular is repeated about 27 times and is exactly the same as Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" – although this time they sing something about a rainbow. What a rip-off.

Try and keep your eyes open during this one, it's quite a challenge. There is a funny song and sequence near the beginning of the film when girls dress up as make-up accessories. It's similar to the section in "Diamond Horseshoe" also starring Betty Grable and from the same year in which girls dress up as food condiments. That was obviously a novel idea for musicals in this particular year. However, feel free to fall asleep after this routine as you won't miss anything other than an awkward song sequence where every girl gets blacked-up. But they aren't truly blacked-up, they are a sort of browny-orange colour and look absolutely terrible. It's as if the whole of the cast of "The Only Way Is Essex" has wandered onto the set. Yuk!

Sumptuous Fox musical

[blanche-2 · 8/10 · 26 December 2007]

Betty Grable and June Haver are "The Dolly Sisters" in this 1945 film also starring John Payne, S.Z. Sakall and Reginald Gardner. Grable enjoyed an unparalleled run - 10 years in a row - in the Hollywood top ten box office, from 1941 to 1951, yet when Turner Classic Movies published their Unforgettable Leading Ladies of the Studio Era book, Grable was left out. For anyone who believes - erroneously - that Turner Classic Movies has any interest in film history, she was left out - just as Tyrone Power was left out of the leading men book - because TCM doesn't own their films.

Not realizing that for a huge audience later on, it wouldn't exist, 20th Century Fox spared no expense for this lavish color musical about two real-life Hungarian sisters (actually brunettes) who were big entertainers in the beginning of the century. The story focuses on Jenny Dolly (Grable) primarily and her romance and marriage to Ziegfeld performer Harry Fox (inventor of the "fox trot"), played by John Payne, and how World War I and career separations destroyed their marriage.

Grable and Haver look just like sisters and are marvelous together, wearing gorgeous costumes and looking fabulous and radiant throughout. Both bring a lot of energy to their roles. Payne does a good job as Harry, singing and acting well. A versatile actor, he could not only appear in musicals where he did his own singing, but he did plenty of drama and was also a hunk. He was invaluable to Fox during the war years.

This is a very entertaining film, but it's a shame that a film on the true story of the Dolly Sisters has never been made. Jenny and Fox were divorced in 1921. She was indeed involved in a car accident with an ex-boyfriend in 1933 and had to sell her jewels to pay for many surgeries, but unlike the film, she never really recovered. She never reconciled with Fox and in 1941, she hung herself. Rosie did marry a Chicago businessman; she attempted suicide in 1962, though it failed, and she died in 1970. The two women were huge gamblers, only hinted at in the film, and made a fortune: They won $850,000 in one season at Deauville and one evening in Cannes, Jenny won 4 million francs, which she converted to a collection of jewelry, and then went on to win another 11 million more francs.

I suppose during World War II, no one would have been interested in such a downer, so it's just as well that we have this film, which gives us vibrant entertainment in the best 20th Century Fox tradition.

my synopsis about 'the Dolly sisters'

[mrdonleone · 6/10 · 22 January 2010]

okay, so let me get this right: the songwriter, who faces difficult choices in this movie and sings about following his imagination, gets three women throughout the picture... what a lucky man he turned out to be, promising boredom as a simple composer, ending up as a king with three wives! hey, wait a minute... so what this movie is actually saying, is that it's okay if you remain loyal all your life, but the lucky ones, are the people with multiple love affairs at the same time (as the last image we get to see, promises us)? wow, this gives a total new meaning at this musical! so, if you're keen on love, you should write songs. compose music, and the women will fall for thee. that's the hidden message of this picture. I'm not content, it's not a Christian thing to do... but, then again, what's still holy these days? certainly not 'the Dolly Sisters'!

Grable and Payne are at their peak in entertaining show biz story...

[Doylenf · 22 April 2001]

The real-life Dolly sisters were brunettes but that didn't stop Fox from pairing Bette Grable and June Haver as the famous duo, in addition to fictionalizing their rise to fame in vaudeville and the legit circuit. Nevertheless, this is a typical 1940s charmer of a musical, with the talented John Payne for added appeal and good performances by S. Z. Sakall and Reginald Gardiner. Grable and Haver are seen in a good number of singing and dancing routines and there is even one new song ("I Can't Begin To Tell You") supposedly penned by John Payne. It's all very likeable technicolored entertainment in lavish style. Betty's role is a little more dramatic than usual and she does a good piece of emoting in the final scenes. If you're a Grable fan, you can't afford to miss this one! And she was never better than when she was teamed opposite John Payne--good chemistry and believable sparks.

not as good as it could or should have been

[myriamlenys · 4/10 · 20 January 2020]

"The Dolly Sisters" is mainly a showcase for the singing and dancing talents of Betty Grable and June Haver. (To give both ladies their due, they sing and dance their hearts out. And they do indeed have some of the prettiest legs in show business.) It's a lush, lavish, big-budget musical, heavy on the costumes and glamour. Many of the musical numbers are best described as daffy exercises in surrealism, what with women artists dressed up, say, as powder puffs, lipsticks, little boxes of rouge.

However, the tale being told isn't all that interesting. It is certainly far less compelling than the actual life and times of the actual sisters, both of them famous vaudeville artists of American-Hungarian origins, who inspired the story. One gets the impression that the sisters' lives were carefully stripped of anything that might have been considered too tragic, naughty and/or complicated. What remains is a slice of generic melodrama. (For some strange reason, even the hair colour of the sisters was changed : in the movie, both protagonists have become so golden blonde that even Adolf Hitler would have gone "Whoa there !")

"The Dolly Sisters" is also beset by some weird plot holes. For instance, one of the sisters meets a handsome young man who steals her heart ; after a number of complications they marry, only in order to lurch towards a painful divorce. Both the man and the woman complain, regularly, about letters not arriving. However, it is never explained what's going on with these letters. Were they somehow stolen or hidden by the woman's sister ? By the sisters' uncle ? By the postman ? The gardener ? The gardener's postman ? The postman's gardener ? Father Christmas ? By the end of the movie you won't be any wiser...

Colorful, splashy but almost total fiction

[jjnxn-1 · 8/10 · 13 October 2013]

The real Dolly Sisters were dark, in both complexion and hair, Hungarian dancers with complex personalities and troubled lives, in fact Jenny had committed suicide several years before the debut of this musical, so if you are looking for anything resembling a depiction of the actual Dolly Sisters story look elsewhere. However if a sumptuous overstuffed showcase for blonds Betty Grable and June Haver is what you seek this is for you. Filmed in almost blinding Technicolor with some good songs and one great and beautiful one, I'm Always Chasing Rainbows, eye popping costumes and hairstyles this is old fashioned entertainment dished up with style.

I didn't love the sisters, but the male lead was worse!

[JohnHowardReid · 5/10 · 12 February 2018]

Here's another musical biopic hampered by a trite and uninteresting story-line. In the early stages of the film it's hard to tell the two sisters apart, but it soon becomes clear which one Betty Grable is portraying. We are glad that Alice Faye was not induced to come out of retirement and allow herself to be upstaged by Grable. Neither of the sisters as portrayed here display much of the bounce and vitality that made them a yesterfore household word. They are written and played as rather bland, colorless, penny-pinching, naive, selfish, not over-bright go-getters who can sing and shimmy adequately and can display an attractive limb or two.

As the romantic lead, Mr. Payne is even more painful and perfunctory than usual, though he does have one or two lively moments (I guess he can't be blamed too much, not even Larry Olivier could make that railway station scene seem convincing); and would you believe it, he sings TWO reprises of his songs.

As usual in films of this type, aside from the gorgeously colored photography, the most interesting thing about the film is the musical numbers - and that is certainly the case here. Interesting is right, but not altogether likeable, two of the numbers are extraordinarily grotesque, providing an unexpected feast for students of the really bizarre. Otherwise the direction is as humdrum and routine as the plot.

The usual fine gallery of support players liven the proceedings, led by the delightful Trudy Marshall as Payne's girlfriend, and Frank Latimore who brings a welcome touch of asperity to an otherwise routine role. Despite his prominence in the billing, Sakall's part is small, but enough to satisfy his admirers.

And at least this movie was expansively produced.

What a happy and tuneful movie

[florriebbc · 10/10 · 12 October 2001]

I was 8 years old when I first saw this movie in 1945. I was so impressed with the blond beauty of both girls and to know that the Dolly Sisters were real people. June Haver and Betty Grable really looked alike. In my childs mind I thought they were my private dancers and I wanted to be just like them. I actually thought I was the only one who knew about them and they were my secret......What a kid! Thanks for listening. Florence Forrester-Stockton

Betty Grable & June Haver in a Joyous Fox musical

[Kalaman · 27 July 2004]

"The Dolly Sisters" is Betty Grable and June Haver's most joyously tuneful musical, a gaudy, loud, exquisitely Technicolored extravaganza of songs, dancing, and romance, the kind of vacuous yet tasteful fluff 20th Century Fox did well with great success. The studio head, Darryl Zanuck intended as a vehicle for Alice Faye & Betty Grable, but he couldn't convince Faye to get out of retirement, so producer George Jessel casted June Haver, and the movie become one of the top grossing pictures of the 1940s.

Grable and Haver (fantastic throughout) are the Hungarian born blonde sisters, Jenny & Rosie that took Broadway by storm. Their story begins with their arrival in New York in 1904, their subsequent rise from vaudeville acts to Broadway & Folies Bergere of Paris. They meet an aspiring composer Harry (John Payne) who arranges a meeting with Oscar Hammerstein to appear his Music Hall. Betty falls in love with Harry while June settles for a far less troubled romance with Frank Latimore. Betty is particularly very revealing, especially when she gets the nervous breakdown. Good performances also by S.Z. Sakall and Reginald Gardiner.

Lots of rollicking, uproarious songs/numbers, including the Oscar-winning "I Can't Begin to Tell You", the haunting "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows", plus some kitschy stuff like "Powder, Lipstick and Rouge", "Give Me The Moonlight, Give Me The Girl".

"Dolly Sisters" can be best appreciated if you see it back to back with June Haver's 1946's musical, "Three Little Girls in Blue", a joyous merriment in need of resurrection.

Being honest with one's feelings is the only way to go!

[julianhwescott · 10/10 · 13 March 2001]

One of my favorite Betty Grable films, as this one is a musical comedy/drama. I think Betty put her all into the scene where she was driving the car and had the accident on the cliffs above the sea. She really looked like she was having a nervous breakdown and was very convincing in her portrayal of a troubled woman all alone and lost. Also in the hospital scene, with June Haver, she was again very dramatic in her acting. Too bad the academy didn't take notice and nominate her for an Oscar. As usual, the music, dancing, singing, choreography and the cinematography, in glorious Technicolor, are brilliant as, of course, is the acting. The story continuity is very well maintained. I gave it a 10! One of Grable's and Payne's finest!

A wonderful musical

[cbramberg · 10/10 · 16 December 2007]

Can anyone tell me if the Dolly Sisters movie is on DVD or VHS? I never forgot this movie that I saw as a child and would love to see it again. Is there a website that I can watch it on? I vaguely remember a scene where June Haver and Betty Grable were in a musical scene with other women all dressed with headpieces in the form of makeup, i.e. one headdress was a lipstick, etc. June Haver was a favorite of mine and I think I just adored Betty Grable. I can't remember the name of her love interest but I remember him singing " I cant begin to tell you": He was very popular in the 40's and 50's Anyhow I'd appreciate it if someone can tell me how to view this movie again.

Entertaining

[Junie_14 · 10/10 · 24 July 2005]

This movie was very entertaining with Many numbers that proved this movie great. They were cheerful and looking good in every move they made. they made this movie a classic and never forgotten. I remember the last scene when they were both arm and arm with the man singing and that was a beautiful scene, capturing everything. When you watch this movie, you'll feel a tingle of excitement because you know you are watching a great picture. This movie made June Haver a star and advance Betty Grable's career. Once you see this movie, you'll never get your eyes off the screen. Its really that good. I recommend this movie to anyone that loves classic movies and loves excellent entertainment.

***1/2

[edwagreen · 9/10 · 14 September 2017]

I realize that the years pass and we all get older, but by film's end Betty Grable looked like an old has-been up against John Payne who aged properly for film purposes.

This being said, we have an endearing fictional biography of the Dolly Sisters who made it so big in revue's and vaudeville in the 1900s, but their devotion to each other just about wrecked Grable's relations with her husband, Harry Fox, played amicably by John Payne, who belts out I'm Always Chasing Rainbows and ditties with pleasure.

How come June Haver, as the other sister, never ages in the film?

The music and dancing here are wonderful and the story line, though so familiar in Hollywood land, is done well.

As the uncle, S.Z. Sakall is given little to do here and doesn't do his usual fracturing of the English language.

With that feel good ending, the beautiful set decorations just add to this tuneful rendition.

Time Traveling Venture

[rammar-87515 · 8/10 · 31 December 2017]

Made me feel like part of the Roaring 20s - saw it on TCM that's TurnerClassicMovies 57 + those 2 in ther yellow/orange ? pinkish ? head N sholders feathers were so CUTE w/singing Sidewalks Of NY WOW luved it !

Lovely musical.

[gkeith_1 · 10/10 · 2 August 2017]

Spoilers. Observations. Opinions.

Lovely musical. Very nice costumes. Little girl costumes remind one of Ginger Rogers making a movie where she tries to be a twelve year old girl.

Trained seal OK. John Payne OK.

But where is Mr. Selfridge? According to many sources, these sisters single handedly brought down his department store empire, in real life.

Mr. Selfridge's high living sent him on a downward financial spiral before he met the Dolly sisters, however. They had a great time spending his last dime, so to speak.

I am watching this film. I have seen it before. I don't remember seeing Selfridge in it. When I finish it this time, I will know.

I am an historian, actress, singer, dancer, fashion designer, stage makeup artist, film critic and movie reviewer.