Just-ended April was quite a month for Barbra Streisand and her fans. She was feted last week at Lincoln Center (I wasn’t invited) and a couple of days later a specacular restoration of “Funny Girl” opened the TCM Classic Film Festival (I showed up, she didn’t). Plus both “Funny Girl” and “Hello Dolly!” — Babs’ first and second films — bowed on Blu-ray. Herewith a belated report on them. Blame TCM and Deanna Durbin if you must.
TCM’s Robert Osborne called “Funny Girl” the “most remarkable debut performance in film history,” and it’s certainly up there. William Wyler may not have been completely in his element for what turned out to be his one and only musical, but the winner of three Best Director awards (13 of his movies, including “Funny Girl,” were nominated for Best Picture) certainly knew how to direct Oscar Winning Best Actresses — Bette Davis, Olivia De Havilland, Audrey Hepburn, and in this case, Streisand.
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