From All That Jazz to Hedwig and the Angry Inch, the musical genre has been sparsely represented throughout the Criterion Collection. There are just nearly 30 titles (including the subject of this review) out of the more than 1,700 entries throughout releases — that’s less than two percent of the entire collection dedicated to the genre. While it may be an issue of distribution and licensing rights, it seems like it’s a breath of fresh air whenever a musical, in this case 1968’s Funny Girl, gets a proper Criterion Collection release — especially since it’s a film that’s considered one of the best from a filmmaker and an actress with long careers in Hollywood.
Written by Isobel Lennart and directed by William Wyler, Funny Girl, based on the smash Broadway hit of the same name, is set in New York City and follows Fanny Brice’s (Barbra Streisand) rise to stardom in Vaudeville to Ziegfeld Follies to Broadway during the early 1900s. Along the way, she meets and falls in love with Nicky Arnstein (Omar Sharif), a professional card player and playboy. However, after falling in with a bonds scam, Nicky is sent to prison, as Fanny waits for his return.
The film was the toast of 1968 cinema and pop culture, while Funny Girl was nominated for several Academy Awards, including Best Picture (losing to another musical, Oliver!), Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Song, and others. But the film’s only win was for its star Barbra Streisand who was awarded Best Actress in her film debut. Interestingly, this was also William Wyler’s penultimate film with his final movie The Liberation of L.B. Jones coming in 1970, as Old Hollywood made way for New Hollywood — we’re literally witnessing “a star is born.”
And after 56 years, the film holds up very well with quick pacing, dynamic camerawork, eye-popping visuals, and thrilling musical numbers. It plays just as well in 2024, as it did in 1968 with loads of charm and grace from Streisand’s star-making performance and Wyler’s steady hand and eye in the director’s chair.
The film is presented with overture and intermission in the turn spirit of musical theater, while the Criterion Collection’s 4K digital restoration looks immaculate and true to the era — especially in 4K Dolby Vision HDR (high dynamic range). The sound quality is top-notch with a restoration presented in 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio. The presentation of Funny Girl is modern and worthy of just about any robust home theater system, while it doesn’t lose any of its late ‘60s charm.
As for bonus features, Funny Girl is stacked with a new interview with Barbra Streisand about the production and what the film has meant to her career, a new conversation with David Wyler, William Wyler’s son, and film author Alicia Malone, and a short documentary called Directed by William Wyler from 1986 that features interviews from Bette Davis, Audrey Hepburn, Charlton Heston, Gregory Peck, Billy Wilder, and others about working with the famed director — who makes an appearance in the documentary himself, just days before his death in 1981 (this writer’s favorite bonus feature). The release also has a bunch of featurettes from past home video releases, so it really makes this new Criterion Collection release a definitive one.
Although the Criterion Collection should have more musicals under its belt, the addition of Funny Girl is very much appreciated — especially for fans of the genre. Let’s hope musicals like Dancer in the Dark, Popeye, Golden Eighties, Girl Walk // All Day, La La Land, and others get the same treatment in the future. At least, that’s this writer’s hope.
