1955's "Guys and Dolls" was a big-budget musical production that cost MGM Studios $5.5 million.Yes. It was bright and flashy. Yes. It was busy and bushy-tailed. And, yes - It was also a hopelessly boring Rom/Com that ended (after 2.5 hours) on one of the most cringe-worthy bum-notes imaginable.And, speaking about actor, Marlon Brando (aka. "Mumbles") - I cannot figure out, for the life of me, why he would agree to star in this fluffy foolishness.Not only did he come across looking like an utter jackass, singing and dancing - But he was far from being at all convincing as a sweethearted lover-boy in the heat of romance.I mean - Let's face it - Brando was born a bully (of both men and women) and that's the only type of character he's at all suited for playing.Anyway - This film has an interesting behind-the-scenes story involving the strained working relationship, on the set, between Brando (it figures) and Frank Sinatra. (For further juicy details - Check it out on Wikipedia)

My favorite all time movie. I have seen it 30 times. And I am not the biggest movie fan, nor am I a big musical fan (I have maybe seen five musicals in my life). But I just loved everything about the movie. It was just a fun, fun movie. It had its share of wit. Like Sinatra with a racing form in his back pocket before he got married. The story was super. The melody of the songs were great. The lyrics were even greater. And the terminology was used correctly. Often you can tell it is not used correctly. I mean heck the song "Rockin the boat" even used the word fade (which means to 'bet against). Only people in the know understand that term. A lot of times you watch a movie that is based on gambling and you see things you know are out of place (Like rounders, or Cincinnati kid, the way the betting went on the last game). I saw nothing out of place here, the writers knew the "Talk" and way the action goes. Brando's singing was not as bad as some say it was (it wasn't great) and his chemistry with jean Simmons was quite good. My favorite song was 'Adelaide', but this was a tough call as there were so many. If you like anything about the gambling scene, and just good clean fun, you have to love this movie.

Basically, in the Fabulous Fifties, Nathan Detroit (Frank Sinatra), a broke gambler, is running a gambling game called the "Crap Game", in an attempt to get $1,000, while he is in love with his own fiancée, Miss Adelaide (Vivian Blaine), while being encouraged by Nicely Nicely Johnson (Stubby Kaye), Benny (Johnny Silver) and Sky Masterson (Marlon Brando), who are also involved in the crap game, while Masterson intends on taking a Mission Band doll (Jean Simmons) with him to Havana.Considering this is from a great Damon Runyon story, the songs by Frank Loesser are upbeat and sometimes beautiful. I grew up with this movie since I was a child, but I wasn't growing up in the fifties, but I didn't care what decade I was from. I loved this movie. I really enjoyed it.

Guys and Dolls (1955) *** (out of 4) Sky Masterson (Marlon Brando) makes a bet with Nathan Detroit (Frank Sinatra) that he can sweep a missionary woman (Jean Simmons) off her feet. While Sky works his magic on the woman, Nathan must try and find a new place to hold a large gambling ring.GUYS AND DOLLS will always be a hotly debated film because of the casting of Brando. Up to this point people had only seen Brando in some hard-hitting dramas so what were the producers thinking by putting him in a musical where he'd have to sing? The on-set tension between Brando and Sinatra are somewhat legendary due to the legendary singer wanting to play the Sky Masterson part. Brando, being the constant joker, knew this and didn't hold back pranks.So, does the film work? I personally think it works pretty good even though one of the reasons it's so charming is the same reason it's uneven. I love Marlon Brando and he's one of my favorite actors but there's no question that he wasn't right for this role. With that said, he might not have been right for it but I thought he did a fine job with it. He looks rather uneasy at times but this "different" type of performance actually makes the character quite interesting. I thought Brando did a good job with the singing, although they had to apparently take various takes and edit them together. He certainly knows how to play the romantic and charming parts.Sinatra, probably better suited for the Sky role, does a good job in the supporting role and manages to bring some life to the film. Simmons makes for a very good love interest and I thought she had some really good chemistry with Brando. Vivian Blaine is also quite charming in her supporting role as Sinatra's fiancé for fourteen years.The cinematography is quite good and the musical numbers are well-staged and performed. The songs are also quite good, although I wouldn't call all of them masterpieces. Brando's performance of Luck Be a Lady is quite good and catchy. There are problems with the film including it being a bit uneven at times. I'd also argue that 150 minutes was way too long. Still, even with the flaws, GUYS AND DOLLS is a charming film that's certainly worth watching.