Pal Joey (1957) User Reviews

One of the last great triumphs in Rita Hayworth's career

[AlsExGal · 7/10 · 11 August 2018]

I enjoyed this film about a man (Frank Sinatra) who is being kept by a wealthy older woman (Rita Hayworth) despite being more interested in a young chorus girl (Kim Novak). Sinatra allows the wealth and social standing of Hayworth to lead him astray from the affections of Novak. He initially seduces Hayworth to get her to bankroll his dream nightclub--Chez Joey (corny name). Unfortunately, Hayworth ends up falling in love with Sinatra, while he still holds a torch for Novak. The crux of the story is that Sinatra ends up having to choose between his club/Hayworth (obviously dumping Hayworth and thus, dumping her money, would spell the end of Chez Joey) and his true love, Novak.

I thought Hayworth was very beautiful as "the older woman" (even though she's younger than Sinatra). My only complaint about Hayworth's appearance, like my complaint about her appearance in Cover Girl, is that the makeup she has on is almost garish. She's wearing too much rouge or something, which I think aged her. Novak, on the other hand, was wearing more subtle makeup (save for the red lip) and was absolutely gorgeous as the young chorus girl. It's hard to look at anyone or anything else when Novak was on the screen. I especially loved her performance of "My Funny Valentine." Aside from 'Valentine,' many Sinatra standards were featured, like "Bewitched" ("performed" by Hayworth, dubbed by Jo Ann Greer) and "The Lady is a Tramp" (performed by Sinatra).

The role of Joey Evans was pioneered by Gene Kelly on Broadway seventeen years prior on Broadway. However, for the film version, he was turned down (or perhaps not considered) for the film version and Sinatra got the role.

"Confidentially....I'm stacked."

[movibuf1962 · 6/10 · 29 September 2006]

Now that I know the back story on Pal Joey, I can sort of appreciate the film a bit better. I didn't like it for years because of Frank Sinatra. Suppose I'm in the minority on that one, but I just didn't like the character leading so many women astray- young, old, rich, poor, etc. Two things made me reconsider the story: (1) The girls allow themselves to be played, and (2) PJ originated from a stage musical almost 20 years earlier, with much of the original story intact. The character *is* a heel- 'nuff said. It was created by, of all people, Gene Kelly-- whose screen characters often included a touch of the larcenous in the first place. And apparently, Columbia tried to film PJ with Kelly waaay back in the 1940's when he was the right age to do it-- but the Hays censors raised too many red flags on the film's decidedly 'adult' content to let it be filmed. By the time it was cleared for film, 17 years had passed and Joey's heel had become a Sinatra crooner rather than a Kelly dancer, and much of the book and lyrics had been watered down. (When you think about it, JOEY needs to be re-filmed today, but with its original stage content. Can you imagine?!)

Anyway, now that I look at Sinatra, the-cynical-50's rat-packer playing Joey, the-cynical-50's-womanizer, I have to conclude that he got it exactly right, culminating in one perfect scene in the film: his piano-playing, spotlight croon of "The Lady Is a Tramp" to socialite Rita Hayworth. Just like Astaire seduced women with dance, Sinatra completely breaks down the icy Hayworth through the clever arrangement and performance of the song. At the end of it, THEY are slow-dancing. Wicked!! Other fine moments include Sinatra's treatment of "I Didn't Know What Time It Was," the breathtaking ballad "My Funny Valentine," and the smoky-voiced Hayworth in two numbers: a pretend striptease to the very clever song "Zip" and waking up in the most luscious state of drunken love to "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered." (No one but Hayworth could make rising out of bed- in a sun-colored nightgown- a thing of sexy beauty.)

Unfortunately, this is where the parts do not equal a decent sum. The book has Joey caught between *two* women, and Kim Novak, for all of her traffic-stopping sex appeal, seems out of place as the second girl in the equation, perennially starry-eyed for a man more than twice her age and more of a doormat than a 'mouse,' as she is referred. If that was the original book, then I demand a rewrite. I was under the impression that the virginal ingénue was supposed to resist Joey and his charms, which made him want her all the more. (Once again, the idea of doing JOEY with a modern cast and sensibility seems irresistible today.) Novak does a very funny drunk scene on a boat, and her Victorian striptease is smoldering, to say the least. But an 11th-hour fantasy number called "What Do I Care for a Dame" is silly looking because it features too many people who can't dance. And I've heard other legends about the story's change from the stage: It's supposed to be set in Chicago, not San Francisco; the older woman is married, not widowed; and no one ends up with anyone at the end. For a story with an almost flawless musical score, it is one of the bumpiest films I've ever seen. But I'm glad I saw it.

If you like musicals of this period, don't miss "Pal Joey."

[jbriskey1 · 7/10 · 2 January 2006]

Another marvelous effort from prolific director George Sidney, who once again displays an uncanny ability to make us wish we lived in the and time and place of his films. The classic Rogers and Hart songs selected from the smorgasbord written for the original 1940 play alone make this movie well worth a look.

Gene Kelly, a chorus boy a year earlier, was cast in the title role in the original but critically panned "Joey" of 1940. The story line for "Joey" was too sleazy and cynical for the 40's, but today comes across better than the average fare in support of many musicals of the period.

Frank Sinatra is well suited as the film-version Joey. His musical and acting styles add contemporary flavors that are as appealing in the 1950's film version as they were in the critically acclaimed 1952 revival of the play featuring Harold Lang as Joey. Frank's signature song delivery retains, but also in part redefines in a more contemporary way, the classic appeal of the best show tunes of the 40's and 50's.

Although Rita Hayworth's acting talents too often are overlooked, she is the standout actor in "Joey." Casting Kim Novak in a 50's film rather defines the genre, and while she is both appealing and likable in her role, you can't help but be aware that she is stretching her limits as an actor, singer, and dancer.

Finally, the film is a visual treat, and San Francisco a more than an adequate substitute for Chicago. Don't analyze, just sit back and enjoy.

Pretty Good Frank, Very Bad Theatre History

[ekennedy421 · 28 June 2000]

I like Sinatra as much as the next girl and then some. Probably the best thing about this film is the numbers The Chairman does alone onstage. However, I'm also well acquainted with PAL JOEY in its stage form, and this watered down film doesn't serve it well. As is so often the case with film musicals, it bears very little resemblance to the show it purports to represent.

First of all, like many other movie musicals this one is rife with interpolations. Viewers should realize that both "My Funny Valentine" and "The Lady is a Tramp" come from Rodgers and Hart's BABES IN ARMS (though, ironically, both were cut from the film version of that musical). "There's a Small Hotel" is from ON YOUR TOES and TOO MANY GIRLS gave us the haunting "I Didn't Know What Time It Was" (probably the interpolation that works best). Secondly, most of the songs they did keep don't remain intact. For instance, when they moved the setting from Chicago to San Francisco the song the club girls sing went to pot. Also, the lyrics to "Bewitched" had to be sanitized for popular consumption, which is a pity because they're some of Larry Hart's best. "Zip" was also revised and given to Vera. The witty "Take Him" was cut, which is a real pity, and several other numbers are gone entirely or reduced to underscoring.

PAL JOEY was one of the first shows to bring cynicism to the musical stage. The second you inject romance into it, you've killed what it's about. If I was just looking for a lightweight love story, I might enjoy this film. Knowing what I know now, I find it a bit tough to take.

When old blue eyes sings, all is forgiven...

[Doylenf · 7/10 · 6 May 2006]

George Sidney may not be one of Hollywood's best-known or most appreciated directors, but he does turn PAL JOEY into an enjoyable viewing experience by releasing it from stagebound sets and giving it an open air look that is refreshing and watchable, especially since the scene has been transferred to San Francisco rather than Chicago.

Some of the songs are borrowed from other Rodgers and Hart musicals, but when FRANK SINATRA sings standards like "There's A Small Hotel" and "The Lady Is A Tramp", he can do no wrong. He plays a no-good piano lounge lizard who has the world on a string as long as he stays one step ahead of the nightclub owner that he keeps making deals with.

The "mice" are played by RITA HAYWORTH and KIM NOVAK, Miss Hayworth making up for the badly-in-need-of-acting-coach Novak, who really stumbles in this one. Apparently George Sidney couldn't give her any guidance on how to play any of her scenes--the way Hitchcock did for "Vertigo". Their confrontation scene has no ooomph because Novak is simply not there and thus there are no real fireworks. Even so, Hayworth makes her character strong and possessive.

It's really Sinatra's show all the way and he delivers a solidly engaging performance, even though his character is lacking in what we might call integrity.

Enjoyable musical--Hayworth's "Zip" and "Bewitched" are nicely done even if she doesn't do her own vocals. The dancer magic is still there in the way she moves through any number she does.

Summing up: worth a look if you like musicals.

Just a gigolo

[ianlouisiana · 6/10 · 9 January 2006]

Joey Evans isn't a very nice person.If you've got a daughter maybe you should lock her up because for some reason the broads go crazy after him. He's a skinny little guy you'd pass by on the sidewalk without looking at but whatever it is the girlies like - he's got it in spades.He ain't above schmoozing the chicks for bread either,if he's a bit short of the folding green.Basically the guy's a putz.OK,so he can sing a bit,but that don't make him Gigli,right,he's still a putz. That,basically,is the "book" for the George Sidney musical "Pal Joey". Fortunately it has some fine Rodgers and Hart songs and two strong if not particularly likable performances from Mr Frank Sinatra and Miss Rita Hayworth.The very beautiful Miss Kim Novak has eyes of the most startling colour,skin as smooth as a baby's and the air of slightly-bruised innocence that men of a certain age prize very highly.She plays Miss Hayworth's rival for the affections of Mr Sinatra.She mimes rather sweetly to "My Funny Valentine" and there are lots of close-ups of her eyes. Mr Sinatra was the byword for cool in 1957 but to more modern sensibilities some of his attitudes may find less favour than of yore. He certainly seemed to have no trouble suppressing his feminine side. Lines I laughed at when it first came out now seem distinctly unfunny. He seems to be polishing up his Las Vegas act.I loved the way he carries his mac over his shoulder and pushes his hat onto the back of his head, the passing of time has,unhappily,cast that as affectation not cool,and his snappy one-liners offensive,not sharp.Both he and Joey Evans I imagine would be easy men to love but hard men to like.

Stylish but smarmy concoction...

[moonspinner55 · 6/10 · 31 December 2005]

Glossy, empty musical adapted from John O'Hara's stage success, now a star-vehicle for Frank Sinatra, who can't work up a head of steam over role as Joey Evans, nightclub singer/ladies' man who hopes to open his own club. Rita Hayworth, playing Joey's ex-girlfriend and benefactor, gets the worst of it: she still loves Joey (I guess) and wants him on a tight leash, but she's given no sympathetic scenes and is put down at every opportunity. The Rodgers and Hart songs are nice (with Kim Novak's vocals dubbed by Trudy Stevens and Hayworth's partially dubbed by Jo Ann Greer), but the inane plot takes them nowhere. Novak is charismatic in a nothing part, while Sinatra is Sinatra, walking through too-snugly. The film has colorful costumes, slick settings and lots of smarmy talk; it's all style in a pseudo-jaded key. Four Oscar nominations with no wins. **1/2 from ****

Cleaned-up version of a delightfully smutty show, but oh those Lorenz Hart lyrics....

[mark.waltz · 7/10 · 1 October 2013]

O.K., so alterations had to be made to some of them, and with his death over a decade before, much of the wit is gone from them. But what remains is a clever update that will upset theatre purists (like myself) but ultimately satisfy those searching for a fun musical time (like myself).

Frank Sinatra's Joey is as far from his former co-star Gene Kelly's Joey (and Harold Lang's in the 1952 smash hit revival), but he is still a cad, using women to get ahead, if not as voraciously as the Broadway version. He's basically been tossed out of every city he's been to, most recently for breaking "legal age" laws. Now in San Francisco, he sets his sights on two beauties: a shy chorus girl (Kim Novak) and a wealthy socialite (Rita Hayworth) whose past Sinatra knows a thing or two about. This gives Hayworth the chance to take on the altered lyrics of "Zip!", initially sung by a reporter as a parody of Gypsy Rose Lee, but here made to be the former theme song of Hayworth's stage career.

Of course, the older socialite makes demands of Sinatra, funding a nightclub for him to host, but will Frankie boy remain true to purse strings or his heart? If he could write a book, it wouldn't probably be about the lady who's a tramp, most definitely more open to the one with the funny valentine. Interpolated Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart songs from other shows ("Babes in Arms", "On Your Toes") replace many cut from the show that was fresh to many filmgoers in 1957 because of the recent hit Broadway revival which toured for years afterwards.

As film entertainment, this is totally acceptable, but for representing a Broadway musical that was initially ahead of its time, forget about it. Sinatra is a bit of a ham here, trying to steal scenes every chance he gets, and the role of the blackmailing Gladys (here played by sex-pot Barbara Nichols) has been watered down to practically nothing. She had more to do in the same year's "The Pajama Game". Hayworth, dubbed by Jo Anne Greer, is still a beauty even if now a 40-something "has-been", yet at the end of her Columbia years, is still a sight to behold, especially as she sings "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" in her bedroom and shower. When she joins Novak with long tresses for the fantasy number, "What Do I Care For a Dame?", it appears that the hands of time have rolled back the clock.

As for Novak, she would go on to better performances, but it is apparent that here, having risen to stardom several years before, she's still a novice compared to the company she keeps. Her shy, butter wouldn't melt in her mouth routine is never fully believable, and when she does a striptease to "I Could Write a Book", it is obvious that this is where it's at for this former model who was Harry Cohn's last shot for stardom . Elizabeth Patterson is witty in a small role as Novak's landlady. The direction by George Sidney is as crisp as anything he did over at MGM, but the truth of the matter is that this isn't anywhere near the classic it could have been had it stuck closer to the original intentions of John O'Hara from his scandalous book which later scandalized Broadway and made Gene Kelly a star.

Charming story, top-notch performances, sublime music, excellent script, lush visuals, and beautiful women

[BrandtSponseller · 10/10 · 21 May 2005]

If you read my title, that's probably all I should have to say about this one. But I'll flesh it out for you a bit. If you couldn't tell, this is one of my favorite musicals, and one of my favorite films, period. In my view, there's not a flaw to be had here--we'd have to invent one, and it would be implausible. I give plenty of 10s, but quite a few are like rating a one-scoop ice cream cone where they forgot the cone, but where there's an extra scoop of ice cream in an attractive dish to make up for it. Pal Joey is like a one-scoop ice cream cone where not only is the cone there, it's the kind of cone you love, and there are two extra scoops of ice cream that happen to be your favorite flavors.

Frank Sinatra is Joey Evans, a peripatetic musician who is also quite popular with women, but who has a reputation for not being exactly dependable or trustworthy. As the film opens he's being put on a train with a one-way ticket out of town because he was caught in an almost compromising situation with the Mayor's underaged daughter. He makes his way to San Francisco, where he sees that an old "friend"--more like an old debtee, Ned Galvin (Bobby Sherwood), is leading the band in a local club, The Barbary Coast. Joey finagles his way into a job, made more enticing to him, aside from the fact that he's broke, by the large number of very attractive women performers. But the club owner, Mike Miggins (Hank Henry), can see through his conniving ways.

Joey, who dreams of one day having his own club, begins falling for Linda English (Kim Novak), despite the fact that Ned is head over heels for her and out of all of the women, Linda is the one who wants the least to do with him. He also runs into Vera Simpson (Rita Hayworth) when he does a society gig with Ned. It seems that Vera used to be a showgirl like Linda, but she "married up". Pal Joey is largely about a love triangle between Joey, Linda and Vera.

This is an unusual romance in that for much of its length, all of the involved parties are reluctant. Linda may be attracted to Joey, but she knows better than getting involved with such a shifty womanizer. Vera is likewise cautious--especially since she has an implied history with Joey, and she now has a lot at stake. Joey is more than content to not approach commitment--he's satisfied with the string of women who continually pass through his life, who are all too happy to go out of their way to accommodate him--including doing his laundry and politely looking on and smiling when Joey puts the moves on another "mouse", as he calls them. As for Joey's interest in the two principals, it's not that he's not attracted to either, of course (what woman isn't he attracted to?), but with Vera he's playing her both for her money/social influence and to undermine what he sees as a feigned identity, and with Linda, he's initially attracted because she's playing hard to get. Both Linda and Vera also end up playing Joey to an extent to get back at him for various ethical blunders.

In addition to being intriguing for its uniqueness and relative complexity, all of this works as well as it does because the three leads are incredible performers and the script is intelligent, witty and tightly constructed. Sinatra, Novak and Hayworth are mesmerizing to watch on their own, but they all have great chemistry together, too. The characters seem tailor-made for these actors, despite the fact that the script was based on a popular Broadway show that began its run in 1940, and the Broadway show was itself based on short fiction pieces by John O'Hara that appeared in New Yorker Magazine.

Dorothy Kingsley's screenplay is loaded with subtle, quick humor in its clever dialogue. The combination of script, exemplary direction by George Sidney, and the great performances enables a number of very sophisticated dramatic moves, such as the deep backstory between Joey and Vera that is almost completely implied, and the overall atmosphere of the film, with its captivating and paradoxical combination of an ideal, romantic (in a more formal sense) world and a more earthy, cynical reality.

The atmosphere is also helped by the lush Technicolor cinematography, with some impressive shots of San Francisco, but equally attractive soundstage set-ups. It's interesting to note Kim Novak's look here, especially when she's framed against San Francisco cityscapes--it's remarkably prescient of her appearance in Hitchcock's Vertigo (1958). I suppose Pal Joey may have been why Hitchcock decided to cast Novak, and it may have influenced him a bit visually.

Before I run out of space, I should mention the music, by the incomparable duo of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, which is one of the best things about the film. Every song in Pal Joey is a gem. As a testament to how good they are, four of them--"I Could Write a Book", "The Lady is a Tramp", "My Funny Valentine", and my personal favorite, "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" (the theme of the film)--have become jazz standards over the years. There have been hundreds of recordings by different artists performing them--for that matter there are hundreds of recordings of "My Funny Valentine" alone. The arrangements (partially by Nelson Riddle) and performances (especially by Sinatra, but that probably goes without saying) in the film are sublime. If you're a jazz lover, the film would be worth viewing for the music alone, but of course it offers much more than that.

Unless you simply hate musicals (in which case it's very unlikely that you've read this far), make sure you see Pal Joey at least once.

A great entry to Sinatra the singer and the man...and a half-decent musical as well!

[secondtake · 7/10 · 10 August 2012]

Pal Joey (1957)

This is a vehicle for Frank Sinatra to sing. And that's all we need, in a way. The movie has a plot, and two stellar actresses who are neither quite at their best (the overrated Kim Novak and the restrained Rita Hayworth). And it has some nice full Technicolor filming in and around San Francisco which is its own attraction.

But Sinatra rules nearly every scene. He has his regular guy persona, perfected years ago for lots of musicals and even some dramas, with the slight tweak that he's a bit full of himself. Except we know it's an act just to survive. He meets chorus girl Novak and likes her rather a lot, and he meets high society and ex-showgirl stripper Hayworth and likes her rather less, but they seem to have some hot flashes anyway. And he needs her money to make it big in town.

That's the plot, as the two women vie for his attention. Meanwhile a new nightclub featuring, yes, singing and dancing, is opening and so that becomes the center of all the swirling. It's all predictably held back from anything realistic, of course. I mean, Sinatra is this guy who's totally broke and desperate, but he doesn't really show it. (He says it.) When he swoops on stage at the first opportunity it's all in that fantasy world of possibilities that are what make musicals musicals. Those of you who are tempted to say, "Oh, come on!" you need to let go and just find the flow. Get used to the idea that it's a kind of parallel universe, slightly false and dreamlike on purpose. The improbable is meant to be just that because it's more fun that way!

Meanwhile there's Sinatra the singer. He goes through a whole list of numbers, some of them rather famous, and he hums and sings bits of other great songs. These include "My Funny Valentine" which Novak performs in full on stage, and "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered" which Hayworth performs to herself in her spacious bedroom. Both of the women's vocals are dubbed in by other vocalists, however.

And yes, there are some really famous songs here. The composers are none other than Rogers and Hart, coming from their 1940 Broadway play of the same name (and originally starring Gene Kelly). Most of the songs originated there, but four, including "The Lady is a Tramp" and "My Funny Valentine" came from a 1937 musical "Babes in Arms," also by Rogers and Hart.

The "charts" are by the great Nelson Riddle, who arranged Sinatra's most classic albums of the 1950s. Everything is in pitch perfect form here, and if you want a dose of pure Sinatra, the actor and singer, this is the place to start. Don't expect too much of a movie, but don't worry, either, because it's all solid and very enjoyable. And a dream you can really inhabit.

Pale Joey

[Lejink · 5/10 · 2 August 2010]

I really wanted to like this colourful adaptation of one of Rogers and Hart's last and most successful shows and attracted by big names like Sinatra, Hayworth and Novak, thought I couldn't lose. Sheesh, was I wrong.

Concerning ne'erdowell Joey (Sinatra's) self-obsessed attempts to get himself up the greasy pole to his own club in San Francisco and no doubt attendant fame and fortune, the film fails ultimately for a number of reasons. First Frank's character just isn't desperate enough, purportedly down on his luck, he always looks perfectly turned out, even before he becomes wealthy widow Hayworth's kept man. And the idea to give this hard-bitten Casanova a cute puppy dog is just wrong on so many levels. His character never seems to stop talking and often re-hashes the same stock phrases, which gets wearing after a while. As for Hayworth and Novak, both look fantastic, filmed in great clothes in great light, as befits two of the sexiest women to ever come out of Tinseltown, but the former lacks that dare I say it, Norma Desmond controlling, self-deluding and even slightly deranged conviction which would have made her character more rounded while Novak gets to play a whimpering simpering child, completely at odds with her overly sensual demeanour.

Some of the scenes are ridiculously contrived too, like Novak's strip-tease, her later passing out on Sinatra when they're on Hayworth's yacht and Joey's dream sequence when both his loves sashay around him like bees to honey. Worst of all is Hayworth's "Sugar Mommy" backing out of the competition for Joey by personally fetching Novak for their hold-hands, run-at-the-camera, big love shot at the conclusion.

On the plus side, as indicated, the stars all look great, Sinatra too, being in the middle of his classic Capitol series of recordings, even getting to quote one of his catch-phrases "Ring-a-ding-ding" at one point. The San Francisco locations are also easy on the eye and the musical numbers excellent, including "The Lady Is a Tramp", "My Funny Valentine" and "Bewitched Bothered and Bewildered" amongst them. Unfortunately, the movie dialogue too rarely matches the sharpness of Lorenz Hart's lyrics. Damon Runyan, this ain't.

A missed opportunity them and I'm not sure I can tell quite why. Some shows may just work well on stage, I'm guessing this is one of them.

John O'Hara, he could write a book

[bkoganbing · 9/10 · 26 February 2006]

In his career Frank Sinatra did two film adaptions of Rodgers and Hart musicals. The first was Higher and Higher which was his first feature film speaking part. Pal Joey was the second and it is probably the greatest show Rodgers and Hart ever did.

When it debuted on Broadway in 1941 it got good, but not great reviews. But everyone loved the Rodgers and Hart score. Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered and I Could Write a Book were the big hits of the show and were retained for the film.

Pal Joey may have been ahead of its times. It was revived in 1951 and ran twice as long as it did in its original production. The reviews were far better. To say this is unusual is putting it mildly.

On Broadway, Joey Evans who we would now call a lounge lizard was played by Gene Kelly and in the revival by Harold Lang. The part really fit Sinatra perfectly. But the role had to be changed from a dancing part to a singing part. I believe that was the reason for the interpolation of other Rodgers and Hart songs in the film.

And Sinatra sings some good ones in Pal Joey. Added in for the filmgoers listening pleasure are There's A Small Hotel, I Didn't Know What Time It Was, and The Lady is a Tramp, the last one becoming a Sinatra standard in his live concerts. Movie singing don't get too much better than this.

Frank is an ambitious man of rather low morals who is caught between rich widow Rita Hayworth and ingenue Kim Novak. He loves Kim, but Rita can give him financial security. These are the kind of people that populate the John O'Hara world, very real and not too noble.

Although a few years later Frank Sinatra sang a concert version of Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered with a hundred piece orchestra for his Reprise record label, it is in fact a woman's song as is My Funny Valentine. Rita does Bewitched as well as Zip. The latter song is a tribute number to Gypsy Rose Lee as Rita plays an ex-stripper. My Funny Valentine is done by Kim Novak.

When I say done, both ladies mouthed the words, but the vocals were dubbed as they always were for Ms. Hayworth. And I guess that had to be because both Hayworth and Novak could never have had the parts done by the best of vocalists.

As Pal Joey came to the screen in 1957 along with The Joker is Wild, my favorite Sinatra film, I've always picked that year as the year Old Blue Eyes was at the height of his career. His acting is impeccable and his singing, some of the best he ever did on screen.

Cute and funny but not a home-run

[Robert_duder · 7/10 · 7 November 2015]

I have said before that sometimes stage plays, even great ones, don't translate well to film and sometimes they do. It really does depend on the screenplay and who stars in the film and a few other key details. Pal Joey has its ups and downs and is overall entertaining but mostly thanks to Frank Sinatra and his larger than life persona that is hard to ignore in any capacity. It has elements of romance and music and drama and a few genuinely funny moments. Ideally though this is a vehicle for Sinatra. With anyone else in his role it wouldn't have been even nearly as good. His charisma saves this from being a rather hum drum sort of romantic comedy/musical. I think the biggest problem I personally had with the film was the lack of chemistry between the leads. I think in order for this to be genuinely great you need a guy and two girls that have great energy opposite of each other. At the heart (pun intended) of the film is a romance and yet you don't really feel that. The main character is such an egotistical ladies man and you expect a full turn around but I'm not sure you ever get that. You are sort of left with he is who he is but she's gonna be with him anyways.

I have very little experience watching Frank Sinatra on screen but I love the man for his albums, always have since I was a kid, so the highlight of this movie for me was seeing him perform. He is mesmerizing and it is easily the strong point in the film. Singing "Lady is A Tramp" to Rita Hayworth was definitely worth the price of admission. Sinatra is very good in this role and suits it to a T. He is perfectly believable as a street-wise ladies man with big dreams and his character actually is a complex guy and I'm not sure we get everything out of one movie. Kim Novak is beautiful of course and her role as Karen English is decent. I just didn't feel like she got a lot of depth nor did her and Sinatra have the right chemistry. They had some good scenes and some okay banter but the door is open here for this terrific love-hate rivalry that never really takes off. Rita Hayworth is also very good if not just a touch obvious as the aristocratic Vera Simpson who lures Frank's Joey into a relationship of necessity. Hayworth's character is not very likable though she has a very good turning point in the end. However, like Novak, her chemistry with Sinatra is okay at best and her and Novak don't share enough screen time.

Like many directors of the time, George Sidney has done other musical to screen adaptations. I just think Pal Joey isn't necessarily the right stage play to adapt though I'd love to see a modern take on it (think Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan annnnd Julia Roberts in the 90's) but the chemistry was off, the pacing doesn't feel quite right and the music is a little underwhelming. Still, it is a classic for a reason and it was fun. Some of the dialogue (especially from Sinatra) was legendary. He was a fast talking sarcastic lout and he did it well. I would think for its time, Pal Joey was a touch racy and I actually liked that about it. Watching a classic with a little bit of an adult edge for its time made me feel a little naughty like I'm sure it did for them back in 1957. I can assure you that I will now check out some of Frank Sinatra's more well known roles so the movie is not a total loss. Its worth seeing if you love the classics but certainly far from the best out there. 7/10

Dated and vulgar

[AttyTude0 · 3/10 · 3 October 2015]

I never liked Frank Sinatra. Oh, sure, he's great to listen to when he sings. But, IMHO, his singing talent never could make up for the fact that, even in a tux, he was a skinny, unattractive and terribly common-looking little man ("half-pint imitation" describes him to a T). As a woman I never understood why beautiful women like Ava Gardner, etc., fell over like ninepins around him.

OK, that's a bit off my chest.

Now to the film. I usually like musicals and vintage Hollywood. But this one I had a hard time getting through. I always say that judging films (or anything else) made over 60 years ago by today's standards is stupid, bigoted and pointless. Things were different then and that's all there is to it. If you can't stand it, well, stick to Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston ... er, "comedies"? Having said that, this film is ruined by, among other things, some of the corniest, most cringe-worthy, Ugh!-inducing lines I have ever heard. Even for 1950s Hollywood.

Apparently, the original Broadway show was duly sanitized when they converted it to the screen, which proves - once again - that censorship is NEVER a good idea, whether it's on moral or politically correct grounds. So we ended up with a film that can't quite make up its mind whether it wants to be a sleazy comedy with a romantic twist, or a romantic comedy with a sleazy twist. Kim Novak is absolutely gorgeous, but she's just not convincing as an ingénue. Someone here said that Rita Hayworth's role should have been more Norma Desmond-like and I really could not agree more. And I already said what I think of "Sinatra as Mr. Irresistible."

All in all, unless you're a Frank Sinatra die-hard, just skip it. There are much better "classics" out there.

Some additional items missed in other comments.

[Dave-230 · 1 March 1999]

Simply cannot understand how other commentators could have noted such things as the film's being a showcase for Sinatra's singing and Novak's physical attributes (both of which, alas, now gone) and completely fail to take notice of the wonderful songs by Rodgers & Hart; the great arrangements by Nelson Riddle; and the fine cinematography!

Pretty good musical

[preppy-3 · 6/10 · 15 August 2000]

I realize most of the songs are taken from other musicals and they sanitize the lyrics for "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" but I sort of like this musical. The numbers are all well done and performed and Rita Hayworth is stunning to look at. But I have two big problems with this movie: 1) Sinatra's character is such a heel, I couldn't care less what happened to him; and 2) Kim Novak. She's breathtakingly beautiful and has a great body but she CAN'T ACT! I can't remember the last time I saw such a wooden performance in a motion picture. Both of these things bothered me. Still, it's worth a look if you like musicals. Highlights: Sinatra doing "The Lady Is a Tramp" and Novak doing "My Funny Valentine".

Classic Rodgers-Hart Songs Provide Framework for a Swinging Sinatra in a Predictably Drawn Triangle

[EUyeshima · 6/10 · 2 June 2008]

If Frank Sinatra had a signature role in his long movie career, this must be it because he plays one of his coolest cats in this fairly adult 1957 musical drama based on a book by John O'Hara. However, it's better remembered for the fourteen songs by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, many of which became Sinatra standards. Written by Dorothy Kingsley, the rather slight story has the crooner play womanizing nightclub singer Joey Evans who keeps losing jobs because cad that he is, he likes to fool around with married women. Joey lands in San Francisco and finagles his way into a job as singer and emcee at a dive called the Barbary Coast. There he meets innocent Linda English from Albuquerque, a chorine who refuses to strip and just wants to be a torch singer. In typical Sinatra swinging fashion, Joey flirts with her but plays hard-to-get. One night, both are recruited for a charity show held at a posh Nob Hill mansion. The hostess is Vera Simpson, a former striptease performer who has since become a wealthy society matron. Sparks fly between Joey and Vera but only after mutual acts of humiliation. He breezily moves in with her on her yacht, and she decides to fund his pipe dream, owning a sophisticated nightspot she dubs "Chez Joey". Never one to leave his cards on the table, Joey hires Linda to sing, and you can guess the rest as the inevitable romantic triangle takes the expected turns.

Directed by George Sidney ("Anchors Aweigh", "Viva Las Vegas"), it plays out rather lugubriously with nary a surprise, but the songs are mostly gems. Sinatra knows how to play heels, though Joey never gets hard-boiled enough to develop a true edge. On the upside, he sings "There's a Small Hotel", "I Could Write a Book" and best of all, "The Lady Is a Tramp" to a guardedly smitten Rita Hayworth well cast as Vera. Even though at 38, she was actually younger than Sinatra, she cuts a coolish (and shapely) figure as a jealous patroness despite the unflattering camera angles. It's just a shame that the story doesn't respect her character much, especially at the very end. However, when she literally lets her hair down, it's a relief to see her old seductive self in post-coital bliss as she lip-syncs "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" (sung seductively by Jo Ann Greer). As Linda, Kim Novak - a year away from "Vertigo" - fares less well as she looks tentative and oddly blank-faced during her big number, "My Funny Valentine" (sung sonorously by Trudy Erwin). But we all know it's really Sinatra we want to see perform, and from that respect, a lot of the movie plays out like one of his 1960's TV specials. The only extras on the 1999 DVD are a couple of trailers and talent files for the principals. An intermittent entertainment, it's definitely a product of a bygone era.

Great Songs...

[screenman · 6/10 · 3 April 2011]

I hadn't seen this movie for decades. But it was remembered (pretty vaguely) with affection. However, I recently purchased the DVD, and whilst even a large-screen television doesn't really do justice to some of the more expansive older movies, I confess to being a tad disappointed even so.

The songs were great, pretty much as I remembered them. Frank Sinatra was on top-drawer sparkling form. Hayworth and Novak were all you could expect from the so-called screen-goddesses of the 1950's. Yet something was missing. There were shortfalls in between songs, during story development, that seemed to cause the whole plot to languish briefly. I confess to finding myself bored. It didn't happen very often. But it happened. Maybe the director imagined that the three leads, and the great songs would be enough to carry the production and so it wasn't necessary to try too hard with anything else. I don't really know.

'Pal Joey' isn't remembered half so well as some other 1950's musicals. And perhaps there's a reason for that. I suspect it needed a couple more songs - good songs - and maybe a bit more excitement to the story-line. Fans of 'ol blue eyes will still be enchanted, but without him and the songs this would have been a complete non-event.

A Sinatra Gem

[gavin6942 · 7/10 · 11 November 2015]

Joey Evans (Frank Sinatra) is charming, handsome, funny, talented, and a first class, A-number-one heel. When Joey meets the former chorus girl and now rich widow Vera Simpson (Rita Hayworth), the two lecherous souls seem made for each other.

Frank Sinatra's movie career is very hit and miss. I am not, for example, a big fan of his song and dance movies with Gene Kelly. And it is not because I don't like musicals. I love Danny Kaye and such classics as "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers". I just don't think Sinatra fits in.

Here he plays something of a sleazy night life character. And although it is an act he plays up, he plays it up well. Rita Hayworth also does good, and it is Kim Novak's chance to shine. For those who love Sinatra, this is well worth seeking out and deserves to be better known.

Hayworth SIZZLES in this lavish musical production!

[camerondietrich · 10/10 · 26 March 2002]

Based on the naughty Broadway hit and featuring luscious tunes by Rodgers and Hart, Pal Joey was softened from his arrogant heel stage persona for this more sanitized film version. Now-good guy Joey (Sinatra) wants to open a swanky nightclub in San Francisco, enlisting the help of high society dame Vera Simpson (Hayworth), a former chorus girl. But things get sticky when Joey finds his eyes drifting towards the knockout Linda English (Novak). A leggy singer/dancer with aspirations of being a star, Linda also has a soft place in her heart for Joey. Of course, complications abound, along with much singing and dancing, before tying up nicely with a bouncy, breezy, "walking into the sunset" Hollywood finish.

A couple of assets make Pal Joey unbeatable entertainment. The first are the wonderful Rodgers and Hart standards, mostly performed by Sinatra. Sinatra is at his all-time best.

This was Hayworth's last big movie musical and she does not disappoint. Although actually younger than Sinatra, she was playing a role originally meant for Marlene Dietrich. Hayworth is both gorgeous and haunting. A must see for all Hayworth fans!

Sinatra charm

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 24 October 2015]

Joey Evans (Frank Sinatra) is a slick, charming ladies man. He gets chased out of town for being with the mayor's daughter. He arrives in San Franscico and is taken with standoffish chorus girl Linda English (Kim Novak). Of course, there is also former fling widow socialite Vera Prentice-Simpson (Rita Hayworth).

This is simply fun. There is Kim Novak and Rita Hayworth but this movie is all Sinatra. He has more than enough charm for this character. He is simply Joey. He doesn't have to act. He is that cool. He is catnip for ladies. He's also singing. This is the perfect movie for any Sinatra fans.

Bad acting, bad songs and a predictable plot.

[JayJeffersonCooke · 4/10 · 8 November 2006]

An aging Rita Hayworth appears in a role beneath her talents.

A beautiful Kim Novak (who has little acting skill) looks frighteningly out of place dancing and singing -- not to mention acting.

Barbara Nichols (who had great acting skill) was woefully underutilized.

Sinatra never was handsome enough to play such a character as Joey Evans. And yes, I am one of the people who is NOT charmed by his singing.

A disaster yesterday and hopelessly dated today, Pal Joey is what many people eat on the cob.

One of the real gems of Sinatra's movie career!

[olblueeyes-1 · 10/10 · 8 April 2003]

Frank Sinatra's movie career was peppered with great pictures; On the Town, Guys and Dolls, From Here To Eternity, Oceans 11 and so on and so forth. Pal Joey is without doubt, up there with the best of them.

The movie centers around Joey Evans, a womanizing nightclub singer who finds himself forced to leave Chicago (literally) and start over in San Francisco. His persistence lands him a spot in the Barbary Coast Club, and while trying to lure a wealthy widow (Rita Hayworth) to the club, he plans to land a posh joint of his own.

Frank's portrayal of Joey in this movie is wonderfully entertaining; from his Joey-isms ("Who's the mouse with the built?"), to the marvelous list of Rodgers and Hart songs he performs. Rita Hayworth may have been given top billing by Sinatra, but there is no doubt as to who the star is, it's Sinatra's show all the way.

Sinatra's other leading lady in the picture is the young and beautiful Kim Novak, who plays hard-to-get Linda English, a dancer/singer at the Barbary Coast who is one of the few women who seems to be able to resist his charms.

The songs, as I mentioned are great, and include the legendary 'The Lady Is A Tramp', which is a treasure in itself. This is not the actual studio recording of the song, but one recorded for the movie (as all the songs are), and is in my opinion, far superior to it's mainstream counterpart. Joey is not the only one to sing either as both Novak and Hayworth's characters have numbers also, albeit dubbed by other vocalists, unlike Sinatra.

The DVD version of this film looks fantastic considering the age of the picture, containing both anamorphic widescreen and full screen versions. The sound also, while only in 2 channel mono, is lively and clear.

For entertainment value, I cannot recommend this movie enough. Even if you are initially put-off by its labelling as a musical, you will not be disappointed. It's a gasser!

That's a sandwich I don't mind being stuck in the middle of

[JamesHitchcock · 6/10 · 20 February 2018]

The title character, Joey "Pal Joey" Evans, is a San Francisco nightclub entertainer with ambitions to open a nightclub of his own. The plot of the film is a fairly simple one, involving a love-triangle between Joey and the two women in his life. They are Linda English, a showgirl, and Joey's old flame Vera, today as Mrs Vera Prentice-Simpson the widow of one of the city's richest citizens, but in the days when Joey first knew her a striptease artiste known as "Vanessa the undresser". Although Linda spends most of her working hours strutting about in a skimpy costume, she is at heart sweet and innocent, whereas Vera, beneath an outward veneer of wealth and sophistication, is spoilt, selfish and possessive. So no prizes for guessing which of them Joey ends up with.

This film is one of the few exceptions to the general Hollywood rule that "first name above the title gets the girl. Or boy". Rita Hayworth, who plays Vera, received top billing, ahead of not only the relative newcomer Kim Novak but also Frank Sinatra, who plays the title role and was arguably a bigger star than her in 1957. Rita had certainly been a major star in the forties, but by the late fifties her public profile was rather lower following lengthy absences from the screen caused by events in her private life. Sinatra, however, seems not to have minded his second billing, saying of being billed between Hayworth and Novak, "That's a sandwich I don't mind being stuck in the middle of".

Now the plot of this film- two of the world's most beautiful actresses fighting over an average-looking guy- might strike you as little more than a male wish-fulfilment fantasy, although in fairness to the average-looking Sinatra it should be said that he was quite a successful ladies' man off-screen as well, counting Hollywood goddesses like Ava Gardner among his conquests. I have never, however, regarded "Pal Joey" as being particularly well-cast. Novak seems a bit too sophisticated for the innocent girl-next-door Linda, but the main problem comes with the other two main roles. The script implies that Vera is a rather sad, lonely older woman, desperate to hang on to her lover, who is probably younger than her, because, however much she may have financially, he is all she has got emotionally. This concept just does not work with Hayworth, as beautiful in her thirties as she had been in her twenties, and actually younger than Sinatra. Admittedly, the age difference between them was only three years, but on screen it looks more. Why a woman like that should have been so keen to hang on to Joey is never made clear as he, although he can be charming when he wants to, is really something of a womaniser.

Joey's favourite term for a woman is not one of the standard screen Americanisms- dame, doll, chick, babe, moll, broad, etc.- but one I had never heard before, "mouse". This appears to be a generic term and does not necessarily imply that the woman in question is either shy, petite or mousy in appearance- nobody could be less mousy than Kim Novak, but Linda is regularly referred to as a mouse.

I have never seen the original stage musical of "Pal Joey", although I understand that the film version made a considerable number of changes, both to the plot and to the music. All the songs we hear here are by Rodgers and Hart, although not all are from the stage musical. Some have been drafted in from other shows, such as "The Lady is a Tramp" (probably the best-known number here, along with "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered") and "My Funny Valentine", both taken from the 1937 musical "Babes in Arms". ("My Funny Valentine" was also resuscitated for another screen musical from the previous year, "Gentlemen Marry Brunettes"). Seen purely as a musical, "Pal Joey" is not a bad one, even though neither of the female leads do their own singing. The song-and-dance numbers are all well-handled, which is why I've given it an above-average mark. Seen as a romantic drama, however, there seems to be something lacking. 6/10

What Columbia does to Pal Joey could only have been equaled by MGM--and it shouldn't happen to a dog.

[david-1976 · 3/10 · 23 August 2006]

The stars could all have performed the musical as written--the most accomplished, acidic, and cynical of Rodgers and Hart's output, thanks to a great book by John O'Hara, but Columbia just couldn't leave well enough alone, although it certainly didn't take away half the score and replace it with half-baked numbers by Roger Edens, like MGM did to "On the Town." At least Columbia just subbed a few other R&H numbers that are always worth hearing.

Sinatra was close to perfect for Joey Evans--although certainly no better than Gene Kelly would've been; both Rita Hayworth and Kim Novak were equally attractive, although since the only musical number that Rita has to put across is "Zip," in an incredibly bowdlerized version (robbed of its intellectual heart) I wonder why her voice had to be dubbed. Would it have mattered if it weren't pretty?

The fact that this show, one of the most downbeat of all Broadway productions, was turned into yet another sweetsie-poo Hollywood confection (and of course moved from Chi, of which it reeks, to San Francisco, of which it doesn't) is yet another tragedy in the history of taking Broadway musicals to Hollywood, which, with the notable exception of "Oklahoma," just means that the show got butchered. It loses its edge about halfway through, when Joey starts being nice, Vera starts being nice, the puppy is nice, and everyone gets to live happily ever after--what a precious moment!!!

Hollywood was better at making its own musicals--"The Wizard of Oz" and "Meet Me In St. Louis"--are head and shoulders above any Broadway adaptation from MGM (whose musicals generally stink) and both Warner Bros and RKO, in the 1930's, make shows that put any of the "spectaculars" in the shade. One Fred and Ginger number is worth about 70 Marge and Gowers.

Oddly enough, Columbia showed that it could do a pretty good job with an original musical--one with Rita and Fred Astaire that contains some great original songs by Jerome Kern and at least one terrific dance number with Fred and Rita, "You Were Never Lovelier."

What Columbia did to Rita shouldn't ever have happened. With the right handling, she would have been a truly immense star, rather than the pinup girl she was fated to be at the studio most famous for the three stooges.