Pal Joey

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Pal Joey

1957

1h 51m

Musical

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

86%

Tomatometer

14 Reviews

60%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

Joey Evans (Frank Sinatra) is a philandering San Francisco-based singer with big dreams of starting his own night club, Chez Joey, but chasing women keeps him even more occupied. Despite making a meaningful connection with lovely chorus girl Linda English (Kim Novak), it doesn't stop him from seducing the wealthy widow, and ex-burlesque dancer, Vera Simpson (Rita Hayworth), who he hopes will bankroll his club. Ultimately, Joey has to decide who -- and what -- he most wants in life.

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Guardian Staff

Guardian

1d

Like many others it is sharp, neat, coloured, and endowed with sharp, neat words and music...and, like many others, it has lost much of its bite and sting in the course of its journey from original book to ultimate film.

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David Parkinson

Empire Magazine

1d

3/5

...the demands of the Production Code meant that the screenwriter Dorothy Kingsley had to heavily sanitise the narrative, with the result that an unregenerate heel became merely a flawed hero.

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Dave Kehr

Chicago Reader

1d

Rodgers and Hart’s pioneering bitter musical...was considerably softened for its 1957 screen version. A pity, because the cast—Frank Sinatra, Kim Novak, and Rita Hayworth—might have been brilliant.

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C.A. Lejeune

Observer (UK)

1d

Some of the tunes, particularly "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered," hang on to the memory of whether you want them or not, and I suppose the benefit of hearing such things professionally sung is the main justification of this picture.

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Dick Banks

Charlotte Observer

1d

...each of these stars has done better work in other pictures, but the combination is a potent one. And the picture is lavish in color and stimulating in camera eyefuls of feminine allure.

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M. Oakley Stafford

Hartford Courant

1d

If for no other reason than the beautiful views of San Francisco, in color, "Pal Joey"...is more than worth the money.

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Jarrod R

@RT27243469 Jun 30

Great music and solid performances throughout. Was especially taken in by the visuals from late 1950s San Francisco. Sinatra is cocksure, but the audience also sees that's he's flying by the seat of his pants, and there is a certain charm there, too. Kim Novak is wonderful as the up and coming performer and Rita Hayworth is a force to be reckoned with. All in all, a nice time capsule of that era

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D. P

@RT96675217 12/30/2024

Classic! & iconic song/tunes, incl 'BEWITCHED, BOTHERED, & BEWILDERED". I've known about this movie since it came out in '57 (1957). But I don't recall ever seeing any of it. Til now, on the tv set, 12/29/24. 67 years later. & WOW! GREAT CAST! Never wanted to see it before. The title sounded stupid. But it's good. Very famous when it cameout.

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Alain E

@AlainE 11/30/2024

I never expected to like this. I collect LPs and have 3-4 versions of the soundtrack. Never listened to it or watched the movie in 35 years. Big mistake. This is an excellent fairy tale for adults, with the constraints of the code that didn’t allow any nudity. Sinatra, Hayworth and Novak are all excellent, as well as the guy who plays the nightclub manager. And a cute little doggie. Very well photographed as well. If someone approaches this as a realistic representation of the nightclub or music business, they are watching the wrong movie.

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Alec B

@Alec97 01/08/2024

Like a lot of musical adaptations of the mid 20th century, the filmmakers attempted to completely rewrite the source material but ended up with something barely coherent.

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David F

@dfulmer 12/31/2023

It was enjoyable for the musical numbers but the plot about a crooner who tries to open a nightclub in San Francisco wasn't that interesting.

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Sam K

@RT89617234 02/14/2023

Marvelous Sinatra, great Rodgers and Hart songs The "Lady is a Tramp" scene with Rita Hayworth is iconic. Rita Hayworth and Kim Novack are gorgeous. Haworth got top billing, then Sinatra, then Novack - unsusual as Sinatra was a superstar. he said "I don't mind being in the middle of that sandwich". The movie is flawed by the tacky "dream sequence" and sanitized ending walking into the sunset, but still a must see. Enjoy!

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George Sidney

Director

Rita Hayworth

Vera Simpson

Frank Sinatra

Joey Evans

Kim Novak

Linda English

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Synopsis

Joey Evans (Frank Sinatra) is a philandering San Francisco-based singer with big dreams of starting his own night club, Chez Joey, but chasing women keeps him even more occupied. Despite making a meaningful connection with lovely chorus girl Linda English (Kim Novak), it doesn't stop him from seducing the wealthy widow, and ex-burlesque dancer, Vera Simpson (Rita Hayworth), who he hopes will bankroll his club. Ultimately, Joey has to decide who -- and what -- he most wants in life.

Director: George Sidney
Producer: Fred Kohlmar
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Production Co: Columbia
Genre: Musical
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 25, 1957, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 1, 2010
Runtime: 1h 51m

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