In New York, the smalltime gambler Nathan Detroit (Frank Sinatra) has been eloping from getting married with his girlfriend Adelaide (Vivian Blaine) for fourteen years. Nathan needs one thousand dollars in advance to rent a place for the crap game but neither he nor his friends Nicely- Nicely Johnson (Stubby Kaye) and Benny Southstreet (Johnny Silver) can afford. Nathan decides to bet against the gambler Sky Masterson (Marlon Brando),challenging him to have a dinner in Havana with a woman of his choice. Sky accepts the bet and Nathan chooses the prude Sergeant Sarah Brown (Jean Simmons),who runs a mission for sinners. Sky visits Sarah and invites her to have dinner with him in Havana; in return, he would bring one dozen sinners to the mission. Sarah refuses the deal, but when General Cartwright (Kathryn Givney) comes to New York to shutdown the mission, Sarah feels that the only chance to keep the mission operating is accepting Sky's invitation. They travel to Havana and fall in love with each other; but when they return to the mission, Sarah discovers that Nathan used the place for his crap game. Further, she believes that Sky has plotted the scheme to use her. Now Sky has to convince the gamblers and gangsters that arrived in New York to the crap game that they should go to the mission to help Sarah.

"Guys and Dolls" is a delightful musical version of a Broadway successful play with Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra and Jean Simmons and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz. The romantic comedy is highly funny and entertaining with great musical numbers. Marlon Brando dances and sings and the number in Havana with Jean Simmons if one of the funniest moments of this movie. Despite the running time of 150 minutes, the viewer never feels tired or bored. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Eles e Elas" ("They (he) and They (she)")

As the title song of Guys and Dolls philosophizes what we guys will not do to our dolls to win a bet or get a dice game going. That's the dilemma facing promoter of said dice game Nathan Detroit who can't come up with the $1000.00 for the Biltmore Hotel garage for the what is generally known as the oldest established permanent floating crap game in New York.

What to do, bet a reckless gambler Sky Masterson. Sucker him into betting he can't sweep a doll off her feet for a romantic idyll in pre-Castro Havana. The doll you pick for Sky is Sister Sarah Brown of the Salvation Army. Of course Nathan's life is also complicated by his 14 year long engagement to Adelaide of the Hot Box Revue.

Considering the resentments that festered between Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra who played Sky and Nathan, I can't believe this film got made at all. Especially when you consider both these guys never hesitated in walking off film sets if their anger was aroused. In Sinatra's case I can understand since Brando's playing the part he should have done. Proof of that can be found on Guys and Dolls cast album that Sinatra did for his Reprise record label in the early sixties where he shows what he could do with the Masterson songs.

Still Brando is not great, but not bad as a singer and Frank Loesser did write the Adelaide song for Sinatra for the film. Unfortunately he also wrote A Woman In Love for the score which Brando sings and which became a big hit. Not for Marlon Brando, but for another Frankie named Laine.

Jean Simmons is our Salvation Army Sergeant and she shows once again why was the most under appreciated film star of the fifties. That woman was in so many of the best films of that decade and never got any real recognition for her talent. I like her the best from this movie.

Vivian Blaine, Johnny Silver, B.S. Pully, and Stubby Kaye all came over from the original Broadway cast. They all contribute their unique talents to parts that became career roles for them.

With some smarter casting it's better than even money that Guys and Dolls would be a great and not a good film.

As a fan of musicals, I saw Guys and Dolls, and was really impressed with it. The film does look great, with elegant set design and cinematography while the scenery and costumes are pleasing to the eye too. The score is outstanding, all the songs are so good and the accompanying music is very energetic, while the choreography just adds to the energetic feel of the film. It is very well-directed, has some great witty dialogue and an engaging story and characters.

Also, although the film is about two and a half hours, it doesn't feel like it. Thanks to the quality of the songs, choreography and performances the whole film whizzes by right up to its conclusion. Marlon Brando just exudes charisma as Sky, and Jean Simmons is a perfect match as Sarah. Even if their singing is not amazing, it is compensated by their acting and the chemistry between them. Frank Sinatra shows a great voice and appealing presence as well, and his acting is reasonable enough. All in all, a hugely entertaining musical with lots to like. 8/10 Bethany Cox