There's No Business Like Show Business | Rotten Tomatoes

There's No Business Like Show Business

Released Dec 16, 1954

1h 57m

Musical

Comedy

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List

73%

11 Reviews

Tomatometer

58%

5,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Terry (Dan Dailey) and Molly (Ethel Merman) are vaudeville performers who eventually add their three children to the act to become "The Five Donahues." However, their children start to go their own way in time, with Steve (Johnnie Ray) deciding to become a priest. The other grown children, Katy (Mitzi Gaynor) and Tim (Donald O'Connor), join a show starring Victoria Parker (Marilyn Monroe). The Donahue parents become a performing pair again, but the family still faces personal upheaval.

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Nell Minow

Movie Mom

Overstuffed and cornball, but some great Berlin musical numbers, especially Monroe's "Heat Wave."

Rated: 4/5

Jul 26, 2003

Full Review

Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

If you're looking for a good film that features Irving Berlin tunes, this one is not the film you're looking for.

Rated: C

Aug 7, 2012

Full Review

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Though Marilyn Monroe was the country's biggest movie star, this plotless musical, a tribute to the genius composer Irving Berlin, belongs to Ethel Merman.

Rated: B

Jul 27, 2012

Full Review

David Kaplan

Kaplan vs. Kaplan

Rated: 4/5

Mar 1, 2008

Full Review

Eric Lurio

Greenwich Village Gazette

The decline of the musical starts here. Faux Kelly just doesn't work.

Rated: 2/5

Dec 21, 2004

Full Review

Steve Crum

Kansas City Kansan

Corny, loud, splashy, but it has Merman and solid cast

Rated: 4/5

Oct 24, 2004

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Audience Member

Alexander ragtime song done to death in first half hour. If y can survive that torment the rest of movie keeps ya nterest with good variety of performances.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

05/03/24

Full Review

Mike P

Unfairly maligned musical extravaganza about a vaudevillian family; The Five Donohues; is really quite impressive and enjoyable in its own right. And the cast is dynamite; Ethel Merman; Donald Occonor; Mitzi Gaynor; and Marylin Monroe! And it does a MUCH better version of the title number than Annie Get Your Gun does!

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/26/24

Full Review

Autumn M

There's No Business Like Show Business is a movie about a family who is in show business, and go through various changes as the children grow and mature. Notable performances by Donald O' Connor ( Singing in the Rain); Ethel Merman ( Broadway star) and Marilyn Monroe. It was a fun little musical, with colorful, sultry numbers like " Heat Wave." It was not ground-breaking in any way, but definitely enjoyable with performances from the Golden Age stars. Recommended.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/12/23

Full Review

steve d

forgettable and uneventful.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

Valentina G

MARILYN MONROE PROVES, ALL ALONG, FOREVER, & ALWAYS, THAT SHOW BUSINESS IS BOTH — HOLLYWOOD AND STAGESINGING, SHE HAD - SUMMED - THIS - UP - ALL AS HOLLYWOOD, ACTUALLY. SHE SANG AND ACTED AND DANCED GREATFULLY. IT'S A MUST TO WATCH, AT LEAST ☝🏻 TWO ✌🏻 MOVIES WITH HER. MANY HOLLYWOODERS OBLIGED TO ACT LIKE HER, SINCE THERE ARE NONE, EXCEPT FOR: JLO, BRITNEY SPEARS, CHER, LADY GAGA, BLAKE SHELTON, WHO ARE ACTORS, INITIALLY. DID YOU, EVER, THINK???!!! WHAT CAN I TELL — THERE'RE NO BETTER FILMS NOW AT ALL, AND ALL THEY SAY: «WE ARE BETTER, YOU KNOW»?!?!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/15/22

Full Review

david f

This is an enormously entertaining and beautifully filmed movie from the height of the studio era. The sets and costumes are all stunningly beautiful and much of the film is singing and dancing in some pretty spectacular numbers. A couple of lines and scenes felt derivative of "Singin' In the Rain" and Donald O'Connor is in both films. This one isn't quite as great plot-wise but the production values (this was Fox's first musical in CinemaScope and DeLuxe Color), when viewed on the Blu-ray with a good home video setup, are just spectacular.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

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Walter Lang

Director

Ethel Merman

Molly Donahue

Dan Dailey

Terence Donahue

Marilyn Monroe

Vicky Hoffman

Donald O'Connor

Tim Donahue

Johnnie Ray

Steve Donahue

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There's No Business Like Show Business: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

Terry (Dan Dailey) and Molly (Ethel Merman) are vaudeville performers who eventually add their three children to the act to become "The Five Donahues." However, their children start to go their own way in time, with Steve (Johnnie Ray) deciding to become a priest. The other grown children, Katy (Mitzi Gaynor) and Tim (Donald O'Connor), join a show starring Victoria Parker (Marilyn Monroe). The Donahue parents become a performing pair again, but the family still faces personal upheaval.

Director: Walter Lang
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Production Co: 20th Century Fox
Genre: Musical, Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 16, 1954, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 1, 2013
Runtime: 1h 57m
Sound Mix: Stereo

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