Sweet Charity (1969)
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70% of users liked it
(5,295 ratings)
Shirley MacLaine plays Charity Hope Valentine who, despite her job at a seedy dime-a-dance joint, is an incurable optimist. Charity never stops looking for true love and never seems to look for it in the right places. We first see her in the company of Charlie (Dante DiPaolo), a slimeball who steals… More Shirley MacLaine plays Charity Hope Valentine who, despite her job at a seedy dime-a-dance joint, is an incurable optimist. Charity never stops looking for true love and never seems to look for it in the right places. We first see her in the company of Charlie (Dante DiPaolo), a slimeball who steals her purse and pushes her into the Central Park pond. Next she stumbles into a one-night stand with Vittorio Vidal (Ricardo Montalban), an egotistical movie star; this comes to nothing when Vittorio's contrite girlfriend Ursula (Barbara Bouchet) comes calling, forcing Charity to spend the night hiding in the closet. Desperate to escape the dance hall, Charity heads to an employment agency, where a bureaucratic clerk (Alan Hewitt) informs her that she has no qualifications. Unhappily, Charity heads for the elevator, where she becomes trapped with the very shy -- and very claustrophobic -- Oscar Lindquist (John McMartin). Once they've gotten out of the stalled elevator, Charity begins dating Oscar, never telling him of her checkered past or her sordid dance-hall job. Oscar eventually finds out but assures her that it doesn't matter. However, at the engagement party held at the dance hall, Oscar's puritanical streak emerges. He walks out on Charity, leaving her alone and heartbroken once more. With the help of a group of flower children (among them Bud Cort and Kristoffer Tabori), Charity is able to pick herself up and start living "Hopefully Ever After." Sweet Charity was adapted from the 1965 Broadway musical of the same name, which in turn was inspired by the 1957 Fellini flick Nights of Cabiria. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- Bob Fosse
- Written By
- Peter Stone
- Genres
- Musical & Performing Arts, Classics
G,
- In Theaters
- Jan 1, 1969 Wide
- Studio
- MCA Universal Home Video
Critic Reviews
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Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
Bob Fosse's first film, a musical based on Felini's Nights of Cabiria, shows a lot of promise, which he will fulfill with the 1972 Cabaret. It was nominated for 3 Oscars, including Best Score.
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Cast
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Shirley MacLaine
as Charity
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John McMartin
as Oscar
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Ricardo Montalban
as Vittorio
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Sammy Davis Jr.
as Big Daddy
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Chita Rivera
as Nickie
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Paula Kelly
as Helene
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Stubby Kaye
as Herman
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Barbara Bouchet
as Ursula
- Leon Alton
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Richard Angarola
as Maitre d'
- Toni Basil
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Henry Beckman
as Cop
- Chelsea Brown
- Lonnie Burr
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Jeff Burton
as Policeman
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Ceil Cabot
as Married woman
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John Craig
as Man in Fandango Ballroom
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Alfred Dennis
as Waiter at Chile Hacienda
- Kathryn Doby
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David Gold
as Panhandler
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Sharon Harvey
as Young Woman on Btidge
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Tom Hatten
as Man on tandem
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Alan Hewitt
as Nicholsby
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Carlton Johnson
as 'Rhythm of Life' dancer
- Lance Le Gault
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Nolan Leary
as Manfred
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Diki Lerner
as Man with dog on bridge
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Buddy Lewis
as Appliance salesman
- Jerry Mann
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Joseph Mell
as Man on Bridge
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Alma Platt
as Lady with hat on bridge
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Maudie Prickett
as Nurse on bridge
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Chet Stratton
as Waiter
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Phillip Terry
as Doorman
- Ben Vereen
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John Wheeler
as 'Rhythm of Life' dancer
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Lorene Yarnell
as Frog Dancer
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Adele Yoshioka
as Dancers in "Big Spender" Number
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Bill Harrison
as Baseball Player
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Buddy Hart
as Baseball player
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Roger Til
as Greeter at Pompeii Club
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Suzanne Charney
as Lead frog dancer
- Roy Fitzell
- Larry Billman
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Dee Carroll
as Woman on tandem
- Herman Boden
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Charles Brewer
as Young Man on Bridge
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Dante DiPaolo
as Charlie
- Jerry Trent
