Synopsis:Rosalind Russell plays aspiring Ohio journalist Ruth Sherwood, who heads for New York to seek her fortune, accompanied by her sister, Eileen (Janet Blair), an aspiring actress. The girls take a basement apartment in Greenwich Village, which becomes a gathering place for several oddball characters, including a football jock (Gordon Jones), his silly wife (Miss Jeff Donnell) and an eternally drunken fortuneteller (June Havoc). Ruth tries to sell her writing, but is advised by a friendly magazine
editor (Brian Aherne) that she'll never succeed unless she writes from her own experiences. Meanwhile, Eileen is continually getting in trouble due to her ingenuous attractiveness. Ruth secures an assignment to interview several visiting Portuguese sailors, who follow her to her apartment, are immediately entranced by Eileen, and break up the joint with an impromptu conga line. Everyone ends up in jail, and it looks as though Ruth is going to have to leave New York without achieving success. But when Ruth begins writing about her life with her sister Eileen, she becomes a success -- and wins the love of the magazine editor in the bargain. My Sister Eileen was based on a series of autobiographical articles by real-life writer Ruth McKenney, who with Joseph Fields and Jerome Chodhorov adapted these stories into a Broadway play. The play was later musicalized for the stage as Wonderful Town (again with Rosalind Russell), while the film version was itself adapted into a separate movie musical in 1955. There was also a brief 1960 TV series, starring Elaine Stritch and Shirley Bonne. As an added fillip, the 1942 My Sister Eileen includes a fleeting guest appearance by the Three Stooges! ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
Critic Reviews
Bosley Crowther, New York Times
My Sister Eileen is gay and bouncing. It is a farce which depends entirely upon two doors. And we hate to think what would have happened to it if some one had thought to nail one of those doors shut.
More...
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com
Rosalind Russell, who earned the first of four Oscar nominations for the lead, is the best element and only reason to see this verbose movie, which is still a play.
More...
Michael W. Phillips, Jr., Goatdog's Movies
One of those comedies one damns by calling it "unsuccessful," even though parts of it work just fine.
More...
Sam Jordison, Daily Mirror [UK]
Fascinating for anyone with an interest in colonial history, with the added bonus of being extremely good looking, A Throw Of Dice can be enjoyed as straight entertainment as well as an intriguing historical document.
More...
Sam Jordison, Film4
Fascinating for anyone with an interest in colonial history, with the added bonus of being extremely good looking, A Throw Of Dice can be enjoyed as straight entertainment as well as an intriguing historical document.
More...
