Film

Two Sisters from Boston

Name: Two Sisters from Boston
Genre: Comedy, Music
Released: 1946
Cast: Kathryn Grayson, June Allyson, Lauritz Melchior, Jimmy Durante, Peter Lawford

Comedy
Light-hearted

A 1946 musical comedy about a Boston woman masquerading as an opera star to impress her visiting sister, when she's actually performing in a burlesque house. It's a frothy, good-natured farce with elaborate musical numbers, Jimmy Durante's physical comedy, and the kind of mistaken-identity chaos that studio musicals did in their sleep. Pure escapism for anyone who wants to see Golden Age MGM at full tilt.

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Seven Brides for Seven Brothers1954

Joyful, kinetic musical built on genuine chemistry and dancing that feels alive. The barn-raising sequence is one of cinema's great ensemble moments, and it earns its sentiment without ever becoming saccharine.

But If you need plot to hang your hat on, this is thin stuff—seven brothers want wives and get them. The gender dynamics are very 1950s, which will bother some viewers.

Singin' in the Rain1952

The greatest Hollywood musical ever made, full stop. Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor, and Debbie Reynolds in perfect ensemble, with numbers that move the story forward instead of stopping it. The title number alone justifies sitting down.

But If you find classic movie musicals dated or artificial, this won't convert you. It is what it is, just infinitely better at being it than anything else.

Easter Parade1948

Fred Astaire and Judy Garland in a romantic backstage musical with infectious energy and some genuinely clever song-and-dance sequences. The chemistry crackles, and the clothes are spectacular.

But The plot is gossamer-thin—a man bets he can turn a chorus girl into a star—and the whole thing coasts on charm rather than substance.

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The wildcard

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Phantom Lady1944

Both are 1940s studio films where a woman's ambition and deception drive the plot, but where the tone and register are completely opposite. Phantom Lady shows that MGM's opposite number could do darkness just as well as MGM did light.

A psychological thriller with the precision of a Swiss watch and the moodiness of film noir. Ella Raines is magnificent—intelligent, brave, and genuinely sexy in ways that mattered. The plot is intricate and satisfying, and it builds genuine dread.

But It's essentially a mystery, so watching it again loses something. Some of the sexual politics, though progressive for 1944, will read as troubling now.

The Band Wagon1953

Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse in what might be the most sophisticated musical Hollywood ever made. The dancing is transcendent, the satire of Broadway pretension is razor-sharp, and it actually has something to say.

But Some of the comedy bits feel dated now, and the satire works better if you know enough about 1950s theatre to catch all the references.

Royal Wedding1951

Fred Astaire and Jane Powell in a breezy musical with genuinely inventive dance numbers, including the famous gravity-defying solo. It's lighter than air but made with real craft.

But The plot—Americans in London for the royal wedding, romantic complications ensue—is purely functional, and the female lead is less interesting than her dance partner.

High Society1956

Bing Crosby, Grace Kelly, and Frank Sinatra in a witty, Cole Porter-scored remake of 'The Philadelphia Story.' It's elegant without being stuffy, and the musical numbers feel like they belong.

But Grace Kelly's singing voice was dubbed, which is noticeable if you know to listen for it. The gender politics are very mid-1950s.

Funny Girl1968

Barbra Streisand's film debut and she owns every frame. The musical sequences are audacious, and her voice carries the whole thing. A star vehicle, but she has the wattage to fill it.

But The second half drags once the romance takes over from the comedy. Streisand's personality overwhelms the other actors, which is either a feature or a bug depending on your tolerance.

It's Always Fair Weather1955

Gene Kelly, Dan Dailey, and Michael Kidd as three war buddies reuniting in New York. The dance numbers are joyfully weird—one features roller skates, another takes place in a gym—and it's funnier than most comedies.

But The plot is loose to the point of seeming improvised, and the female characters exist mainly to smile at the men. The tone lurches around.

Good News1947

June Allyson and Peter Lawford in a college musical that's genuinely charming. The songs are solid, the dance numbers enthusiastic, and there's real affection in the performances.

But It's not trying to be anything more than lightweight entertainment. If you need your musicals to have weight or originality, this will feel thin.

An American in Paris1951

Both are musicals where plot serves as scaffolding for set pieces, but An American in Paris is trying to be Important Capital-I in a way Two Sisters from Boston never wanted to. It shows the other end of what 1940s Hollywood musicals could aspire to be.

A 20-minute ballet sequence that is genuinely one of the great things cinema has ever done. Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron, Gershwin's music, and an ambition to marry high art with entertainment. The whole film earns that ending.

But The plot—a love triangle with an American painter, a French girl, and a patroness—is pure soap opera. It takes itself seriously in ways that feel overwrought. The pacing in the first half is slack.

The Girl Can't Help It1956

Like Two Sisters from Boston, it's about a woman trying to make it in the entertainment world by whatever means necessary, but it's cynical and knowing where the earlier film is innocent. It's what happens when a studio musical grows up and gets mean.

Jayne Mansfield in a musical comedy that's actually smart about its own trashiness, with real rock and roll performances woven through. It's a satire of show-business ambition disguised as a dumb comedy, and it's funnier and more aware than it seems.

But It's aggressively trashy—Mansfield's sexuality is the whole point. If you find the tone hostile or reductive toward women, you won't enjoy it no matter how clever it's being about it.