Film: Valley of the Dolls

Directed by: Mark Robson

Based off the novel by Jacqueline Susanne

Screenplay by: Helen Deutsch, Dorothy Kingsley

Year: 1967

Starring: Barbara Parkins, Sharon Tate, Patty Duke

Reviewed by: JJ

The young and beautiful women have dreams of making it big. Each has their reasons, and each has a different degree of success. With success though comes a price.

Neely O'Hara, played by Patty Duke, makes it the biggest, and with success comes the biggest addiction to the dolls, i.e., sleeping pills. Sharon Tate plays Jennifer North, a blonde with a gorgeous figure but limited talent. In the movie, Tate almost plays herself, a woman type cast into films that utilize her greatest talent, her body. Tate was gorgeous, and if you're old enough to remember her murder, you need to see this movie again. It is a shame. She did a wonderful job in this role.

Jennifer, Tate's character, has a heart of gold, but an I.Q. high enough to know what's good for her but one low enough that she'll never amount to much other than a French "art" film actress. Neely put it best when she exclaims "they're nudies!" She marries a good man who inherits a curse, a degenerative disease that leaves him retarded and crippled.

Although Anne, played by Barbara Parkins, has top billing, her role is forgettable. Anne's a top model, and extremely easy on the eyes, but she too falls victim to the dolls.

The one who steals the show is not Tate, but Patty Duke. This is her finest performance. I'll always have that image in my head of Duke in a suit between two men on stage winking at the camera, one of the most memorable moments in 60s cinema. It's no coincidence that this movie ended up a camp classic, with gay men all over the country falling for Duke's character.

To answer your question, yes, Tate does show off her beautiful breasts, and it was something for the 60s, even if it was for only a split second. Wake up for the French art film scene, and you won't regret it.

If you're wondering how good the movie is, let's put it this way. Kate wouldn't even finish it. Badman may or may not write a review, so I won't say how he rates it. Zombieslayer told me "three dead zombies, with only Tate's nudity as a saving grace or else I would have given it even less." Damn kids these days, no attention span for dialog. Although not a great movie by any means, it's worth watching just to see Patty Duke steal the show and Sharon Tate before her infamous death. It's also worth seeing to see a movie made in the 60s where the male characters are completely forgettable. 6 J's out of 10.