Funny Girl (film) wrote, "The story of the actress whose dramatic rise from rags to riches is accompanied by the discovery that suffering lies on the flip-side of success has provided the basis of many an American musical. But William Wyler manages to transcend the clichés of the genre and create—largely through Barbra Streisand's characterisation of Fanny Brice—a dramatic comedy in which the musical numbers illustrate the public aspect of the star's life without once interrupting the narrative." David Parkinson of "Empire" rated the film four out of five stars in a retrospective review and called it "one of those films where it
Fanny Brice Rather Be Blue Over You (Than Happy with Somebody Else)", and "Second Hand Rose", which became a Top 40 hit. "Funny Girl", and its sequel "Funny Lady", took liberties with the events of Brice's life. They make no mention of Brice's first husband and suggest that Arnstein turned to crime because his pride would not allow him to live off Fanny and that he was wanted by the police for selling phony bonds. In reality, however, Arnstein sponged off Brice even before their marriage and was eventually named as a member of a gang that stole $5 million worth of