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
Funny Girl (musical) with Lennart and told Stark he wanted her replaced because he thought she was not capable of adapting her screenplay into a viable book for a stage musical. Stark refused and Robbins quit the project. "Funny Girl" temporarily was shelved, and Styne moved on to other projects, including "Fade Out – Fade In" for Carol Burnett. Then Merrick signed Bob Fosse to direct "Funny Girl", and work began on it again, until Fosse quit and the show went into limbo for several months. Then Merrick suggested Stark hire Garson Kanin. It was Merrick's last contribution to the production; shortly afterward