Valley of the Dolls (1967) review

Three pretty young ladies, Radcliffe graduate Anne Welles (Barbara Parkins), singer Neely O'Hara (Patty Duke) and model Jennifer North (Sharon Tate), all try to "make it" in NYC's grueling entertainment industry but life throws them a few problems: Anne starts dating attorney Lyon (Paul Burke) and then he leaves for England to write a novel, Jennifer marries Tony (Tony Scotti) but then he's diagnosed with Huntington's Disease and she goes to Europe to star in nudie pictures and Neely achieves fame except she becomes addicted to pills (which are referred to as "dolls").  The book by actress-turned-writer Jacqueline Susann (who appears briefly as a reporter) was - according to what I was told - quite the rage in the 1960's although this adaptation is considered by a lot of critics to be a bust: even Leonard Maltin and his team gave it a "Bomb" rating.  While the complaints about it do have merit - Robson's 'creative decisions' are dubious, it's dramatically incompetent, the "serious" conversations are laughable etc. - it does have value as a time capsule and a reminder that the mid-1940's (which is when it was originally set) weren't as "clean" and "pure" as the movies from that era suggest, and that abuse of medication has historically been a real problem: right now, in 2025, the U.S. government is trying to stop the spread of opioids.