My Fair Lady 1964 by AverageMansReviews

My Fair Lady 1964 by AverageMansReviews

Review Time

Warning: there is torture/burning/references to hanging, sexist and domestic violence

The bet is on: briefly; Colonel Hugh Pickering [Wilfrid Hyde-White:] he has physically recently met Professor/Mr. Henry Higgins where in a nutshell he supposes this bet. Where Professor/Mr. Henry Higgins [Rex Harrison:] he is a professor in essentially languages and he is very much a male chauvinist pig: but he just has 6 months to turn Eliza Doolittle/other character [Audrey Hepburn:] she is a common flower woman which likewise speaks just as common, she originally came to Professor/Mr. Higgins anyway for language lessons, but as you can see things escalated and on a quick side note I usually wouldn't put Professor and Mr. but I have been doing this long enough to know if I don't put both here as both get used throughout this film someone would eventually pulled me up on it so I have both.

Generally speaking: the framework, pacing, art, comedy, character developments, action and performances of this 170 minutes film is always mobile and moving forward; this film project moves exactly like a theatre production, so it is very much a case of storyline, musical number and rotate with characters/performers setting up the scene just before moving the movie, we even get an equivalent of an intermission as well. The set designs, costumes, accessories and etc are of a very high quality: going to ascot for the horse racing, this happens to be one on my favourite sequences and this would be the first time I have seen this film; it is a high quality of fair with everyone putting on, it is the first run out/tryout of Eliza's new language skills, where she makes a number of faux pases none bigger than when she gets excited about her horse; this just shows you can take a woman off the streets, but you can't take the streets out of the woman, these horse racing sequences are done elegantly as we can hear horse racing, but it isn't actually there, so it is done by performers mimicking as if these sequences were/are genuine: excellently performed here.

Character developments, comedy, performances and art; broadly speaking they are on both counts for the vast majority all very good; but a lot of the work comes from Hebburn, Harreison, Hyde-White and  Stanley Holloway as Alfred P. Doolittle: he is the father of Eliza, that tries to do as little work as possible, he has the outlook of a dustbin man by Professor Mr. Higgins labels him as: as there is all minus Hyde-White as Colonel Hugh Pickering: as on reflection he is a genuine good man that players a vital role as he seems to be the anchor to this film, so character wise he doesn't have to significantly change even though I am sure he is richer for this experience, but for the rest they all go through changes at one point or another; okay, I should point out that it does on the surface kind of implying that Professor/Mr. Higgins hasn't developed much as a person, but then again he is a very guarded prison anyway, I am not using that as an excuse, but to give him the benefit of the doubt a bit; without giving too much of the film away I think at minimum he gets it into his head/like scratching the surface; that he cannot treat Eliza too harshly anymore, but on top of that as we all the generations would understand this; having said all this I wouldn't expect miracles, but he is going to try. The comedy and performances; well the vast majority of the comedy comes from Eliza speaking cockney/for those people that don't know what this is: it is a London dialect/language and how it irritates him learning to speak proper English Professor Mr. Higgins and methods such as for one example of Eliza repeating her vowels and for the performances of these for performers; they have excellent chemistry throughout either between themselves or/and the rest of the cast; they all have spot on synergy; the musical numbers/singing; my favourite pick is: "Just You Wait" – sung by Audrey Hepburn (partially dubbed by Nixon) and Charles Fredericks: broadly Eliza is very angry and she sings about as the title would suggest "Just You Wait" as she can't wait to prove Professor/Mr. Higgins wrong that she didn't do this and that some point this musical number becomes either a daydream or we are back in the room now this kind of transitional switches: if you want to know when things become out of this moment?: If you're old enough or even from my generation of the 1980's you would know when things become mental imagery/dream: in this case we have this whole fuzzy effect around the edges of a scene: when you come across it you will now notice it if you are from a younger generation.

This film receives: 8/10, this film is excellent; after everything is said and done I have decided to award another mark to this title, I mean if you have never seen this film? It is well worth a watch for at least once-in-a-lifetime, it very much depends if you have 170 minutes to sit down and watch this film really: it also has some awards accredited to its name such as 26 Winners that include but not limited to Academy Awards, USA Oscar 1965 Best Picture Jack L. Warner, Best Actor in a Leading Role Rex Harrison Rex Harrison dedicated his Oscar to "two fair ladies": Julie Andrews: Harreison and Andrews worked on the Broadway version and Audrey Hepburn: this film version and Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Color Gene Allen Cecil Beaton George James Hopkins [in total it Wins 8 Oscars altogether.] 13 Nominees which includes but not limited to; straight back to this event/ceremony; Best Actor in a Supporting Role Stanley Holloway, Best Actress in a Supporting Role Gladys Cooper as Mrs. Higgins: she is the mother of Professor/Mr. Higgins, she has no problem telling her son what she thinks and Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium Alan Jay Lerner [in total it has 4 Oscar Nominations to its name.]