Funny Face

directed by Stanley Donen
Category: "Musical"
Year of Release:1957
Date Added:04/11/2008
Date Watched:09/22/2002
Description:
My Rating:5

Reviews for Funny Face

Review - Funny Face

Maggie Prescott is the editor of Quality, a fashion magazine for women. She wants to find a new look, so she grabs her top model and her photographer, Dick Avery and heads for a used bookstore. The clerk, Jo Stockton, is an intellect whose chief dream in life is to go to Paris and meet the philosopher Flostre. Dick falls for Jo and convinces Maggie that she can be the exotic look she’s going for. Jo agrees for the chance to go to France. While on the shoot, Dick and Jo fall for each other. But when Jo gets a chance to meet Flostre, Dick gets upset. He warns Jo that Flostre is just like any other man, then storms off. Jo finds out Dick was right when Flostre makes a move on her. She clocks him with a statuette, then goes to do the fashion show. She’s a big hit, but sad without Dick. But Dick meets Flostre at the airport and returns to find Jo.

• The soggy weather played havoc with the shooting of the wedding dress dance scene. Fred Astaire and Audrey Hepburn were continually slipping in the muddy and slippery grass. Hepburn sings several songs. Her next full musical, My Fair Lady (1964), would see her voice overdubbed, much to her disappointment.

Proof that the total is not always equal to the sum of the parts. I like Fred Astaire and I love Audrey Hepburn, but this was one lame movie. The plot was lame, the songs were lame, the settings were lame. Shots of Paris were supposed to substitute for anything actually going on. There is no logical reason why Jo would fall for Dick. And the fact that Fred looked at least 40 years older than Audrey was weird.
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