My Fair Lady [DVD] [1964] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

Eliza Doolittle (Audrey Hepburn) is a Cockney Girl trying to make a meagre sum by selling flowers to the Rich in the West End of London. Her Father Alfred (Stanley Holloway) doesn't work and only visits her to try and get any money he can to spend on beer. She meets Colonel Pickering (Wilfred Hyde-White) and during this conversation Professor Henry Higgins (Rex Harrison) overhears them and is intrigued by her purely on how she talks and is horrified to hear English spoken in such a way "this is the language of Shakespeare, Milton and The Bible". Higgins bets Pickering that in 6 months he could pass her off as a Duchess at the Embassy Ball by giving Eliza extensive vocal training by bribing her with Chocolates and a luxurious room in his home at Wimpole Street, She begins to dream of a better life and leaves for his home.As the months pass Higgins tries multiple methods to teach her pronunciation (Some of which are verging on cruelty) while Col. Pickering watches on and warns him not to push her too hard. After a breakthrough he decides that she is ready and should go to his mothers (Gladys Cooper) box at Royal Ascot and initially impresses the upper-class there including Freddy Eynsford-Hill (Jeremy Brett) who falls in love with her, however the façade fails in a humorous way and Eliza is left devastated.its the day of the ball following a few weeks of hard work and Pickering by now is convinced that the bet was a big mistake and they should stop before all 3 are embarrassed but Higgins is cocksure and has every faith in his ability and methods. His confidence is vindicated when she is a big success and passes the ultimate test along the way, When they return Higgins' ignorance leads to tension between him and Eliza mainly because having become a lady she is left trying to deal with an identity crisis and the uncertainty over her future, You have probably seen this already or you could guess how it ends but suffice to say its a moving ending with one of the greatest songs ever written for a musical.It features some memorable performances from the two leads. Rex Harrison deservedly won an Oscar for his portrayal of Prof. Higgins I do agree with people who say that the professor does not hate women alone. he even admits it in the film that he treats everyone with the same disdain (apart from Pickering). Being incredibly biased I have to say that the star of the show is definitely Audrey and she is the definitive Eliza Doolittle. Some people knocked her character before the transformation but you cant help but love the roguish charm she gave her ("GARN!") and personally her accent is fine because its set in a romanticized Edwardian England so its immaterial really. When she becomes a lady however few people will argue how spectacular her performance is, Audrey was always modest about her acting but the elegance and vulnerability she brought to it made you feel that she played two separate characters .The cheerful Cockney flower girl and the insecure, fragile educated woman. As good an actress and singer that Julie Andrews is I don't think she has the ability to perform the last few acts like Audrey did. Its a shame she did not win an Oscar because she deserved it for the last scenes alone..quite ironic that Julie won the best actress Oscar (Mary Poppins) when this should have been nominated. Gladys Cooper plays Mrs Higgins with aplomb and Jeremy Brett is wonderful as the lovesick Freddy, its amusing to see Sherlock Holmes in such a different light!The production was huge and you have to be impressed by the sheer amount of work put into it, if you look at the sets and costumes (provided by Cecil Beaton) the attention to detail is immaculate to the gloves the ladies are wearing. Andre Previn creates a memorable score for this mammoth picture, the modern DVD has a rich video and the sound really gives it justice.Settle down on a dark night with a cup of something warm and enjoy this audio/visual treat now wouldn't that be loverly?!

This is one of the absolute all time great Hollywood musicals, one of those that grew in being translated from stage to screen. So what's especially right?The story's right. It's rags to riches with a twist - no riches. Lerner and Loewe are true to Shaw's play (apart from the ending - which would not have pleased the author!). That play is itself an adaptation of the Greek myth of the sculptor who falls in love with his own creation.The casting's right. Audrey Hepburn is the perfect Eliza Doolittle, the cockney flowergirl who aspires to the voice and manners of a perfect lady. Rex Harrison (who created the role on Broadway) is totally convincing as the intellectual who sees a different project of fooling high society into accepting an "ungrateful, wicked girl" as one of their own. Jeremy Brett (Holmes in later years) is the slightly silly but totally sincere young man who falls in love with the girl behind the mask, even before the mask is complete.The songs are right. They are very much the songs of the production, not merely songs that happen to be in the production, and "The rain in Spain", "I'm getting married in the morning", "Show me" and others are classics. Hepburn doesn't sing her character's most demanding numbers, but this is good judgement. Just as the Professor's songs gain from Harrison's not particularly tuneful renditions, Eliza's prettiest songs demand pretty perfect rendition.Finally the look is right. The fashionable dress and elegant photographic conception comes from Cecil Beaton, that quintessential society photographer. The only thing that has dated is the stylised 'Ascot Opening Day' where a somewhat cartoon-like set is inhabited by elegant poseurs, but overall the look is stunning and effective.What's my one gripe? This DVD has of course, a wonderful restoration of the feature film. But the opportunity to add interesting additional content is lost, which is a very great shame.It's a five star video, and I can't bring myself to downgrade it as a DVD, but perhaps a future version could set this rose of a film in a more tasteful vase.

I remember studying the book (Pygmalion) on which this film was based in my English studies at school and I've always loved the film. Rex Harrison is perfectly cast as Professor Henry Higgins a respected phoneticist and Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle, a working-class flower girl selling bunches of flowers in London's Covent Garden who dreams of working as an assistant in a flower shop.Following a bet with a Colonel Pickering, Professor Higgins claims he can pass Eliza off as a duchess at an Embassy Ball, the film follows her progress as Eliza struggles with the challenges of making the transition to her lifestyle and her studies but ultimately, succeeding.The film is full of memorable songs such as "Wouldn't it be Love-rly", "With a Little bit of Luck", "Get me to the Church on Time" and lots more. My favourite line has to be from Eliza as she wails... "I'm a good girl I am!!"Overall, a brilliant, funny and touching film that I shall be watching many times over.

Good storyline and some great songs to sing along to - it was nice to watch this film again with my mom (96 years old!)

I really enjoyed this film

This movie is a simple masterpiece. Its nice how he basically says he loves her in the end without using those words. Its interesting the way she accepts that he never uses those words and the way she knows he does love her. Very good writing. Scripts are not written like this anymore they are far too boring and not very well composed any longer .. This movie was on sale for 3.99 so thought why not to revisit it as I surely had no liking of this movie when I saw it decades ago.. Now as a grown man I can appreciate this much better.This is a masterpiece.