My Fair Lady (4K UHD + Digital)

"My Fair Lady" is often regarded as the most outstanding musical ever written, and certainly the greatest of the 1950s. Based on George Bernard Shaw's 1913 play "Pygmalion," the story revolves around Professor Henry Higgins and Eliza Doolittle, a Cockney flower girl who takes speech lessons to pass as a lady. Throughout the narrative, despite his cynical nature and struggle to understand women, Higgins becomes emotionally attached to her.The plot draws inspiration from a Greek myth in which Pygmalion wished for a bride who would be "the living likeness of my ivory girl." When he returned home, he kissed his ivory statue and found that its lips felt warm. The Goddess Aphrodite granted Pygmalion's wish, bringing the ivory sculpture to life as a woman. Similarly, Doolittle undergoes a transformation. This storyline has also influenced other works, including "Pretty Woman," "Pinocchio," and various short stories and operas.The musical features a story (book and lyrics) by Alan Jay Lerner, with music composed by Frederick Loewe. Its score includes some of the most famous songs in American musical theater, such as "Wouldn't It Be Loverly?", "With a Little Bit of Luck," "The Rain in Spain," "I Could Have Danced All Night," and "On the Street Where You Live.This film won eight Academy Awards in 1964, including Best Picture. It stars Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle, a spirited, working-class street vendor from London, and Rex Harrison as Professor Higgins, who tries to transform Eliza into a sophisticated lady through his tutoring. One minor criticism is that Hepburn cannot sing, so all her songs are dubbed, except for one brief stanza where she begins to sing quietly. It leaves one to wonder how wonderful the performance would have been if Julie Andrews, the original choice for Eliza, had been cast in the role.It's definitely a great and must-have addition to any home’s music collection.

Wonderful movie always a favorite

Wonderful classic movie, one of our family favorites. Easily purchased at a reasonable price. thank you Amazon Prime.

Great classic movie!

I enjoyed this movie and am glad that it was rentable. I am not sure I would want to own it, as I do not think I will watch it again, but I did enjoy renting it. A movie like this would never be possible to make today. First, because of the story line and the script would never be approved to be made by any studio. I liked how it told the story though because we can not erase history and it tells what life may have been like at the time it was cast to be in high society. The acting was good and the story line was original, I did not know what was going to happen or where the story was going. It was funny and the cinematography of the way they filmed it was also really neat. The equipment they used to film this had I believe a short window as you see few films this old that are filmed this well and the new equipment can not capture the colors and look that the equipment used to make this movie did for it. That is a art in and of itself. The movie as a whole was like a fairytale or dream in that it captures what takes you to another world, another time or a parallel universe in which a story like this was told. A film like this is rare, very rare. If you take offense to a story line that is politically incorrect you will likely not enjoy this movie and it may trigger you, but if you can watch it from history and observe and not allow another time and another world to trigger you, then this is a wonderful movie. I am not sure I would allow younger kids to watch this though, this is not like Mary Poppins or the Sound of Music, it is for a older audience.

It won the Academy Award for "Best Movie Ever"

My Fair Lady stands as one of the great musicals of the post-MGM era, largely on the strength of the original play and it's cast. And it has aged well.This is the role for which Rex Harrison will always be remembered. And if he's a bit old for the part, we are still lucky to be able to see the brilliance or his "original" Henry Higgins. He's obnoxious, prejudiced, and insufferably full of himself and the importance of the English language. Yet, he is touched and changed by Eliza. Stanley Hollaway also reprises his role of Alfred Doolittle with the deft touch of the music hall veteran that he was.Audrey Hepburn, the Julia Roberts of her day, is radiant, vulnerable, and finally regal as Eliza. It is one of her best performances, and a wonderful use of her talents as an actress, dancer, and star. The only drawback to using her is that she is primarily a dancer rather than a singer - and Eliza is a singer's role. A problem that was famously (infamously?) solved by dubbing much of her singing. I disagree with those who find the dubbing obvious - all movie musicals are dubbed. The only difference is that most actors lip-synch to their own voice rather than someone else's. (If you want to be picky - Barbra Streisand has a much greater problem with syncing to a pre-recorded track in "Funny Girl" that Hepburn does here.)As for the issue of Julie vs. Audrey - I think we are all lucky to have had the enjoyment of seeing (or hearing) both actresses play the role. I really wouldn't want to be without either. Just as different actors bring their own qualities and point of view to new interpretations of "Hamlet" - Eliza is a part that demands the best of a performer.The team behind the camera makes great contributions. Harry Stradling Sr.'s cinematography is great mainstream sixties camera work. What it lacks in invention it makes up for in the beauty of the lighting and compositions. Cecil Beaton reprises his Broadway role of costume and production designer (along with Gene Allan). He designed for the previous Lerner and Lowe film "Gigi", and he set a new standard in this film - particularly with the costumes. As a matter of fact, George Cukor pretty much gives him the Ascott scene as a costume set piece. (Hepburn's dress alone is a testament to how costume builders can take a few squiggly lines from a designer and turn them into a real work of art in fabric and feathers.)It seems, however, that director George Cukor clearly does not have much of a hand for musicals - he films the action very conservatively and with few cuts and camera movements. He treats the legendary Broadway show pretty much as if he was filming Shaw's play. This gives the film a stiffness and stodginess that sometimes makes you wonder why all this is taking so long. Contrast this work with Robert Wise's "Sound of Music" which opened a year later. "Lady" is clearly the stronger source material, yet "Music" floats on the energy of its score and Ernest Lehman's script.But while Cukor's vision does not add much to the property, he gets out of the way and lets his actors and production team put on a first class rendition of the show.My Fair Lady is still a wonderful evening's entertainment. The cast, the score, the story, the design are all first rate. If it lacks a little in imagination and pace, well that's a small price to pay for a piece of theatrical legend.