Stanley Donen is best known for his musical classic SINGIN' IN THE RAIN. But in 1957, he got his first chance to work with the Oscar-winning new star Audrey Hepburn. Unlike her more famous musical, MY FAIR LADY, later in her career, Hepburn actually sings the tunes here. The film combines two musicals FUNNY FACE and WEDDING BELLS, and features assorted songs from George and Ira Gershwin.
The plot mainly comes from WEDDING BELLS. In the film, fashion magazine editor Maggie Prescott (Kay Thompson) wants something new and fresh for her new edition. Photographer Dick Avery (Fred Astaire, TOP HAT) is having no luck with his empty-headed model. The two decide to take the photo shoot on location to a trendy Greenwich Village bookstore, where they push around the intellectual shopkeeper Jo Stockton (Hepburn). However, after Avery develops the photos and sees Jo in them, he believes she is the new look they need. So with the allure of a trip to Paris, he convinces Jo to put aside her prejudices toward high fashion as a means to an end. It's a free trip to Paris, where her hero, philosopher Emile Flostre (Michel Auclair, THE DAY OF THE JACKAL), lives.
The pieces make for a great romantic musical comedy formula. Audrey Hepburn. Fred Astaire. Paris, France. The songs are light and fluffy, supported by some great dancing. The film has fun with beatniks and Hepburn's modern/jazz dance number is one of the highlights. (Donen sued GAP when the sequenced was used in a jeans commercial.) Later, in an effort to sneak into Flostre's invitation-only lecture, Dick and Maggie dress up as beatniks with Astaire in a fake goatee and all. Their song and dance number is the big showstopper.
But all these good pieces work as pieces. While there are no bad scenes, none of the scenes take off, lifting the standard opposites attract plot to another level. Donen's directing choices are spotty as well. The title sequence number is set in a cramped darkroom under a constant, and annoying, red light. It's a great song, performed wonderfully by Astaire, but everything around it only hampers its explosive potential. Then you come to the leads. A 30-year age difference between two lovers in a movie isn't uncommon, but Astaire isn't dashing enough to pull it off. Donen would correct this problem in his next film with Hepburn, CHARADE, where he poked fun at the age disparity between her and Cary Grant. Here, Hepburn and Astaire together have a creepy factor that cannot be shook. Yet, with that being said, the two are charming as individuals, and as movie icons. We don't believe in their romance one bit, but it actually doesn't matter that much. When they're fighting, they're more entertaining anyway.
While it was based on two plays, Leonard Gershe was nominated for an original screenplay Oscar, probably more for his clever dialogue than the standard plotting. Its three other nomination are the places the film really shines — art and set direction, cinematography, and costumes, which were designed by legendary Edith Head and Hubert de Givenchy. FUNNY FACE is like high fashion — it's beautiful to look at. As a film, it's a solidly made piece from well-worn material sowed together with some new expensive spangles that don't quiet match, but pull us in to try it on nonetheless.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
