My Fair Lady (1964)

Directed by: George Cukor | 166 minutes | drama, family, romance, musical | Actors: Audrey Hepburn, Rex Harrison, Wilfrid Hyde-White, Stanley Holloway, Gladys Cooper, Jeremy Brett, Theodore Bikel, Mona Washbourne, Isobel Elsom, John Holland

‘My Fair Lady’, the film version of the wildly popular live musical, is an adaptation of George Bernard Shaw’s 1912 play “Pygmalion”, which in turn has its origins in a Greek legend. Shaw’s play dealt with complex aspects of human relationships in a social world. The idea that language is the prerequisite for thoughts and the way of dealing with language can bring about a certain degree of civilization and development is not new in itself, but it is worth thinking about. Shaw focuses on the class system and argues that since an accent is the sign of a class, you can rise above your class by changing this accent.

In Cukor’s film classic, as in Pygmalion, this theory is put to the test by Henry Higgins (Harrison), whose subject is the “lady” of the title, the flower girl Eliza Doolittle (Hepburn). There was controversy at the time because it was expected that the lead role would go to Julie Andrews, who already had experience with the live version of the musical, and had a better voice than Hepburn. Andrews was far from happy about this, but took revenge by winning an Oscar the same year for her role in ‘Mary Poppins’.

Audrey does a great job though. Her transition from poor girl from the gutter to stately lady is believable and she constantly draws attention to herself with her charming appearance. Her verbal battle scenes with Higgins are a joy to watch, and in the (sparing) moments when her singing voice can be heard, she comes out well.

It’s a shame that most of her vocals were done by Marni Nixon (who also sang Maria’s songs in ‘Westside Story’). Especially after hearing some of her original recordings on the DVD (for a long time Hepburn was under the assumption that her recordings would just be used), it must be concluded that Hepburn has been shortchanged. In ‘Sabrina’ and ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’ it had already become clear that she can keep a good tune, and besides, it is not a disaster if she does not sing every note flawlessly. This actually enhances the authenticity, especially in the beginning and middle of the film, when she shouldn’t have a polished voice yet. Nixon’s singing voice is sometimes just annoying. One minute we hear Hepburn’s familiar, neutral voice, and the next she’s practically shattering the windows with her vibrating operatic nightingale voice. The transition is obvious and sometimes breaks the continuity of the viewing experience.

The alleged need for someone else to sing Hepburn’s songs becomes even more dubious when you see that opponent Harrison is allowed to recite his songs, as it were. Now it may be consistent with its character, but it doesn’t make it more appealing to the viewer/listener.

In addition to these, somewhat formal and technical (but not unimportant) objections, there are also a few caveats to be made about the story itself. The screenplay is indeed intelligent, has striking dialogues, and is interesting as a look at social relationships. Also, the way the love story is presented is unconventional in its focus on the intellect and the power of the mind rather than the heart. This last aspect is what comes up in several reviews as an example of a daring and mature love story. There is no kissing and no declarations of love are made between the protagonists. This subtle form of romance is worthy of praise, were it not for the fact that the effect is not really satisfying. Higgins has always seen Eliza as a guinea pig and didn’t see her as a human being with feelings, and now that she’s gone, he decides to ask her back anyway, because “he’s gotten used to her face”. If that’s not love anymore. There is, of course, some truth in the expression “you don’t know what you have until you lose it”, but he could use a little more effort to get Eliza back, who in turn also gets over the fact that she’s already that time has been used as a wipe. So, while the subtlety is positive, a little more emotion and self-reflection would have been welcome here.

The film’s design is beautiful, with colorful, exuberant costumes and beautiful sets, which have deservedly been awarded with Oscars. The songs have been almost unanimously successful (apart from Harrison’s annoying “singing style”), with world-famous songs such as “The Rain in Spain”, and “With a Little Bit of Luck”. The cinematography is somewhat disappointing in terms of dynamics. The camera hardly moves, with long pieces set in one particular space. This gives the film a somewhat static character at times.

Despite the criticism, it’s an interesting story in its emphasis on the formative power of language and encouraging you to realize your own potential, and Hepburn manages to bring some life to the brewery. It is a pity that there are missed opportunities here and there in the elaboration, because the production contains all the necessary talent and basic material to make it the perfect musical.