The last few times I've tried to watch "My Fair Lady," the musical based on George Bernard Shaw's play "Pygmalion," I've found it tough to sit through. It feels so padded, so lumbering, so long, and ooooh boy does that second half turn into a slog, when the story seems to be over but the movie just keeps going and going. But watching "Pygmalion," the 1938 film, renewed my appreciation for the Lerner and Loewe musical. Without the color and the songs, this "Pygmalion" just feels so lifeless and drab.
The screenplays of both films are an almost word-to-word match, which doesn't help the earlier movie because almost none of the line readings are as funny as they are in "My Fair Lady." You hear Leslie Howard delivering any number of one liners and all you can think is how much funnier Rex Harrison was delivering the same lines. But even minor characters, like Mrs. Pearce the housekeeper, are funnier in the musical. Wendy Hiller probably fairs the best as Eliza, since I've never felt Audrey Hepburn was a great match for the role. And Wilfred Lawson also does just as well as Stanley Holloway, and at least we're spared the endless "Get Me to the Church on Time" number that grinds the musical to a halt in its last half hour. But if I'm going to watch a version of this story, "My Fair Lady" is the one I'll be turning to.
"Pygmalion" won the 1938 Academy Award for Best Screenplay, and it was nominated for Outstanding Production, Best Actor (Howard), and Best Actress (Hiller).
Grade: B-
The screenplays of both films are an almost word-to-word match, which doesn't help the earlier movie because almost none of the line readings are as funny as they are in "My Fair Lady." You hear Leslie Howard delivering any number of one liners and all you can think is how much funnier Rex Harrison was delivering the same lines. But even minor characters, like Mrs. Pearce the housekeeper, are funnier in the musical. Wendy Hiller probably fairs the best as Eliza, since I've never felt Audrey Hepburn was a great match for the role. And Wilfred Lawson also does just as well as Stanley Holloway, and at least we're spared the endless "Get Me to the Church on Time" number that grinds the musical to a halt in its last half hour. But if I'm going to watch a version of this story, "My Fair Lady" is the one I'll be turning to.
"Pygmalion" won the 1938 Academy Award for Best Screenplay, and it was nominated for Outstanding Production, Best Actor (Howard), and Best Actress (Hiller).
Grade: B-