Funny Face

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 Funny Face [1957]

Starring: Audrey Hepburn, Fred Astaire, Kay Thompson

Direction by Stanley Donen

Language: English


Why I watched this movie, you ask? I'm a Gilmore Girls addict. I sound super uncultured saying that, but I found out about this musical from the couple of times it was mentioned on the show. I know that as someone who loves watching film, finding out about a successful film starring Audrey Hepburn through a television show is blasphemous. But if it is any consolation, I did really enjoy this. 

Firstly, how could anybody say that Audrey Hepburn has a 'funny face': calling her 'plain'. That, to me, is the real blasphemous thing. Everything about Hepburn in this is incredible. From her makeup and hairstyling, to her wardrobe (which was, by the way, astounding). From her general suitability to the role (her ability to oscillate between being humourous and jolly to being stiff and mannered), to her ability to carry out all the long, awkward dance sequences perfectly: who beats Hepburn? Very few. 

See, I thought that Triangle of Sadness was going to be the most absurd film I have ever seen. However, this gives it a run for its money. The general plot line was alright, and easy to follow. But the constant mentions of philosophy became a little difficult to understand after a period of time, and this coupled with the extended scenes of ridiculous singing and dancing (whilst entertaining) made for a very strange viewing experience. I couldn't quite put my finger on where the story was going, or the relevance of certain songs included like I could in other productions (i.e. the Sound of Music, where all the songs were relevant and easy to understand). 

Also, to be quite frank, I didn't really see the chemistry between Audrey Hepburn's character, Jo, and Fred Astaire's character, Dick. Firstly, the visual age difference between the two struck me immediately as something that felt very unnatural: a thirty year age difference is very striking to see, no matter how much you can artificially change someone's appearance. And whilst Astaire did have a great deal of vitality left in him, it was just odd to see a couple so differentially aged. A love story about a large age difference makes sense if the biggest obstacle in achieving happiness is the age issue. However, that was not the case in this movie. 

Actually, on that topic, the movie didn't really follow a traditional structure - I can't really put my finger on a clear conflict that serves as a focal point for the development of the story. There were so many things as play - so many different conflicts that matters became slightly confusing. In this movie, there were little obstacles which occurred very frequently, which I did not really care for. And you it's an issue when I pause a movie halfway (both because I had somewhere else to be, and because I was genuinely losing interest). 

Watch this movie because of Audrey Hepburn. It's a fun watch, objectively, but I can't say that it was my cup of tea to be very honest. 

5/10

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