George Cukor
My Fair Lady

"Lots of choc'lates for me to eat,
Lots of coal makin' lots of 'eat.
Warm face, warm 'ands, warm feet,
Aow, wouldn't it be loverly?"

"My Fair Lady", probably the last great Hollywood musical, closing a golden era for this genre, a gamble won by Warner who wanted at all costs to bring to the big screen "Pygmalion" by George Bernard Shaw, written in 1912. The playwright's work addresses the issues of his time, denouncing the ills and hypocrisy of early 1900s British society. "Pygmalion" particularly deals with the condition of women, their emancipation, their role in a false world where being well-spoken is enough to gain respect. Understanding Shaw's thinking is essential to enter the world of "My Fair Lady"; in fact, it is not easy to understand the success it had in 1964, the story is harsh, at times heavy, and does not have the typical fairytale-like attributes of stories that American theatrical and cinematic industries love so much.

We are nowhere near the lightness of "Singin' In The Rain" or "Funny Face", the topics addressed are quite different but developed with the tone of comedy and humor that implies laughter but also a sense of unease and discomfort immediately after. The film's cast presents some novelties compared to the Broadway version, with British actor Rex Harrison confirmed in the role of Prof. Higgins, and instead of the then unknown Julie Andrews, Audrey Hepburn was chosen for the very delicate character of Eliza. Here we face one of the thorniest cases in cinema history, Hepburn is the most suitable actress to play the flower girl Eliza but does not have the soprano voice to sing the songs; she had already sung in "Funny Face" but those were easier and of a different nature, so she was dubbed in post-production by a professional singer. The curious thing is that the European actress had pushed Warner to choose Andrews for the role of Eliza, but a known face was needed, and Audrey signed the contract which did not mention that the songs would be dubbed. When she discovered this after many months of voice training, she left the set. But her character urged her to return, apologizing to everyone the next day and resuming her place, knowing that even giving her all, she could never hope for the Oscar. Nonetheless, her Eliza is splendid, her cockney accent, that of London's lower depths, is perfect. Audrey portrays the rough street woman's movements, but also the dreams of a young girl who wants more from life. What does she want? Simply a sales position in a flower shop, nothing more. Enjoy the scenes where "Wouldn't It Be Loverly" is sung, beautifully performed by the entire cast of extras. Shaw will give Eliza the opportunity to transform, to achieve her independence, but Prof. Higgins is not the prince charming. An expert in phonetics, he accepts the challenge of transforming the simple flower girl into a classy lady simply by teaching her to speak correctly; in reality, poor Eliza is a toy in the hands of this idler and his friend, a retired old soldier. The famous scenes where Eliza undergoes the harsh phonetics lessons using bizarre machines have rightfully entered cinema history, the vowel machine, the one for the correct pronunciation of the "H", and so on, up to the famous "The Rain In Spain" which sanctions the transformation into a perfect classy lady. Higgins, however, treats the girl like a doormat, not considering her as a person at all; these are the moments where the full contempt of the bourgeoisie towards the poorer classes is rendered, the professor cannot consider Eliza his equal, not even when she confronts him claiming her role in society. In the end, will Eliza achieve her independence? If you know Shaw's thoughts, you already know the answer. Those who have never read anything about his work will be surprised; after all, the ending is still much discussed today.

Recently re-released on DVD on two discs in a beautiful packaging, documentaries and interviews are added, but the most beautiful and interesting are the two songs from the original soundtrack sung by Audrey, "Show Me" and "Wouldn't It Be Loverly", a nice gesture towards an actress who gave so much for the success of this film and had to watch the Oscar rain (as many as eight) only as a spectator.

P.S.: I have not considered the dubbed version in Italian since for me it makes no sense.