Gigi (1958)

Gigi: Directed by Vincente Minnelli, Charles Walters. With Leslie Caron, Maurice Chevalier, Louis Jourdan, Hermione Gingold. Weary of the conventions of Parisian society, a rich playboy and a youthful courtesan-in-training enjoy a platonic friendship which may not stay platonic for long.

“Directed by Vincente Minnelli and starring Leslie Caron as the title character, u0026quot;Gigiu0026quot; (1958) is nothing short of sweet and delightful. Gigi is a coltish teen in 1900u0026#39;s Paris who lives with her grandmother Madame Alvarez (Hermione Gingold) and who loves to hang out with family friend Gaston Lachaille (Louis Jourdan), an international jet-setter and playboy whose every relationship is documented in the papers. The pseudo-narrator of the film is Henri Lachaille (Maurice Chevalier), Gastonu0026#39;s uncle and a notorious playboy in his own right, who loves to give his nephew relationship advice, solicited or not. Gigi is being bred by her grandmother and aunt to become a refined woman so she can become a mistress for rich and powerful men, so it comes as both a surprise and delight to the women to discover that Gaston may be a suitable candidate. However, Gigiu0026#39;s innocence may not allow this to happen, as she struggles with making the transition between carefree girl to a refined lady with social responsibilities.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eMusicals are a rare genre on my u0026quot;films I adoreu0026quot; list, but u0026quot;Gigiu0026quot; has long been a favorite film of mine, despite its sappy moments and sometimes corny jokes. What makes u0026quot;Gigiu0026quot; such a good film is its unmitigated Charm with a capital u0026quot;Cu0026quot;; one canu0026#39;t help but grin a little when Chevalier sings u0026quot;Thank Heaven for Little Girlsu0026quot; because he doesnu0026#39;t stop flashing that high voltage smile himself. And I cannot get through the scene between Chevalier and Gingold when they sing u0026quot;I Remember it Wellu0026quot; by the seaside without tearing up because it is just so damn cute. Sure, the revelations and epiphanies are pretty easy and kind of out of nowhere, but considering it is an MGM musical from the 1950u0026#39;s, I would be surprised if there werenu0026#39;t these kinds of things. Everyone in the film looks like they are having a good time (particularly Chevalier), and the great Lerner-Loewe music against the Parisian backdrop is enough to sell me.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eu0026quot;Gigiu0026quot;, while being a 10-time Oscar winner (including Best Picture) has unfortunately been marginalized by some as a typical MGM fluff piece, could be a hard sell, particularly to the jaded Generation Y – and – younger audience. However, since I myself am probably one of the most cynical film-viewers I personally know of, take my word for it – u0026quot;Gigiu0026quot; is a lot of fun, and a good way to spend two hours. 8/10 –Shelly”