Pretty Woman: real romanticism never gets old

It is impossible to find a film which has a more iconic power than this! Pretty Woman (directed by Garry Marshall and released in 1990) has marked an era, a generation of incurable romantics. It proves that there are films that you can see over and over again, without getting tired.

The film conveys emotions which never stop renewing themselves, because Pretty Woman is the unique prototype of the perfect love story. Other movies of the same genre necessarily come after it.

An unconventional but tender girl with a refined and very rich businessman seem to make an unbalanced duet, but appearances are deceiving. You have to be ready to laugh and cry at the same time!

Scrolling through the scenes, gasps will never be enough, even if you know every shade of this film…

And don’t lie: you have been learning all dialogues.

An astonishing plot

The wealthy Edward Lewis, despite his polite aspect, is a spoiled scion. He is a ruthless entrepreneur who acquires companies in economic difficulty to resell them in small parts, achieving higher proceeds than the initial purchase. His life is monotonous and impersonal, framed in a precise routine, made only of work. Relationships with others are dictated by rationality. Just as friendships and love stories, they don’t last long, just the time to take advantage of his bank account. Probably, his environment is itself  inclined to create selfless and sincere human communications. An evening, he suddenly finds himself in Hollywood Boulevard, trying to reach the hotel, but he is forced to ask for directions.

Here, he meets Vivian Ward, a prostitute who works there with her “colleague” and friend Kit De Luca. Vivian drives Edward to the destination. After a night spent together, he notes the girl’s initiative. Therefore, the businessman proposes her to work for him for a week, in exchange for a large sum of money. She accepts the offer, but, as the days go by, their collaboration turn into something deeper: it is much more than a trivial sexual adventure. During a polo game tournament, Edward inadvertently confesses to his slimy lawyer Stuckey that Vivian is a prostitute, making the girl very angry.  When they come back to the hotel, she is really fuming to the point that she wants to stop the collaboration and give up her remuneration.

Luckily, the discussion is solved. At the end of the week, Edward realizes he has fallen in love with Vivian. Thus, the businessman proposes to stay. He promises her a house, a car and an excellent bank account available for her.

“I want the fairy-tale”

However, the girl is quite disappointed by his cold and materialistic behavior, without feelings. So her answer is emblematic: “I want the fairy-tale” and she decides to return to her flat in Hollywood Boulevard with her friend Kit.

Anyway, something has already changed in Vivian’s life: she packs to move to San Francisco and start a new existential path. It is important to go beyond, exploiting own potentialities without ever being satisfied, building a better future.

But the happy ending, marked by love and even more imbued with hope, amazes the spectator: Edward realizes Vivian has made him a better person, because he chooses to help companies in crisis, instead of destroying them. He has discovered the true meaning of existence, which is far from money, shady business and an empty high society. At the same time, Vivian has met a different world where there is the possibility to emancipate herself from a precarious routine.

In the last scene of the film, Edward reaches Vivian’s district. Challenging his fear for heights, he climbs the emergency stairs of the condominium, where the girl lives, and achieves his beloved, creating an unforgettable moment in the history of cinema.

An unmistakable space-time context: setting and soundtrack

Setting

Pretty Woman is remembered not only for the romantic, full of freshness and modernity plot. The desire to create a contemporary Cinderella reflects itself also in the atmosphere, which surrounds characters and the whole story.

“Keep dreaming, this is Hollywood” the underground guy claims at the beginning and at the end of the movie. This is a primary sentence to comprehend the entire framework. It is a precise human ferment, based on hungry progress, anxiety for freedom and hope to quickly realize own dreams.

The city of Los Angeles is the perfect place to represent these needs. It is an ever-expanding metropolis, in constant search for new motivations. Los Angeles is the world capital of the cinematographic industry, thanks to its famed quarter Hollywood. Its own geography gives an idea of expansion, made of low houses, palm trees and very wide roads.

Actually, Pretty Woman was shot in Beverly Hills, the authentic exclusive core of Los Angeles. It is a sort of city in the city, an integral part of Los Angeles, but, in spite of this feature, Beverly Hills is very difficult to reach by public transports. For this reason the district is similar to a closed enclave, which doesn’t want to communicate with the outside, in order to keep its aura of uniqueness.

The most important road in Beverly Hills is doubtless the Rodeo Drive. It is where Vivian goes shopping, following the advice of Edward, with his credit card. Rodeo Drive hosts the most luxurious brands’ shops, such as Armani, Valentino, Gucci, Bulgari and Tiffany. They make the street a paradise of elegance and sophistication.

At the opposite of this refined dimension, the Hollywood Boulevard, where the protagonists meet, is still a dodgy place. In 1958, the Walk of Fame has been creating to tribute to the great movie stars. But only since 1995, the municipality has been implementing some initiatives to let the street to overcome a phase of decline and neglect. In 2001, the Dolby Theatre was completed, the place where Oscar Awards ceremony takes place every year.

Soundtrack

Talking about music, Pretty Woman has a multifaceted soundtrack, which doesn’t hesitate to mix different genres and musical eras. There are three melodies, which immediately refer to this fantastic movie.

Oh, Pretty Woman by Roy Orbison has given the title to the film, becoming a very celebrated piece when Garry Marshall’s pellicle arrived in the cinemas at the beginning of the Nineties. Oh, Pretty Woman dates back to 1964. Nevertheless it looks like a much more recent success, capable of exalting female freedom with lightness and a catchy pace.

Focusing on the fabulous Eighties, in 1987, the Christmas pop song It Must Have Been Love was released in Sweden by the Swedish duo Roxette. They can be considered musically Abba’s descendants, albeit with some differences. The piece has been readapted for the film, with a more modern sound, deleting the Christmas recalls. It Must Have Been Love is probably one of the most emblematic melody of that period. Not to mention its impact on Pretty Woman! The taxi scene is unforgettable: in a rainy day, Vivian, full of sadness, chooses to come back to her daily life, while Edward, leaving the hotel, understands he is in love with her… Has their mutual love really come to a definitive end?

Last but not least, the famous aria from La Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi, entitled “Amami Alfredo” reveals itself as the poignant background along a good part of the movie. It underlines the implied intensity of the feeling, which involves both Vivian and Edward. Luckily, the film and the opera have two completely diverse epilogues, but they arouse the same special atmosphere. It is an irresistible and sudden love, which is able to impress strong and unforgettable emotions in those who live it and observe it from the outside, simply being enchanted from the provoked context.

To remember effortlessly some passages or to see again Pretty Woman over and over again are spontaneous and pleasant consequences.

And the two main actors strengthen the pleasure of viewing.

Julia Roberts and Richard Gere: innovative models of beauty and style

Surely, Pretty Woman would have had another fortune if the two protagonists haven’t been played by Julia Roberts and Richard Gere. Their popularity, thanks to these roles, quickly became global and gave them an endless charm.

The director had in mind other actors for his characters. But many of them rejected the part, perhaps not very tempting.

The research was complicated, above all, for the female protagonist, because nobody wanted to embody the figure of a prostitute. Indeed, against any hesitation, the young Julia Roberts overcame doubts and fears. The almost unknown actress astonished for her identification and immediacy, capable of making Vivian Ward a girl close to the society, in whom everyone can find themselves.

Julia Roberts gives sensuality, tenderness and tenacity to Vivian at the same time, conveying to the female public the right strength to face difficulties and frustration and get own goals.

Equally, Richard Gere donates to Edward the shape of the perfect gentleman, who is not only rich but also handsome, respectful and kind, able to distinguish himself from other businessmen.

Both Vivian and Edward learn from each other to create honest and sincere relationships, beyond money and sex. And Julia and Richard have provided an important input in outlining these multifaceted personalities and their tacit messages.

Conclusions

No further reasons are needed to elect Pretty Woman as one of the most evocative and brilliant comedies of all times, far from vulgarities and usual banalities.

Love can change people, even without following the most stainless stereotypes… while the disillusioned heart find its solid refuge in the most improbable soul.

Keep dreaming: this is pure life.

Sources:

Pretty Woman. (n.d.). Wikipedia. https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pretty_Woman#Riprese

Pretty Woman the film. (n.d.). Comingsoon. https://www.comingsoon.it/film/pretty-woman/4567/scheda/

Pretty Woman the review. (n.d.). Cinematografo. https://www.cinematografo.it/cinedatabase/film/pretty-woman/26527/