Funny Face has the credentials to be an absolute classic – we're talking great actors, a great director and the perennially popular background of Paris. It certainly emerges an entertaining, exuberant musical as one would expect. But there's just something missing, a little sprinkling of magic or some overlooked ingredient, that would have sealed its place in the echelons of truly amazing movie musicals. When giving any other movie a 7-out-of-10 rating, I'd normally be listing all the things the movie has done right to earn itself 7 marks; with Funny Face it's almost a case of listing what the film has done wrong to lose 3 marks.
Maggie Prescott (Kay Thompson), bulldozing head honcho at Quality magazine, wants to find the next "thing" in the trend-setting world of fashion. She and ace photographer Dick Avery (Fred Astaire) invade a quaint antiquarian book shop in Greenwich Village to carry out an "intellectual" photo shoot with their bimbo-ish models. During the shoot, Dick accidentally catches a shot of the book shop worker Jo Stockton (Audrey Hepburn), and later realises that her funny face might actually be the perfect profile to launch the magazine in a new direction. Dick and Maggie persuade Jo to come to Paris with them for a fashion shoot and show. She is reluctant to get involved in the industry, but accepts anyway as she is keen to meet her idol, philosopher Emile Flostre (Michel Auclair), who is giving lectures in Paris. By travelling to France she sniffs an opportunity to meet the man she admires so much. But, unexpectedly, Jo soon finds herself falling for the charm of her photographer Dick. Loves course never runs smooth, as Jo, Dick and Emile are soon to discover
Loosely based on a 1927 Broadway musical, this film is a lot of fun to watch. The noticeable age gap between Astaire and Hepburn makes their romance unconvincing, but watching the two of them own the screen in their inimitable way remains a joy. Overall the film's musical numbers are very well done – Think Pink, Bonjour Paris, He Loves And She Loves and Let's Kiss And Make Up being just a few of the highlights. There are occasional longueurs in the story (it has, after all, the thinnest of plots, flimsily stretched to a 100+ minute running time), but there's always a lively scene or song just round the corner to liven things up whenever tedium looms. Overall, Funny Face is a classy show. As mentioned, though, it could have been an absolute classic. It's reminiscent of a damn good golf player who can hit the green every time, but cannot seem to sink the putts that would make him a world beater. Funny Face gives itself a glorious shot at perfection, then lets it drift away on a wave of lightweight feathery fluffiness.
Maggie Prescott (Kay Thompson), bulldozing head honcho at Quality magazine, wants to find the next "thing" in the trend-setting world of fashion. She and ace photographer Dick Avery (Fred Astaire) invade a quaint antiquarian book shop in Greenwich Village to carry out an "intellectual" photo shoot with their bimbo-ish models. During the shoot, Dick accidentally catches a shot of the book shop worker Jo Stockton (Audrey Hepburn), and later realises that her funny face might actually be the perfect profile to launch the magazine in a new direction. Dick and Maggie persuade Jo to come to Paris with them for a fashion shoot and show. She is reluctant to get involved in the industry, but accepts anyway as she is keen to meet her idol, philosopher Emile Flostre (Michel Auclair), who is giving lectures in Paris. By travelling to France she sniffs an opportunity to meet the man she admires so much. But, unexpectedly, Jo soon finds herself falling for the charm of her photographer Dick. Loves course never runs smooth, as Jo, Dick and Emile are soon to discover
Loosely based on a 1927 Broadway musical, this film is a lot of fun to watch. The noticeable age gap between Astaire and Hepburn makes their romance unconvincing, but watching the two of them own the screen in their inimitable way remains a joy. Overall the film's musical numbers are very well done – Think Pink, Bonjour Paris, He Loves And She Loves and Let's Kiss And Make Up being just a few of the highlights. There are occasional longueurs in the story (it has, after all, the thinnest of plots, flimsily stretched to a 100+ minute running time), but there's always a lively scene or song just round the corner to liven things up whenever tedium looms. Overall, Funny Face is a classy show. As mentioned, though, it could have been an absolute classic. It's reminiscent of a damn good golf player who can hit the green every time, but cannot seem to sink the putts that would make him a world beater. Funny Face gives itself a glorious shot at perfection, then lets it drift away on a wave of lightweight feathery fluffiness.