Day 68: Funny Face (1958)
Yesterday's pick, an American in Paris, got me thinking about this film- Funny Face. Of the two, this film has probably aged the best, and is oddly a film that gets lost in the cannon of of film retrospectives. Funny Face is adapted from a Broadway play, but is purely cinematic. Unlike An American in Paris, the film makers for this film shoot much of the film in location in Paris. We see Fred Astaire, Audrey Hepburn, and Kay Thompson, dancing and singing on Pont Neuf, in the Eiffel Tower, and in front of the Champs We also get Audrey singing in her own voice, unlike later films such as My Fair Lady. Like Astaire, Hepburn's voice is quirky and thin, but still perfectly suited to the character and rhythmically on mark. There are so many good songs, some are Gershwin such as "S Wonderful" but there are other numbers such as "On how to be Lovely" that add a dash of the absurd to the film. Hepburn's Bohemian inspired dance number in the club is deliciously late 1950s, and hints to the influence of the 'beat generation.' Kay Thompson is the stand-out here. This woman had such an amazing career, as a choreographer, writer, and a prolific dance and musical director for Broadway and Hollywood. To actually see her on film is a rare treat. Astaire's characters if meant to convey the great fashion photographer Richard Avedon, while Thompson's character is loosely based on Diana Vreeland.
Media Literacy Questions for Kids: This film was made at Paramount, but really looks like an MGM musical, why is that? How is Paris used as third character within the film? Hepburn is 30 years younger than Astaire, yet they play love interests, does Hollywood still present these lopsided age romances based on gender?
Themes: Paris, Dance, Beat Generation, Philosophy, Fashion
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