Romancefest 21: Gigi

Now, this is more like it -- finally, some fun! Some light! Some non-death.

I used to have a Pink Floyd poster that was basically just a reproduction of the cover of their UMMAGUMMA album. It had the four dudes in the band hanging around, and the soundtrack album to GIGI was prominently displayed, sitting on the floor leaning up against the wall. I used to look up at it on my wall and wonder what the deal was with GIGI that it warranted placement on the cover of a Pink Floyd album.

I'm still not exactly sure what the significance was, if any, but GIGI is definitely a fun and entertaining movie musical, winner of a bunch of Academy Awards, though it seems like you never see it on TV anymore or hear anyone talk about it.

GIGI stars Leslie Caron as the title character, a young girl (apparently a teenager?) growing up in 1900 Paris. She's raised by her protective grandmother (Hermione Gingold) and her eccentric great Aunt (Eva Gabor) who attempt to teach her how to grow up to be a respectable woman in a city that is seemingly crawling with players who live only for a series of sensationalistic, tabloidy one night stands. Unfortunately Gigi's aunt's idea of a respectable woman appears to be a resigned, subserviate sex-slave who is only "in it" for the money. Gigi's less interested in that and more interested in romance.

Meanwhile, rich young playboy Gaston (Louis Jourdan) is fed up with his superficial lifestyle of drunken all-night parties and head-line making love affairs. His Uncle (Maurice Chevalier) gives him some advice on the player lifestyle -- after all, even though he's what you might call a senior citizen, he's still not married and proudly prowls the streets of Paris picking up on women and singing the praises (somewhat creepily) of "little girls." Still, he's charming as hell and just loves to have fun and party, so it's a tempting lifestyle.

Gaston's Uncle actually used to have an affair with Gigi's grandmother, and Gaston still visits the grandmother on occasion and enjoys innocently flirting with Gigi, playing cards, sneaking her champagne, bringing her gifts. Eventually Gaston realizes Gigi not only epitomizes the opposite of everything he's sick of with her innocence and enthusiasm, but is also blossoming into a young woman who could actually be a romantic prospect.

It's interesting, despite the fact that Gigi is the title character, Gaston takes up most of the screen time, and he's actually not that bad of a leading man. I'm not familiar with the actor Louis Jourdan, but he is able to be an engaging leading man, unlike some of the other guys I've seen in movies this month, including some more famous ones. You can sympathize with his position as much as you can sympathize with Gigi's. Sure, the screen lights up when Gigi shows up, and you sometimes wish the movie was more about her, but it's not like you fall asleep when Gaston's on screen.

This is kind of a naturalistic musical in the sense that most of the movie is shot on the streets of Paris and in real locations, instead of on fantastic sets. Also, there aren't any really big epic dance numbers -- most of the songs are accompanied by actors walking around or simply sitting at a table and singing at the camera. Somehow, thanks to the shot compositions and performances, this avoids being boring. Most of the songs are kind of conversational, almost spoken as much as sung. So, you don't feel like the movie is taking a break every 5 minutes for a big show-stopper -- it all kind of flows together seamlessly.

The film is also beautifully shot with lots of primary colors and great locations. On top of all of that, it's also funny and very quotable, with great lines like:

"The only people who make love all the time are liars."

"Someone ought to look after you and I could if you'd love me."

"Youth can really do a fellow in."

That last one is an interesting insight from Chevalier's aged Uncle character -- he says it just after his nephew unloads on him with his own romantic drama. Chevalier's character is glad he's over that tumultuous period where every relationship seems huge and epic and meaningful, and content just to relax and let whatever happens happen. But, he also seems to revel in being somewhat involved in the relationship between Gaston and Gigi as if he remembers those days fondly.

When you're in the middle of it, it can seem like an impossibly frustrating game. But, if you've played enough, you can kind of sit back and just let it happen.