{"id":20116,"date":"2011-10-18T12:13:05","date_gmt":"2011-10-18T19:13:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=20116"},"modified":"2021-01-25T12:28:03","modified_gmt":"2021-01-25T19:28:03","slug":"funny-face-1957","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=20116","title":{"rendered":"Funny Face (1957)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;Every girl on every page of <em>Quality<\/em> has grace, elegance, and pizzazz. Now what&#8217;s wrong with bringing out a girl who has character, spirit, and intelligence?&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Poster-156x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"156\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-20117\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Poster-156x300.jpg 156w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Poster-66x128.jpg 66w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Poster-532x1024.jpg 532w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Poster.jpg 580w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 156px) 100vw, 156px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nWhen the editor (Kay Thompson) of a women&#8217;s fashion magazine declares that she wants a fresh face for the new edition, a photographer (Fred Astaire) points her towards a waifish, philosophy-loving bookstore employee (Audrey Hepburn) who agrees to become a model in exchange for a trip to Paris.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Audrey Hepburn Films<\/li>\n<li>Fred Astaire Films<\/li>\n<li>Models<\/li>\n<li>Musicals<\/li>\n<li>Photographers<\/li>\n<li>Romance<\/li>\n<li>Stanley Donen Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nFrom its vibrant Technicolor palette, to George Davis and Hal Pereira&#8217;s stylized art direction, to Givenchy&#8217;s seemingly endless display of stunningly chic couture, Stanley Donen&#8217;s <em>Funny Face<\/em> is a stylishly retro visual treat, one it&#8217;s truly difficult to tear your eyes away from. The storyline itself, unfortunately, is a little less impressive. Essentially a Pygmalion-tale about an innocent waif seduced by an older mentor into a world of glamour and fame, Hepburn&#8217;s &#8220;transformation&#8221; never rings quite true. She&#8217;s a philosophy-loving beatnik who inexplicably falls in love with the much-older Astaire the first time he kisses her, and allows both her weird crush on him &#8212; as well as her desire to travel to Paris to meet the fabled philosopher Emile Flostre (Michel Auclair) &#8212; to convince her to give the glamorous world of modeling a try. (Oh, how would-be models in the audience at the time must have been simultaneously drooling and seething at the fairy-tale opportunity Hepburn nearly gives up!) <\/p>\n<p>Yet the entire affair &#8212; like most musicals at the time &#8212; is best viewed simply as a fairy tale, one that shouldn&#8217;t be analyzed too closely; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/dvdsavant\/s2794face.html\">as DVD Savant puts it<\/a>, &#8220;<em>Funny Face<\/em> is meant to be a carefree bubble of jokes and music, and on those terms there&#8217;s little to complain about.&#8221; While the age difference between Hepburn and Astaire really is too much to swallow (after all, Astaire is no debonairly graying Cary Grant), it&#8217;s nonetheless a delight to watch these two dancing on-screen together &#8212; or apart, for that matter. Indeed, Hepburn&#8217;s best dance is her stunning solo outing in the Beatnik cafe, which is out of sight, man! Meanwhile, Astaire does a fine ditty with a &#8220;red cape&#8221; outside Hepburn&#8217;s apartment window, and there are numerous other fun songs (courtesy of a fine Gershwin score) and dances sprinkled throughout. Film fanatics will also surely be interested to see polymath Kay Thompson &#8212; known, among other things, for being one of Judy Garland&#8217;s closest confidantes, as well as the creator of the children&#8217;s book character <a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Eloise_%28books%29\">Eloise<\/a> &#8212; in one of her precious few screen appearances, here playing the delightfully acerbic, Diana Vreeland-esque fashion magazine editor who drives the entire narrative. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Note:<\/strong> Even non-fashion-lovers will be tempted to rewind the lovely Parisian fashion shoot montage several times &#8212; <em>quelle magnifique<\/em>! <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Audrey Hepburn as Jo<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Hepburn.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Hepburn.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-20121\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Hepburn.png 512w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Hepburn-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Hepburn-300x168.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Kay Thompson as Maggie<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Thompson.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Thompson.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-20122\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Thompson.png 512w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Thompson-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Thompson-300x168.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>The opening &#8220;Think Pink&#8221; musical montage<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Think-Pink.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Think-Pink.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-20123\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Think-Pink.png 512w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Think-Pink-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Think-Pink-300x168.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>The Givenchy fashion shoot montage across Paris<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Balloons.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Balloons.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-20124\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Balloons.png 512w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Balloons-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Balloons-300x168.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Fishing.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Fishing.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-20125\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Fishing.png 512w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Fishing-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Fishing-300x168.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Red-Dress.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Red-Dress.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-20126\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Red-Dress.png 512w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Red-Dress-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Fashion-Shoot-Red-Dress-300x168.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Hepburn&#8217;s dazzling beatnik dance<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Beat-Dance.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Beat-Dance.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-20127\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Beat-Dance.png 512w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Beat-Dance-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Beat-Dance-300x168.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Astaire&#8217;s solo &#8220;bullfight&#8221; dance<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Astaire-Solo.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Astaire-Solo.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-20128\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Astaire-Solo.png 512w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Astaire-Solo-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Astaire-Solo-300x168.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Marvelous sets, costumes, and art direction<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Sets.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Sets.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-20132\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Sets.png 512w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Sets-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Sets-300x168.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Sets2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Sets2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-20133\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Sets2.png 512w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Sets2-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Sets2-300x168.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Ray June&#8217;s luminous Technicolor cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Cinematography.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Cinematography.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-20129\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Cinematography.png 512w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Cinematography-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Cinematography-300x168.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Chic opening titles<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Titles.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Titles.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-20131\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Titles.png 512w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Titles-128x72.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/Funny-Face-Titles-300x168.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>A fine and memorable Gershwin score\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, as a classic and stylish &#8217;50s musical. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Genuine Classic<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0050419\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1957\/03\/29\/archives\/screen-funny-face-brings-spring-to-music-hall-audrey-hepburn-and.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thespinningimage.co.uk\/cultfilms\/displaycultfilm.asp?reviewid=2572&#038;aff=13\">Spinning Image Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/dvdsavant\/s2794face.html\">DVD Savant Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/4588\/funny-face#articles-reviews?articleId=102790\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/Jpw9tS0qEyI\">Tired Old Queen at the Movies Video Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Every girl on every page of Quality has grace, elegance, and pizzazz. Now what&#8217;s wrong with bringing out a girl who has character, spirit, and intelligence?&#8221; Synopsis: When the editor (Kay Thompson) of a women&#8217;s fashion magazine declares that she wants a fresh face for the new edition, a photographer (Fred Astaire) points her towards a waifish, philosophy-loving bookstore employee (Audrey Hepburn) who agrees to become a model in exchange for a trip to Paris. Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=20116\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20116","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20116","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=20116"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20116\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":65909,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20116\/revisions\/65909"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=20116"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=20116"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=20116"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}