About "My Fair Lady"

"Henry Higgins (Rex Harrison), an arrogant, irascible professor of phonetics, boasts to a new acquaintance, Colonel Pickering (Wilfrid Hyde-White), that he can teach any woman to speak so "properly" that he could pass her off as a duchess. The person whom he is shown thus teaching is one Eliza Doolittle (Audrey Hepburn), a young woman with a horrendous Cockney accent who is selling flowers on the street. "

Wikipedia

I can't give you any more information about this movie that other internet sources hasn't already mentioned. Please visit the links for more information about the movie, awards, where to get it and other trivia! Instead, I offer you my opinions about the movie.

When I first watched "My Fair Lady" it was when I was about mid-teens and with my mother. For some reason, it didn't really resonate much with me, though I was very enchanted with Audrey Hepburn and the array of costumes featured. At the ripe age of 21, I rewatched the movie again, having bought the two-disc special edition DVD on a whim, and settled down to watch it again.

I was absolutely blown away upon the second viewing. It basically came down to two elements; the characters and the music.

The characters
I can never pick which character I like better; Professor Higgins or Eliza Dolittle... they do compliment each other so well! I love the sharp and witty remarks by Higgins, his name-calling and snobby regard for people's treatment of the English language is very amusing. Audrey Hepburn fills the role of Eliza just perfectly; I love her many expressions, ranging from the indignant to the poised and calm.

The supporting cast was mostly well done too. Colonel Pickering is great in how, even though not as learned as Higgins, nonetheless is definitely the more compassionate of the two, and it's important contrast for when Higgins goes on his rather callous rants about women and people in general. And Freddy, I love how he's so endeared to Eliza. The only character that I dislike is Eliza's dad... his character is just not appealing to me. Besides his surprisingly insightful beliefs about the "undeserving poor", he's incredibly one dimension in that he's just a common drunk.

The music
I can say with much confidence that I love all the songs in the movie, except the two that is sung by Eliza's dad (not only is his character not appealing, but his songs aren't all that good either). It's impossible for me to pick a favourite. I love how romantic (albeit a bit stalkerish) Freddy's song, "On the Street Where You Live" is, and I love all of Higgins' half-spoken diatribes about the English language and women. And Eliza's songs are wonderful in aiding her thoughts throughout the movie. I especially love the song "Just You Wait" in how angry and vengeful she is of Higgins. The songs are worth listening to along with any other song on my playlist, given the catchy melodies and clever lyrics.

The plot itself might not sound very original, but keep in mind that this movie existed BEFORE other "makeover" movies like "Pretty Woman" and "She's All That". "My Fair Lady" does more than what those movies can offer; it's not a love story, but a story of two very different people trying to get along without having their personalities mysteriously compromise for the other. There is so much personality in the characters and the clever tunes help an awful lot. All in all, "My Fair Lady" is one of the best musicals I've ever seen, and I'd recommend it to anyone.