I'll admit to being slightly creeped out at the start of this movie by Maurice Chevalier's ... enthusiasm when he's looking at the girls in the park. Thank heaven for little girls indeed! Anyway, once we get over that, Gigi is a stylish, light, big budget, big style, old school Hollywood musical. Leslie Caron plays a tomboyish courtesan-in-training who just doesn't fit in. Louis Jourdan is the bored, spoiled playboy who suddenly decides he loves her.
The whole "girls raised to be rich men's mistresses" plot could be seen as horribly anti-feminist, but its not. These women know exactly what they're getting into, and what they're getting out of it. They can reject their lovers and move on. And when Gigi decides she doesn't want that kind of life, she doesn't have to have it. In fact, it's the man who has to change to please her.
And kudos to Chevalier and Hermoine Gingold, who steal the entire picture with a charming and touching performance of "I Remember It Well." Forget Gaston and Gigi -- I wanted to know more about these two and their obviously fascinating history.
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