PRETTY WOMAN - Released in 1990 – Are we aging that quickly?

PRETTY WOMAN - 15th Anniversary Edition 2005
~125 Minutes Run~~~Technicolor~~~Wide Screen~~~Rated R
 
My copy is already 3 years old! Why was I not surprised to read that this Cutting Edge movie was a Disney Property? The news item asked if this was what one should think of when planning a trip to the nearest Amusement Park. If so, one might wonder if there would be a ride opening soon? PRETTY WOMAN was produced by Touchstone Pictures*, a label used by Disney/Buena Vista Studios established in 1984. With this label, the Company flirted with PG and even R movies but decided to differentiate clearly this type of fare from the Iconic company that gave us Snow White, Dumbo and Bambi.
Starting with Splash, Touchstone Branded movies covered an eclectic mixture of subjects and found, once again, that sin is a four letter word spelled C_A_S_H_! Some well-known titles included The Color of Money, Good Morning Vietnam, Who Framed Roger Rabbit and The Dead Poets Society. PRETTY WOMAN was the 38th production by Touchstone - in its 6th year.
I did not see it until it made video and it was fine fun. The part I liked best was the Date at the OPERA HOUSE in San Francisco!
----- Quick, name the Opera heroine for whom Vivian Ward (Julia Roberts) wept. Opera? You don't mean OPERA? Yuck! I wouldn't go to see a … what'd you call it?

Aw come on, folks. You would and you have, albeit, not JUST for the Opera. But I would. Some may try to say that a movie would be avoidable if it were known in advance that a portion of an OPERA were in the script. I doubt that.
How about Moonstruck? How about The Owl and the Pussycat? And The Lost Weekend. Of course, one should consider FANTASIA.

WHAT'S IT ALL ABOUT?
Super successful billionaire venture capitalist Edward Lewis (Richard Gere) covets stable well-run company. It is a vulnerable company his attorney Phillip Stuckey (Jason Alexander) has found. The parts are worth more than the whole and the owner, David Morse (Ralph Bellamy), has little cash to fend off an acquisition. After a hard day's predatory circling, Edward teams up with a representative of another profession and they go to his room in a swank hotel in Beverly Hills. Next morning, he decides to gussy her up and take her to a meeting with the target company management. He gives her a bankroll, the manager of the Rodeo Drive shop she wanders into tosses her out and she walks back to the Hotel, where the hotel manager, Barney Thompson (Hector Elizondo) has no illusions about her.
Richard waves his magic wand; explains enough and even asks Barney to recommend a clothier and to teach Cinderella what the three forks mean at dinner.

CRITIQUE
Audacious, Ambitious, Ambiguous, Amoral, Analogous, American. PRETTY WOMAN was a smash hit. It is a far cry from The Moon is Blue and can be displayed right here at eye level without a brown paper cover.
A fantasy and a preposterous premise. But loaded with reality as well:
-Vivian has a room mate, Kit de Luca (Laura San Giacomo) who is pragmatic about how she pays the rent. She gives Vivian a few pointers.
-The grit and sh*t Hollywood Boulevard is about as grungy as one could expect.
-The street walkers mark off their posts with the embedded stars in the sidewalk.
-When she hooks up with Edward, she offers him a choice of Condoms before the action begins. This simple offhand gesture serves as a reminder that diseases and pregnancy might be avoided.
-The universe recognizes Vivian's contributions to society but she is not taxed.
-She has a nasty and dangerous pimp who does not travel alone when collecting his share. Edward's bodyguard reveals that he is 'Packing'.
-Other women are threatened by her and by Kit.
-Vivian tries to avoid disease by refusing to kiss on the mouth.
-Edward buys her for a week and she underbids.
-Phillip, seeing his commission destroyed when Edward backs off the deal, attacks Vivian with rape in mind. Edward does a just-in-time rescue. 

With her fees in hand, she is packed and about to escape to a better life when Prince Charming arrives in a White Charger with a sunroof. Her apartment building is surrounded with chain link fencing; a prelude to demolition.

So, why the R rating? Who is being protected? Who is being offended? By Prostitution? As of 2006, “Videohound” listed 42.5 inches of movies about it. At 10 Titles to the inch, that is 425 different takes on a subject that repels yet fascinates. (The “Romance” collection has 310 inches.)
Nothing new here.
Consider, if one dares to do so, the implications of the revered “BABY BOOM”.
And the rows of Condoms for sale in Supermarkets everywhere. You don't suppose....?
Both Gere and Roberts were on their way to their OSCARS®
Roberts role nominated for Best Actress, Won Golden Globe
 
Enjoy


©MMcDonell
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Notes:
Why not an “E” Ticket ride called RED LITE? It could be on tracks to discourage loitering, peopled by those slick robots, souvenirs like lunch buckets could ...well, maybe not.
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After 8 years, what do we Epinionators think?
78 reviews.
9 were of the “Finger-Wagging” category drawing 1 or 2 Stars.
68 (87%) drew 4 or 5 Stars.
Peer reviews: 58 (78%) were judged “H” or better
65 Members who rated Pretty Woman have resigned or ceased writing.
11 or 14% members who rated Pretty Woman were still publishing in 2008
4 members were still publishing in December 2008