Rent Pretty Woman on Amazon Video (paid link)
Written by: J.F. Lawton
Directed by: Garry Marshall
Starring: Richard Gere, Julia Roberts, Jason Alexander, Laura San Giacomo
Rated: R
Watch the trailer
Plot
A corporate raider hires a beautiful prostitute as an escort for social events for a week but they end up falling in love.
Verdict
This does a great job of building characters and moments. While it's an absurd premise, the movie does a great job of making you completely buy into the fantasy of this couple and wanting them to end up together. This is a romance movie that's well written, a rarity. While the writing is good Julia Roberts sells this movie. This was her break out role, and it's clear to see why and how she became a preeminent movie star. It's such a fun movie.
Watch It.
Review
This script was widely dismissed due to the dark subject matter of prostitutes and drugs. Many A-list actors dismissed the starring roles, though that was before the change in tone to more comedic. Even Gere initially refused. After a revision to the script, this became a much different movie. Ferrari and Porsche declined the product placement of Edward's car with Lotus accepting.
A comedy about a hooker and a guy that falls in love with her had to be a hard sell. This movie subverted industry expectations and made Julia Roberts, previously unknown, a star. The fact is, she would have become a star with any widely released movie. She's completely captivating.
Edward (Richard Gere) is a business man dedicated to his work. He's a corporate raider that buys struggling companies and then dismantles them and sells off the parts. This has made him very rich, but he doesn't have any close relationships. His girlfriends know his secretary better than him.
Edward goes for a drive in a Lotus and gets lost, happening to see Vivian (Julia Roberts) on a street corner. He doesn't realize her occupation at first, but she talks him into payment for directions and rides with him to his hotel.
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| Julia Roberts, Richard Gere play Vivian, Edward |
Edward invites Vivian into his room. Why? It certainly helps the plot, but it could be compassion as she's alone waiting for a bus or intrigue as he seems sheltered. They're clearly different socio-economic levels, and there's inherent comedy with Vivian being in a high end hotel with older patrons where she doesn't belong dressed like a hooker.
Edward wants a companion for the next week at numerous business meetings and is willing to pay her for time and wardrobe.
There are movies that are good and movies that connect because we want to believe in the fantasy. Movies can be both, and I forgot just how good this movie is. We know the inherent divide and it sets up these moments that meet and subvert expectations. At a boutique, Vivian is dismissed as the staff thinks she can't afford it due to how she looks. Then we get such a nice moment at the hotel, where we think the manager is going to reprimand her, but he helps her. It's sweet and funny.
This movie doesn't overdo the divide between Richard and Vivian. It could easily be profane, but it's not. This is a romance movie with a twist, obscuring and dancing around the realities of Vivian's profession. It creates a situation where Edward can be her savior from that life.
There's great chemistry between Gere and Roberts, and we can tell the characters like each other. He's culturing her while she's helping him slow down and enjoy life. It's sweet, and we want to buy into this love story that two very different people can have a relationship that works.
This movie builds characters and plot scene by scene, taking time to establish roles and relationships. I don't often like happy endings as they are too easy or a cop out. In this movie, I wanted a nice ending for these characters. I wanted to see them together. This is a smart romance movie, and that doesn't happen often.
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