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Pretty Woman (10th Anniversary Edition)

Pretty Woman (10th Anniversary Edition)

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Modern Day Pygmaelion
Review: Pretty Woman is a great movie. When Julia Roberts acted in this 1990 classic, she was sexy, vibrant and cute. In her latest movies she seems to have lost her charm, and appears awkward and frumpy.
It is a romantic comedy about a lovable prostitute Vivienne (Julia Roberts) hired by a spoiled, jaded billionaire, Edward (Richard Gere) for a highly unusual assignment.

Needless to say, this encounter irreparably changes both of their lives forever. Thouroughly a story that is funny, touching and engaging,

The change is Vivienne from a streetwalker to a lady mirrors a Pygmalion/My Fair Lady type of theme.

As the voice at the end reminds us, sometimes your dreams come true and sometimes they don't but you are always free to dream!

Some pretty memorable stuff in this movie!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A bit unrealistic... but who cares?
Review: With enough said about it being such a fairy tale, all I have to say is that it is still a great movie. Sure there's no such thing as a beautiful hooker with pride, nor a rich businessman that respects hookers. But who cares? Quite simply it's a fun movie.
I've probably watched Pretty Woman more than a million times over the years and still do not tire of it.
Why I like it so much, you ask?
Edward and Vivian have such a great chemistry between them. How can you resist?

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: An Entertaining Film With A Great Cast...
Review: The beautiful Julia Roberts plays a hooker in this surprisingly entertaining romantic comedy. Now being a guy I hate romantic comedies and was forced to watch this. I had heard that this was one of the best romantic comedies, ever made and that it was hilarious. Well, it wasn't. While I did like this movie and thought it was entertaining and there were some funny scenes,
I thought it was quite far from being the great film it was said to be. Roberts plays Vivian Ward, a hooker on Hollywood BLV. One night while driving around, rich business executive Edward Lewis,
stops and asks her for directions. He takes her back to his luxurious penthouse and offers a business proposition. Stay with him for 6 days and she gets 3000 dollars. This to Vivian is a lot of money and she accepts it right away, much to the dismay of Edward's attorney (Jason Alexander, "Seinfeld"). Now there is a SLIGHT boob flash in the movie which is nice and I know that came out of nowhere but I just want to get that out in the open.
Garry Marshall who has directed some of the most critically hated films of the year, such as "Raising Helen," "The Princess Diaries 1&2, etc. But this is quite possibly one of his best films, another character that is quite good is Hector Elizondo as the hotel manager. B+.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Special Film.....Not So "Special Edition"
Review: This review refers to the Special 10th Anniversary DVD Edition(Touchstone) of "Pretty Woman"...

There are a couple of reasons why you may want to go with this "Special" edition of this charming and very modern update of the classic "Cinderella" story. The first is that at this time, the original edition seems to be unavailable, except from the outside sellers with prices higher then this one. The second reason is the fabulous music video with Natalie Cole doing one of the best songs from the film, "Wild Women Do". Other then that, I did not find anything really "special" about this "special" edition.

Here's what you get...A "Behind the Scenes" featurette, which runs a couple of minutes and is just some footage of Geer, Roberts and Marshall, getting ready to shoot a scene at the Polo game with the "Pretty Woman" music playing in the background. There is a very short production featurette, and except for Garry Marshall telling us what the film is about, appeared to be nothing much more than a long trailer. There is also the option of Director commentary, which may be viewed during the film, and the film is in widescreen, but both of these features are also available on the original release.

There is also some extra footage. An added scene where Vivian takes Edward back to her stomping grounds so she can check on Kit, and the two are confronted by drug dealers hardly seemed necessary. As a matter of fact it seemed to detract from the story, as it too soon takes the audience back out Vivian's fairy tale world we have entered briefly.

As far as the film itself, I still love it 15 years after it's original release. Wonderfully directed by Garry Marshall, it's a feel good film, and a wonderful love story that makes you feel you can fulfill your dreams. A great soundtrack, and the superb cast including Laura San Giacomo(she was a great Kit), Jason Alexander, Hector Elizondo, Elinor Donahue, and legend Ralph Bellamy, all make this a very special film all on it's own.

The DVD presents a very nice picture in widescreen, and good sound in Dolby surround. There are nice captions in English for those needing them, but no other subtitles. The price is actually pretty decent for a "special" edition, just don't buy it expecting a ton of extra goodies.

"What's Your Dream?"....enjoy...Laurie


Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A great fairy tale Movie. Take it as that and be entertained
Review: Pretty Woman was the first sleeper of 1990. (The second that year was "Ghost" which stomped a dozen bigger budgeted action movies in its wake that summer) To the executives of Disney affiliate Hollywood Pictures the movie was a low-budget throwaway film expected to quickly bomb. Released in February 1990, the film quickly caught on with audiences. To everyone's surprise that year, Pretty Woman made over $175 million dollars in ticket sales. Today the movie is a classic Romantic comedy.
Julia Roberts gives a breakthrough performance in Pretty Woman. Her portrayal of Vivian the hooker with a heart got her an Oscar nomination. In J.F. Lawton and Gary Marshall's modern Cinderella story the working girl runs into Richard Gere's Prince charming Executive. He "hires" her to be an escort for a week for the "three thousand" dollars (the original title). During that week there's romance and hilarious comedy. The movie's too good to spoil; you'll have to buy it to see how it turns out. Other breakthrough performances include a pre Seinfeld Jason Alexander (he's at his best here), Laura San Giacamo (Just Shoot Me) and Hector Elizondo. This film helped establish these three stars careers.
It pays not to take the story seriously; it's a fairy tale set in modern times. The film is not a misogynist statement glamorizing prostitution, just a movie plain and simple. Take it as that and leave it as that. Pretty Woman is a feel-good film that will put a smile on your face. I highly recommend this movie. And if you're buying the DVD I suggest you try to get the audio soundtrack too. There are a lot of great songs on that CD.


Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Modern Day Cinderella Gets 5 Stars!
Review: Only God knows how many times that I have watched this movie. I don't think that I will ever grow tired of it. Yes it is the same story as Cinderella but a modern day one. But still every bit as much of a classic. It's every woman's dream come true. The beautiful Julia Roberts is swept off of her feet by the rich Richard Gere.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Once Upon a Time Prince Charming Was a John...
Review: I never understood why this film was so treasured when it first came out. Until recently I didn't even own this DVD, but feel it does represent the love stories of the 90s quite well. This is nothing more than an adult version of Cinderella. It sweetens the lifestyles of hookers, making it look like a fun job until that perfect man comes and rescues her and sweeps her off her feet. Yuck! Pooey! The saving grace of this film is that it is very well acted. Julia Roberts was destined to be a star. Any other chick in this role it would have been long buried. She made the sugary crap believable. Richard Gere made a career comeback (how many can one man have?) and is perfect as the prince charming in waiting.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: WHAT?!
Review: I CANNOT believe that anyone would give this movie a BAD review...THAT sickens ME. I apologize, but to sound a little more sophmoric: How can anyone NOT like Pretty Woman?! It's a classic for the 90's, one of the movies of our generation! Not to mention the fact of it's financial success...it is a GOOD movie, and yes even for families. We all know prostitution is not a glamorous, respected or celebrated "career", but COME ON folks that's why it's a M-O-V-I-E. We all know that it's not nice to go chopping people's heads' off with light sabers either, but that doesn't hinder the critical acclaim of Star Wars now does it? And puh leeze don't start attacking with the "comparing-lowly-pretty-woman-to-the-exaulted-holy-star-wars-phenomena" comments...my point still stands. Don't listen to all the cynics here, if you love romantic comedies, this is a movie worth your time.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: The Romantic Cheers, The Realist Groans
Review: I found both reactions inside myself. I still can't help gushing when Edward takes Vivian to be barefoot in the park and to the opera. And Hector Elizondo and Jason Alexander light up the screen.

Unfortunately, glamorizing prostitution isn't the way to go, and did you notice that the original VHS cover made no mention of Vivian's profession? Granted, Vivian is a likable character, but it's far more likely that she would go the original route in this movie. The first draft was called $3,000 and portrayed Edward as a completely emotional vacuum, cold and callous, and reports have surfaced that Vivian was a drug user (the famous "dental floss" scene in the bathroom turned out much differently). But hey, this is Disney. We want romance!

I can't escape this movie, because when I was in the Reg. Bev. Wil., I couldn't help thinking, "This is where 'Pretty Woman' was shot!"



Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Had Difficulty Liking This One
Review: Totally ridiculous story line. Unbelievible at best. Though I liked her new clothes. Quite fashionable. Probably my dislike of Richard Gere has something to do with my negative reaction. It got better rewatching it on a cold, rainy afternoon. But not much, only bearable. This one seems to be a man's movie. All the men I know liked it. Some even cried at the end. Go figure!


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