My Fair Lady

There has been a question which has plagued man for some time. Does the rain in Spain stay mainly on the plain? I went on an investigation to find out.
It is such a same that musicals are not made as often as they once were. Back in the 1930's - 1960's, musicals were extremely popular and highly regarded. Now they are not made as often and don't always work. Which is a shame. Musicals in general though are a genre that should be seen on a big cinema screen. This one is no exception.
The original 'Pygmalion' story is one which has been told many times in movies in various forms. The upper classes seem to like having a go at trying to pass off someone from the lower classes as one of their own. A classic story of someone rising above their station in life. The most commonly known version of the story is 'My Fair Lady' a grand and delightful musical. The story is very light and quite predictable but it is the fun of the music that keeps you interested. The production design and costume design are also very grand so visually there is always something you can look at. I really enjoyed the songs and some I did not realise came from this musical. 
I did not, however, like the male characters in the films. Eliza's father only sees her when he wants money. Then when she becomes rich and passes on the money to him he becomes a bit ungrateful because his life has changed so much cause he's rich. Colonel Pickering comes across as a nice guy but does not really do much to stop the bad behaviour. The biggest one is Professor Henry Higgins. He is such a nasty guy. While he does treat everyone badly his venom is mostly directed at Eliza and he really treats her badly. In some ways you wonder why she goes back to him if he treats her so badly. While he is not physically violent to her he is verbally abusive which could be seen as just as bad.
Audrey Hepburn is one of the most charming and delightful actresses who ever lived. I've sadly not seen many of her films, which I'm ashamed about. Audrey has quite a big range in this film with the character that she plays. At the beginning I found Eliza incredibly annoying mostly because of her accent. The really thick cockney accent she speaks got so grating after a while. Rex Harrison has been criticised for not singing his songs in the film and just speaking the words. So I became conscious of this during his songs. That was a little distracting and perhaps if I did not know that I would have enjoyed it more. Rex still does a good job as Henry and makes a good nasty guy. Stanley Holloway is good as Eliza's father. He fits well into the cast of unsavoury male characters.
A truly delightful and fun movie musical on a grand scale. The plot and some of the characters are questionable morally speaking but if you can get past that then you can have fun with this film.