Pretty Woman

Pretty Woman
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Garry Marshall
Produced by	Arnon Milchan Steven Reuther Gary W. Goldstein
Written by	J. F. Lawton
Starring	Richard Gere Julia Roberts
Music by	James Newton Howard
Cinematography	Charles Minsky
Edited by	Raja Gosnell Priscilla Nedd
Production company	Touchstone Pictures Silver Screen Partners IV
Distributed by	Buena Vista Pictures
Release dates	March 23, 1990 (USA) November 28, 1990 (France) December 7, 1990 (Japan)
Running time	119 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$14 million
Box office	$463.4 million

Pretty Woman is a 1990 American romantic comedy film directed by Garry Marshall from a screenplay written by J. F. Lawton. The film stars Richard Gere and Julia Roberts, and features Hector Elizondo, Ralph Bellamy (in his final performance), Laura San Giacomo and Jason Alexander in supporting roles.^[1] Its story centers on down-on-her-luck Hollywood hooker Vivian Ward, who is hired by Edward Lewis, a wealthy businessman, to be his escort for several business and social functions, and their developing relationship over the course of her week-long stay with him.

Originally intended to be a dark cautionary tale about class and sex work in Los Angeles, the film was reconceived as a romantic comedy with a large budget. It was widely successful at the box office and became one of the highest-grossing films of 1990. The film is one of the most popular films of all time; it saw the highest number of ticket sales in the US ever for a romantic comedy,^[2] with Box Office Mojo listing it as the #1 romantic comedy by the highest estimated domestic tickets sold at 42,176,400, slightly ahead of My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002) at 41,419,500 tickets.^[3]

The film received positive reviews, with Roberts's performance being praised, for which she received a Golden Globe Award, and a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress. In addition, screenwriter J. F. Lawton was nominated for a Writers Guild Award and a BAFTA Award.

Plot

Edward Lewis, a successful corporate raider in Los Angeles on business, accidentally ends up on Hollywood Boulevard, in the city's red-light district after being rejected and breaking up with his girlfriend during an unpleasant phone call in which Lewis appears highly controlling; he asked his girlfriend to escort him during his California business trip, but she was offended that he could demand from her whatever he wants, as if she is his 'beck and call girl'. After leaving the party where he had this unpleasant phone call, taking his lawyer's Lotus Esprit luxury car, Lewis encounters a prostitute named Vivian Ward. He stops for her, apparently lost and having difficulties driving the car, asking for directions back to Beverly Hills. It is not clear if he really wants to hire her, or just get help getting back to his hotel. He asks her to get in the car and show him how to return to the Beverly Hills Regent where he is staying. It becomes clear that Vivian knows more about the Lotus than he does, and he lets her drive him to his hotel. Vivian charges Lewis $20 for the ride, and then they separate. He goes to his hotel, and she goes to the bus stop to go back to Hollywood Blvd. Lewis goes back to find Vivian waiting for the bus, and decides to hire her for the night, and then later, to play the role his girlfriend had refused, offering Vivian $3000 to stay with him for the next six days as well as paying for a new, more acceptable wardrobe for Vivian. Edward is visibly moved by her transformation from hooker to sophisticated woman, and begins seeing Vivian in a different light. He begins to open up to her, revealing his personal and business lives.

Edward takes Vivian to a polo match he sponsors in hopes of networking for his business deal. His attorney Phillip begins to suspect Vivian to be a corporate spy. Edward reassures him by telling him how they truly met and Phillip approaches Vivian, suggesting they do business once her work with Edward is finished. Insulted by Phillip and furious that Edward has revealed the secret of who she really is, Vivian wants to end her arrangement with Edward. Edward confesses to feeling jealous of a business associate who has paid Vivian some personal attention during the week. Vivian's straightforward personality is rubbing off on Edward and he finds himself acting contrary to his normal personal and business personalities. Clearly growing closer, Edward flies with Vivian in his private jet to see La Traviata in San Francisco. Vivian is moved to tears by the story of the prostitute who falls in love with a rich man, further edifying Edward's feelings towards Vivian. After the opera Edward appears to have truly fallen in love with Vivian.

Growing extremely fond of Edward, Vivian breaks her "no kissing on the mouth" rule (which her friend Kit taught) and finds herself falling in love with him. He offers to put her up in an apartment so she can be off the streets but she rejects it, insulted and says this is not the "fairy tale" she dreamed of where a knight on a white horse rescues her.

In meeting with business associates whose company he is in the process of "raiding", Edward changes his mind at the last minute. His time with Vivian has shown him a different way of looking at life and he suggests working together to help save the associates' company rather than tearing it apart and selling it off for a profit. They will build big ships together. Furious over the loss of so much money, Phillip goes to the hotel to confront Edward, but only finds Vivian. He blames her for changing Edward and attempts to force himself on her. She is fighting him off as Edward arrives just in time to stop Phillip, hitting him while chastising him for his greed. He fires Phillip and then throws him out.

With his business in L.A. complete and his return to N.Y. imminent, Edward tries to persuade Vivian to stay one more night with him because she wants to, not because he's paying her but she refuses. On his way to the airport, Edward re-thinks his life and his unexpected feelings for Vivian. He has the hotel chauffeur detour to Vivian's apartment building where he leaps from the white limo and "rescues her"; a visual urban metaphor for the knight on a white horse rescuing the princess, fulfilling Vivian's childhood fantasy.

Cast

• Richard Gere as Edward Lewis, a rich, corporate raider and womanizer from New York who is alone on business for a week in Los Angeles. At the start of the film, he borrows a Lotus Esprit from his lawyer (Phillip) and, not being able to drive it well, winds up lost in the red-light district. While asking for directions back to the Beverly Wilshire Hotel he meets and later falls in love with a hooker named Vivian.
• Julia Roberts as Vivian Ward, a beautiful hooker with a heart of gold on Hollywood Boulevard, who is independent and assertive—refusing to have a pimp and fiercely reserving the right to choose her customers and what she would do and not do when with them. She runs into Edward, a wealthy businessman, when he asks her for directions to Beverly Hills. Edward hires Vivian for the night and offers her $3,000 to spend the week as his escort to business social engagements. She later falls in love with Edward.
• Ralph Bellamy as James Morse, a businessman and owner of an underperforming company that Edward is interested in buying and breaking up. Edward later has a change of heart and offers to partner with him for a Navy shipbuilding contract that would effectively make his company strong again. This was Bellamy's final acting performance in a career that lasted nearly six decades.
• Jason Alexander as Phillip Stuckey, Edward's insensitive lawyer. He pesters Edward after he sees Vivian and David Morse getting along. After learning that Vivian is a sex worker, he propositions her (to her dismay). After a lucrative deal falls through because of Edward's feelings for her, he angrily tries to force himself on her but is stopped by Edward. The epitome of corporate greed, he represents what Edward might have become had he not met her and changed his outlook on life.
• John David Carson as Mark Roth, a businessman in Edward's office.
• Laura San Giacomo as Kit De Luca, Vivian's wisecracking friend and roommate, who spent their rent money on drugs. After Vivian gives her rent money and a little more, while telling her that she has "potential", an inspired Kit begins to plan for a life off the streets.
• Alex Hyde-White as David Morse, James Morse's grandson, who is smart and is being groomed to take over the Morse Company when his grandfather either dies or retires. He plays polo and might have feelings toward Vivian as he shows her his horse during the game that she and Edward attend.
• Amy Yasbeck as Elizabeth Stuckey, Phillip's wife, who likes to be the center of attention in everything. She is quite sarcastic to Vivian when they first meet at the polo game, although she does tell Edward that Vivian is sweet.
• Elinor Donahue as Bridget, a friend of Barney Thompson who works in a women's clothing store and is asked by him to help Vivian purchase a dress after she has an encounter with two snobby women in another dress store.
• Héctor Elizondo as Barney Thompson, the dignified but golden-hearted manager of the hotel. At first, he does not hide his disdain for Vivian, but he eventually befriends her, helps her buy a cocktail dress, and gives her lessons in table manners.
• Judith Baldwin as Susan, one of Edward's ex-girlfriends, with whom Edward reunites at the beginning of the film. She has married and reveals to him that his secretary was one of her bridesmaids, implying that Susan got to know the secretary more than she did Edward, from having to go through the secretary in her many attempts (usually unsuccessful) to reach him.
• Laurelle Brooks Mehus as the night desk clerk. Among other scenes, she appeared in the opening hotel scene with Vivian and Edward.
• James Patrick Stuart as the day bellhop who carries Vivian's new clothes for her after her shopping spree.
• Dey Young as a snobby saleswoman in a dress store.
• Larry Miller as Mr. Hollister, the salesman in the clothing store where Vivian buys her cocktail dress and many other outfits using Edward's credit card.
• Patrick Ridgewood as Dennis the elevator operator.

The film also features Hank Azaria in his first speaking role, playing a detective early in the film.

Production

Development

The film was initially conceived to be a dark drama about sex work in Los Angeles in the 1980s.^[4] The relationship between Vivian and Edward also originally harboured controversial themes, including the concept of having Vivian addicted to drugs; part of the deal was that she had to stay off cocaine for a week, because she needed the money to go to Disneyland. Edward eventually throws her out of his car and drives off. The film was scripted to end with Vivian and her sex worker friend on the bus to Disneyland.^[4] These traits, considered by producer Laura Ziskin to be detrimental to the otherwise sympathetic portrayal of her, were removed or incorporated into the character of Kit. These deleted scenes have been found in public view, and some were included on the DVD released on the film's 15th anniversary.^[4] One such scene has Vivian offering Edward, "I could just pop ya good and be on my way", indicating a lack of interest in "pillow talk". In another, she is confronted by drug dealers outside the Blue Banana, and rescued by Edward and Darryl.

The film bears striking resemblances to Pygmalion myths: particularly George Bernard Shaw's play of the same name, which also formed the basis for the Broadway musical My Fair Lady. It was Walt Disney Studios then-president Jeffrey Katzenberg who insisted the film should be re-written as a modern-day fairy tale with qualities of a love story, as opposed to being the dark drama it was originally developed as. It was pitched to Touchstone Pictures and re-written as a romantic comedy. The original script was titled $3,000,^[5] in reference to the amount of money paid for a week's worth of company from the prostitute played by Julia Roberts.^[6] However, this title was changed because Disney executives thought it sounded like a title for a science fiction film.^[7] It also has unconfirmed references to That Touch of Mink, starring Doris Day and Cary Grant.

The film is one of the two movies that triggered the resurrection of the romantic comedy genre in Hollywood, the other being When Harry Met Sally. After completion of the 1960s Doris Day/Rock Hudson romantic comedies, the genre fell out of favor. Following its success, Roberts became the romantic comedy queen of the 1990s.

Casting

Casting of the film was a rather lengthy process. Marshall had initially considered Christopher Reeve, Daniel Day-Lewis, and Denzel Washington for the role of Lewis, and Al Pacino turned it down.^[8] Pacino went as far as doing a casting reading with Roberts before rejecting the part.^[9] Gere agreed to the project. Reportedly, Gere started off much more active in his role, but Garry Marshall took him aside and said "No, no, no. Richard. In this movie, one of you moves and one of you does not. Guess which one you are?"^[10] Julia Roberts was not the first choice for the role of Vivian, and was not wanted by Disney. Many other actresses were considered at the time. Marshall originally envisioned Karen Allen for the role. When she declined, it went to many better-known actresses of the time including Molly Ringwald,^[11] who turned it down because she felt uncomfortable with the content of the script, and did not like the idea of playing a sex worker. Winona Ryder auditioned, but was turned down because Marshall felt she was "too young". Jennifer Connelly was also dismissed for the same reason.^[4]

Meg Ryan, who was a top choice of Marshall's, turned it down. According to a note written by Marshall, Mary Steenburgen was the first choice to play Vivian. Diane Lane came very close to being cast as Vivian (which had a much darker script at the time), but due to scheduling was unable to take the role. They had gone as far as costume fittings with Lane. Michelle Pfeiffer turned the role down as well, because she did not like the "tone" of the script.^[12] Daryl Hannah was also considered, but turned the role down because she believed it was "degrading to women".^[12] Valeria Golino also turned it down as she did not think the movie could work with her thick Italian accent. Jennifer Jason Leigh had auditioned for the part.^[13] When all the other actresses turned down the role, 21-year-old Julia Roberts, who was relatively unknown at the time, with the exception of the sleeper hit Mystic Pizza (1988), and later her Oscar-nominated performance in Steel Magnolias (1989), won the role of Vivian. Her performance made her a star.

Filming

The film's budget was substantial, at $14 million, therefore producers could shoot in many locations.^[4] Most filming took place in Los Angeles, California, specifically in Beverly Hills, and inside soundstages at Walt Disney Studios in Burbank. The escargot restaurant the "Voltaire" was shot at the restaurant "Rex", now called "Cicada". Filming of the Beverly Wilshire Hotel lobby was shot at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. Filming commenced on July 24, 1989, but was immediately plagued by countless problems, including issues with space and time. This included Ferrari and Porsche declining the product placement opportunity of the car Edward drove, because the manufacturers did not want to be associated with soliciting sex workers.^[4] Lotus Cars saw the placement value with such a major feature film. This company supplied a Silver 1989.5 Esprit SE (which was later sold).

Shooting was a generally pleasurable and easy-going experience for those involved, as the film's budget was broad and the shooting schedule was not tight.^[4] While shooting the scene where Vivian is lying down on the floor of Edward's penthouse, watching reruns of I Love Lucy, in order to achieve genuine laughter, Garry Marshall had to tickle her feet (out of camera range) to get her to laugh so hysterically, which is featured in the film. Likewise the scene in which Gere playfully snaps the lid of a jewelry case on her fingers was improvised by him, and her surprised laugh was genuine, while the dress worn by her in that scene has been included in a list of the most unforgettable dresses of all time.^[14]

During the scene in which Roberts sings along to Prince in the bathtub sliding down and dunking her head under the bubbles, she came up and opened her eyes and saw that everyone had left except the cameraman, who got the shot. In addition, during the love-making scene between her and Gere, she got so nervous that a vein visibly popped out on her forehead. She also developed a case of hives, and calamine lotion was used to clear them until shooting could resume.^[4] The filming was completed on October 18.

Reception

Box office

In its opening weekend, the film was at number one at the box office, grossing $11,280,591 and averaging $8,513 per theater.^[15] Despite dropping to number two in its second weekend, it grossed more with $12,471,670.^[15] It was number one at the box office for four non-consecutive weeks and in the Top 10 for 16 weeks.^[15] It has grossed $178,406,268 in the United States and $285,000,000 in other countries for a total worldwide gross of $463,406,268.^[16] It was also the fourth highest-grossing film of the year in the United States^[17] and the third highest-grossing worldwide.^[18] The film remains Disney's highest-grossing R-rated release ever.^[19]

Critical response

The film received positive reviews from critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 62% of 55 film critics have given it a positive review, with a rating average of 5.7 out of 10.^[20] Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, gives it a score of 51 based on 17 reviews.^[21]

Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a D, stating that the film "starts out as a neo-Pygmalion comedy" and with "its tough-hooker heroine, it can work as a feminist version of an upscale princess fantasy." Gleiberman also said that it "pretends to be about how love transcends money" and that it "is really obsessed with status symbols."^[22] On its twentieth anniversary, Gleiberman wrote another article explaining his review, ultimately saying that although he felt he was right, he would have given it a B today.^[23] Carina Chocano of The New York Times said that the movie "wasn't a love story, it was a money story. Its logic depended on a disconnect between character and narrative, between image and meaning, between money and value, and that made it not cluelessly traditional but thoroughly postmodern."^[24]

Accolades

Awards

Nominations

• 16th César Awards
  • Best Foreign Film
• 63rd Academy Awards
  • Best Actress – Julia Roberts
• 48th Golden Globe Awards
  • Best Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical)
  • Best Actor – Richard Gere
  • Best Actress – Julia Roberts (won)
  • Best Supporting Actor – Hector Elizondo
• Writers Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay – J. F. Lawton

Music

The film is noted for its musical selections and hugely successful soundtrack. The film features the song "Oh, Pretty Woman" by Roy Orbison, which inspired its title. Roxette's "It Must Have Been Love" reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in June 1990. The soundtrack also features "King of Wishful Thinking" by Go West, "Show Me Your Soul" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, "No Explanation" by Peter Cetera, "Wild Women Do" by Natalie Cole and "Fallen" by Lauren Wood. The soundtrack went on to be certified three times platinum by the RIAA.^[25]

The opera featured in the film is La Traviata, which also served as inspiration for the plot of the movie. The highly dramatic aria fragment that is repeated is from the end of "Dammi tu forza!" ("Give me strength!") from the opera. The piano piece which Gere's character plays in the hotel lobby was composed by and performed by him. Roberts sings the song "Kiss" by Prince while Gere's character is on the phone. Background music is composed by James Newton Howard. Entitled "He Sleeps/Love Theme", this piano composition is inspired by Bruce Springsteen's "Racing in the Street".

Soundtrack

Pretty Woman
Soundtrack album by Various artists
Released	March 13, 1990
Recorded	1964, 1988–1989
Genre	Pop, Rock
Length	43:36
Label	EMI

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	link

The soundtrack was released on March 13, 1990.^[26][27]

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Wild Women Do" (performed by Natalie Cole)	4:06
2.	"Fame '90" (performed by David Bowie)	3:36
3.	"King of Wishful Thinking" (performed by Go West)	4:00
4.	"Tangled" (performed by Jane Wiedlin)	4:18
5.	"It Must Have Been Love" (performed by Roxette)	4:17
6.	"Life in Detail" (performed by Robert Palmer)	4:07
7.	"No Explanation" (performed by Peter Cetera)	4:19
8.	"Real Wild Child (Wild One)" (performed by Christopher Otcasek)	3:39
9.	"Fallen" (performed by Lauren Wood)	3:59
10.	"Oh, Pretty Woman" (performed by Roy Orbison)	2:55
11.	"Show Me Your Soul" (performed by Red Hot Chili Peppers)	4:20
Total length:		43:36

References

1. "Pretty Woman". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved June 17, 2016.
2. Prince, Rosa (March 21, 2012). "Danny DeVito: Pretty Woman a 'Silly Romantic Comedy'". The Daily Telegraph. London.
3. "Box Office Mojo". Retrieved July 12, 2007.
4. Pretty Woman: 15th anniversary (DVD). Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Touchstone. 2005.
5. Lawton, Jonathan. "$3,000" (PDF). AwesomeFile.com. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
6. Hilary Lewis (August 26, 2016). "8 Movies With Major Title Changes". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 27, 2016.
7. Stewart, James B. (2005). DisneyWar. New York: Simon & Schuster. p. 110. ISBN 978-0-7432-6709-0.
8. "'Pretty Woman' Casting Information and Trivia". IMDb. Retrieved May 17, 2007.
9. Pacino, Al (June 15, 2007). ""Al Pacino Interview"". Larry King Live (Interview). Interview with Larry King. CNN.
10. Tiffin, George (2015). A Star is Born: The Moment an Actress becomes an Icon. Head of Zeus. p. 493. ISBN 978-1-78185-936-0.
11. Corcoran, Monica (June 28, 2008). "Molly Ringwald: Pretty in Pucci". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 8, 2013.
12. "Darly Hannah Pleased to Decline Pretty Woman".
13. Kachka, Boris (December 4, 2005). "Lone Star: Jennifer Jason Leigh Plays an Extroverted Striver in Abigail's Party, Now, that's a stretch". New York Magazine: 2.
14. Dumas, Daisy (December 6, 2011). "From Pretty Woman and Atonement to The Seven Year Itch, the Most Unforgettable Dresses of All Time". Daily Mail. London.
15. "Pretty Woman (1990)—Weekend Box Office". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved September 29, 2009.
16. "Pretty Woman (1990)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved September 29, 2009.
17. "1990 Yearly Box Office Results". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved September 29, 2009.
18. "1990 Yearly Box Office Results". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved September 29, 2009.
19. "DOMESTIC GROSSES BY MPAA RATING". Retrieved July 4, 2016.
20. "Pretty Woman". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
21. "Pretty Woman Reviews at Metacritic.com". Metacritic. Retrieved September 29, 2009.
22. Gleiberman, Owen (March 23, 1990). "Pretty Woman". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 29, 2009.
23. Gleiberman, Owen. "'Pretty Woman': 20 Years after My Most Infamous Review (Yes, I gave it a D), Here's My Mea Culpa—and Also My Defense". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved July 15, 2011.
24. Chocano, Carina (April 11, 2011). "Thelma, Louise and All the Pretty Women". The New York Times.
25. "Pretty Woman's Soundtrack RIAA Multi Platinum Award". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved October 12, 2009.
26. "Pretty Woman Original Soundtrack". Amazon.com. Retrieved February 21, 2011.
27. "Pretty Woman Original Soundtrack". AllMusic. Retrieved February 21, 2011.

External links

• Pretty Woman at the Internet Movie Database
• Pretty Woman at AllMovie
• Pretty Woman at Rotten Tomatoes
• Pretty Woman at Box Office Mojo