Gigi (1958 film)

Gigi is a 1958 American Metrocolor musical romantic comedy film directed by Vincente Minnelli. The screenplay by Alan Jay Lerner is based on the 1944 novella of the same name by Colette. The film features songs with lyrics by Lerner music by Frederick Loewe, arranged and conducted by Andr Previn.

Set in turnofthe20th century Paris, the film opens with Honor Lachaille Maurice Chevalier among high society in the Bois de Boulogne. A charming old rou, he cynically remarks that Like everywhere else, most people in Paris get married, but not all. There are some who will not marry, and some who do not marry. But in Paris, those who will not marry are usually men, and those who do not marry are usually women. So marriage is not the only option for wealthy young bon vivants like his nephew Gaston Louis Jourdan, who is bored with life. The one thing Gaston truly enjoys is spending time with Madame Alvarez Hermione Gingold, whom he calls Mamita, and especially her granddaughter, the precocious, carefree Gilberte, aka Gigi who isLeslie Caron. Following the family tradition, Madame Alvarez sends Gigi to her sister, Great Aunt Alicia Isabel Jeans, to be groomed as a courtesan and learn etiquette and charm. To Alicia, love is an art, and a necessary accomplishment for Gigis social and economic future. But Gigi shows disdain for such trivial love that a man and his mistress usually have. Remaining true to her girlish, yet charming personality, she finds herself having the most fun when with Gaston 35, whom she regards as an older brother.Gaston is known, like his uncle, as a wealthy womanizer. The whole of Paris watches his every move, and Parisian high society shows unrestrained judgment towards him, his endless string of mistresses, and the rest of the mostly fleeting relationships high society has to offer. After publicly humiliating his latest mistress who attempted to run off with an ice skating instructor, Gaston finds himself even more bored as he tries to redeem himself by throwing countless parties. Gigi, always the light in Gastons eyes, makes a wager during a card match with Gaston, suggesting that if he loses, he has to take her and her grandmother to the sea with him when he goes on vacation. Gaston agrees, and they all travel to the country. While Gaston

Source: Wikipedia