It's fairly surprising that Legally Blonde turns out to not only be funny, but intelligent, witty, and involving. It's surprising because one wouldn't expect a movie like this - that is to say, an outwardly dumb comedy - to be this consistently entertaining and enjoyable.
Reese Witherspoon stars as Elle, an apparently brainless airhead with but two things on her mind: Men and fashion. She seems to have a perfect life - she's incredibly popular among her circle of equally vacuous friends, she's got a rich and handsome boyfriend, and her dog is astoundingly cute. But everything changes when her boyfriend announces that he's going off to law school, sans Elle. Elle quickly comes to the realization that if only she were a fellow law student, perhaps her boyfriend would take her back. She puts together an audition tape for Harvard and winds up enrolled, thanks to an amazingly lenient admissions office. Now, she's finding out that maybe being a law student isn't as easy as she thought…
Buoyed by an effervescent performance by Witherspoon, Legally Blonde glides along like a schooner in clear water (how's that for a metaphor?) Despite having appeared in a bunch of movies since the early '90s, Witherspoon's never really had a chance to go center stage. Often relegated to the background, she became adept at stealing scenes from seasoned pros. Now, in her first mainstream starring role, she's broken out in a big way. Her Elle is more than just a bubbly airhead, which isn't as easy as you might think (Chris Klein, I'm looking in your direction). Witherspoon brings so much life and vitality to this character, that eventually it's easy enough to forget that's she's essentially an idiot (which, it turns out, doesn't necessarily prevent a person from accomplishing big things - provided they're willing to work a heck of a lot harder than everyone else).
The movie zips along at a pace that's sorely lacking nowadays. This is just a fun movie to watch - the sort that rarely gets made any more. You don't really need to think too much; just enjoy the performances and the smarter-than-expected screenplay.
out of
About the DVD: MGM Home Entertainment has repackaged Legally Blonde with the sequel, in a set that also includes a pink notepad with matching pen, a series of magnets, and a bonus disc that includes a five-minute sneak preview at the upcoming Beauty Shop. The film itself is accompanied by many supplemental features, including two commentary tracks, an informative subtitle trivia track, eight deleted scenes, two featurettes, a music video, and the trailer.
It's fairly surprising that Legally Blonde turns out to not only be funny, but intelligent, witty, and involving. It's surprising because one wouldn't expect a movie like this - that is to say, an outwardly dumb comedy - to be this consistently entertaining and enjoyable.
out of