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My Fair Lady 4K Review

“My Fair Lady” is a true classic.

Based on the play “Pygmalion” and the Broadway musical “My Fair Lady,” 1964’s movie musical “My Fair Lady” finds phonetics Professor Henry Higgins betting a fellow phonetics expert (Col. Pickering) that he can teach a poor, uneducated Cockney flower girl (Eliza Doolittle) to become a proper lady that could pass for a Duchess. As he begins to teach Eliza though, he begins to fall for her along with a wealthy young man named Freddy. Eliza herself undergoes a transformative experience and begins to ponder her own future.

“My Fair Lady” is the type of classic movie you can’t say enough about. It’s one of the best movie musicals ever made, the cast is perfect (more on that in a bit), the soundtrack is filled with iconic tracks like “Wouldn’t It Be Loverly?” and “I Could Have Danced All Night,” George Cukor directs this lavish spectacle with ease, and writer Alan Jay Lerner manages to adapt “Pygmalion” while adding his own touches in this story about class, love, misogyny, and family.

Of course, I could not forget the performances. Audrey Hepburn arguably gives her best on screen performance as Eliza. Sure, her singing may have been dubbed, but that doesn’t cancel out her extraordinary acting one bit. Rex Harrison was born to play the egotistical, mean, but ultimately human Henry Higgins. The actor steals every scene he is in. Staley Holloway doesn’t quite get enough credit for playing Eliza’s father, but he has some real show stopping moments.

Look for this 4K release on May 25, 2021.

Video/Audio:

Presentation: 2.20:1 2160p. How does it look? I’m sure everyone reading this review is aching to know about the picture quality (which has an 8K film transfer). If I could use one word it would be wow. The movie looks like it was made yesterday with this print. Not only is there breathtaking clarity, but the colors are eye poppingly vivid. I hope more classic films get jaw dropping 4K releases like this soon. 

Audio Track: 7.1 Dolby TrueHD. How does it sound? Even though this track is the same as the Blu-ray release, it’s still an effective 7.1 track regardless.

Extras (all on the Blu-ray):
* Blu-ray copy and Digital copy
* “More Loverly Than Ever: The Making Of My Fair Lady Then And Now”- A vintage 58 minute featurette with interviews, discussions about the film’s legacy and so much more.
* 7 trailers
* A triple dose of award footage from the BFI, Golden Globes, and Academy Awards
* Still galleries for documents, publicity, B&W images, color production and Cecil Beaton sketches.
* Rex Harrison radio interview
* Production tests for rain/set, make-up, lighting, and screen test.
* An audio recording of George Cukor directing Baroness Bina Rothschild.
* Alternate Audrey Hepburn vocals for “Show Me” and “Wouldn’t It Be Loverly?”
* Footage from both the British premiere and the L.A. premiere.
* Over 23 minutes of silent footage from the 1963 production kick-off.
* 3 theatrical featurettes “Design For A Lady,” “The Fairest Fair Lady” and “Story of a Lady”
* “Comments On A Lady” from Martin Scorsese and Andrew Lloyd Webber. Scorsese talks about film archives while Webber discusses Alan Jay Lerner.

May 14, 2021 - Posted by nicklyons1 | 4K UHD Review | Audrey Hepburn, Classic Movie, Musical Movie, My Fair Lady 4K Review, Rex Harrison