Blake edwards brilliantly bubbly gender-bending comic musical about a singer who pretends to be a female impersonator and becomes the toast of the 1934 paris cabaret scene. Special featuers: subtitles in english french spanish portuguese japanese chinese thai and korean: and much more. Studio: Warner Home Video Release Date: 04/22/2003 Starring: Julie Andrews Robert Preston Run time: 133 minutes Rating: Pg
Blake Edwards's delightful Victor/Victoria may be one of the last of the great, old-style movie musical comedies--it is so good, it was turned into a hit Broadway stage musical years later. And both versions starred Edwards's wife Julie Andrews (the former Mary Poppins) in the title role--as Victor and Victoria. She's a down-and-out singer who hooks up with a flamboyantly gay theatrical veteran (Robert Preston), and together they become the toast of 1934 Paris by dreaming up a provocative nightclub act in which Victoria assumes the identity of a man in drag. So, in other words, Andrews plays a woman playing a man playing a woman ... and that's only the beginning of the sexual identity confusions that provide the fuel for this splendidly classy slapstick musical farce. (Yes, it's all those things.) James Garner, as a Chicago club owner, finds himself strangely besotted with this stylish, androgynous creature--even though he thinks Victor/Victoria is a man. Legendary Hollywood composer Henry Mancini (a longtime collaborator with Edwards) won his last Oscar for the score; Andrews, Preston, and Lesley Ann Warren, as Garner's cheeky girlfriend, were also nominated. Musical highlights include Victor/Victoria's sizzling "Le Jazz Hot" (in which Andrews shows off her incredible vocal range); another showstopper for Victor/Victoria, "The Shady Dame from Seville"; Preston's witty ode to "Gay Paree"; Warren's hilarious burlesque number, "King's Can-Can"; and a charmingly casual yet elegant side-by-side number, "You and Me," done in a small club by Preston and Andrews in tuxedos. --Jim Emerson
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5.0
This is one hot number...:
For anyone who thinks that Julie Andrews is nothing more than a mere song and dance routine, or the voice behind that infectiously annoying `hills are alive' song I have only one thing to say to you; watch `Victor/Victoria'. I happened to stumble onto this film last night and I have thought of nothing else since. Sure, it has yet to be 24 hours but honestly, it is the ONLY thing that I have thought of since the credits began to roll. As a whole the film is adorable, but its strongest part is none other than... more info
Ensemble Perfection:
Other comedies might be funnier, but few compare to the nearly perfect total ensemble performance turned in by the principals, supporting and bit characters in Blake Edwards's Victor Victoria. Julie Andrews plays Victoria, a down and out singer in gay Paris, circa 1934, who, with Toddy, dreams up a nightclub act in which Andrews feigns a male in drag to become the toast of Paris. Robert Preston's portrayal of the flamboyant gay veteran of the stage, Toddy, is perfect, sometimes cliche, but never over... more info
fantastic film:
This film always makes me smile. It is a joy to watch. I enjoy showing this film to all of my friends and family. What a joy to watch. Julie Andrews and James Garner and Robert Preston and Alex Karras are so great in this film. I loved it !!!!
"A woman...pretending to be a man...pretending to be a woman? It's preposterous!":
Mostly it's because the characters are so very likable. Absolutely, VICTOR/VICTORIA triumphs on the strength of its witty script, the clever humor, and the fabulous songs. The film can tout itself as a dizzying sex farce, a winning period piece comedy, or as a dazzling musical. But all that would've been irrelevant piffle if the actors hadn't come thru with truly wonderful performances, making the audience and the critics root for them. So, in the end, the glue to it, is because the characters are so very... more info
