Interesting Review ... LEGALLY BLONDE- Page 2

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 8:58am

AMEN whiteguy2088

[istillbelieve24601]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 10:12am

I'm going to agree with the reviewer on one thing: Legally Blond isn't harmless fun. As a musical, it's providing mindless entertainment for people who otherwise may have seen other shows that are ovearll better, taking away Tony nominations from shows that deserve them, and making the point that it's ok to mindlessly capitalize Broadway by turning a hit movie into a musical.

I would rather teenage girls see Wicked than see Legally Blond. At least Wicked wasn't made to be a surefire money-maker. With my feelings about Wicked, the fact I would rather teenagers go see it is saying something.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 10:49am

istillbelive

hahahahahahaha god forbid broadway was out to make money, why do you think they make shows??? do you think they made Wicked from an artistic stand point.

[FosterChild]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:05am

All shows are designed to be sure fire money makers however, I don't know how well that's working out for LB. It's on Tkts more than such a new show should be. It's going to be really hard to fill the Palace now that the show didn't get the all too important Best Musical nod.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:11am

I think the show will do fine, its doing great so far(attendance, merchandise, product placement etc)

Its doing a lot better than most of the other shows what have just opened

[lindas13]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 9:28pm

sorry to wannabeafoster. I did not mean to use her name in the sense of the musical as much as in the sense of ANY rich white girl. I never seem to get it right.basically it comes down to everyone offends everyone at some point. mostly I think movies, musicals, plays are for entertainment. in LB, ELLE does a moan of orgasm in a scene then says it was not better than getting into harvard. shouldn't warner be offended? shouldn't all women that don't get to have orgasms be offended that she mocks the whole thing.? NO... meaning it is just another example of people need to get the CHIP OFF THEIR SHOULDER> go see it and love it .. or go see it and hate it but stop trying to make any of it PC.

[istillbelieve24601]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 9:38pm

They didn't KNOW Wicked was going to be a definite hit with teenage girls. I'm sure they assumed it would be, but...

Legally Blond is a show that they know they're going to get teenage fangirls because there are so many movie fangirls. Legally Blond was bound to sell tickets to beyond the regular theatregoing crowd.

Actually, Wicked was a risk. Sure, it was based on common knowledge, but it wasn't like there was a hit movie to garuntee ticket sales, just an adult novel that hardly resembles the musical.

[BigFatBlonde]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 9:39pm

I agree with the review.

Minstrel Shows were once considerd "good old fashioned" entertainment, therefore we should ignore any racist suggestions it makes or class divisions it supports.

I think Legally Blonde has a lot of problems for the truly thinking individual.

Thats why people who enjoy it always have "leave their brains at the door" to have a good time.

Turn a blind just to get that entertainment fix.

Updated On: 5/20/07 at 09:39 PM

[AnnaK<3LMIP]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 9:43pm

But WHY is it that I love the movie and hate the show? Well, obviously I don't like the music..or ther performances...but for some reason the whole ethnic names thing and rich white people thing does not bother me at all in the movie. I don't even pay attention to that in the movie...

[BigFatBlonde]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 9:59pm

I don't get why the message that it is OK to be a beautiful, fashion-addicted, comsumer-puppet is so important.

Has the priveleged, beautiful, consumer-class suffered so much from society that they need reassuring that they are OK just they way they are?

or...

Are the mocking and minimizing real prejudicial suffering?

I suspect the later.

Updated On: 5/20/07 at 09:59 PM

[istillbelieve24601]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 10:04pm

AMEN, BigFatBlonde!

Wootz for standing up for those of us that aren't beautiful, fashion-addicted, consumer-puppets!!

[sondhead]

Posted: 5/21/07 at 3:02am

"Somehow Hairspray managed to be a fluffly musical filled with stereotypes that still had its heart in the right place. That's what Legally Blonde has't manged to accomplish."

BINGO!!!

It can be done--watch the movie. It's wonderful.

A score full of blaaah songs, a horribly stereotypical, arc and character-less book and a complete lack of direction (Jerry has some nice gags but other than that...) later and suddenly the piece has no heart, to the point of coming off a little offensive.

I mean did the writers never think for one second that MAYBE making Paulette sexy and brassy without changing any of the rest of her character arc (okay they added that RIDICULOUS Irish thing) would make the character pointless, bizarre and confusing??? Worst written character of late I can think of...

[WordedGrace]

Posted: 5/21/07 at 5:01am

This is why I love you guys on here! The thought provoking discussions..and good dish, lol.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 5/21/07 at 8:17am

Paulette's character works fine what are you talking about??

[popular_elphie]

Posted: 5/21/07 at 8:55am

BLONDE doesn't work as well with Paulette being a different and weirder character than the movie. She needs to be awkward and not just a little odd like the musical's character. She needs to kind of seem washed-up.

The only choice different from the movie that really was cute what the Greek Chorus. Besides that, Heather Hatch's book is not good and misuses the movie's funny jokes. "What, like it's hard?" is one of the best lines from the movie, and delivered poorly in the show, as is the "social agenda" scene, the butthead line, and countless other things.

[keen on kean]

Posted: 5/21/07 at 10:13am

The reviewer is entitled to his opinions but the outrage is a little misplaced. All of the same subtext is in the movie, too - why should the musical be any different?

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 5/21/07 at 10:20am

I am pleased that the show did not get a Best Musical nomination. In that respect, it seems like the Nominating Committee had their heads in the right places, but why on earth did they give away the fourth Book and Score nominations to this junk? It's not as though there weren't other more worthy contenders. Book and Score could have easily gone to FAME BECOMES ME or, to a lesser degree, MARY POPPINS. Why LEGALLY BLONDE? Seeing what the Book was adapted from, it's quite clear that Hach completely missed the boat on this one.

[istillbelieve24601]

Posted: 5/21/07 at 10:41am

I don't know why it got book.... but the fact that a score with the opening number "Omigod You Guys!" getting nominated for best score makes me die a little inside.

[ruprecht]

Posted: 5/21/07 at 11:24am

Right Popular_Elphie and Sondhed the WHOLE reason LB doesn't work is the fact that Orfeh has brilliantly reinterpreted Paulette to raves and 3 award nods. If that's all you can come up with, than you've missed the boat completely. The songs are terrible, the lead is weak and the there's no direction to speak of. The book (well, it's laughable to call it that),is only "good" when lifted verbatim from the film and even some of those moments fall flat so the one person who was able to fully rise above all of that, is NOT the problem once and for all. Really, did you even read the review?
Updated On: 5/21/07 at 11:24 AM

[lindas13]

Posted: 5/21/07 at 9:29pm

I just pray they don't make UGLY BETTY into a play or musical, the world would never here the end of a white ugly gal saying maybe wrong things. It seems TV gets a way with a lot more than Broadway does. (I just know that UGLY BETTY is not ugly in real life it is a part she plays for TV fodder. shhhhhh don't tell. most of this stuff we watch is fake.
and the musical LB was taken from the movie??? yes??

[WordedGrace]

Posted: 5/22/07 at 1:15am

The character and the actress portaying Ugly Betty isn't white... America Ferrara is latino.

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 5/22/07 at 1:19am

THE COAST OF UTOPIA should have been nominated for best score over BLONDE.

LOVEMUSIK should have been nominated for best book over BLONDE.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 5/22/07 at 8:52am

Legally Blonde bashing YAWN Zzzzzzz , lets not make this the new wicked what the older kids insult because its not Grey Gardens or Company shall we??? lol

I think LB should have got the 4th best musical slot and something else be nominated for score (the score is a lot of fun but not tony worthy)

The show itself though deserved the nod over Poppins

[kasim]

Posted: 5/22/07 at 8:54am

whiteguy -- spot on there.

talk about over-reacting. And ... the person didnt get his name laughed at because it was "foreign" ... it was laughed because they used the word "taco" in his name. Heck i am thinking if anyone should be upset its the europeans :)


... btw to the last poster who said it should have gotten a tony nomination. While i liked the musical. It was funny. But come on in the first act besides the first and last piece .... what stood out?

[lindas13]

Posted: 5/22/07 at 10:16am

pure example of you can interpret anything you want into any venue. yes I KNOW she is Latino, but... in general most people don't. It was meant tongue in cheek and in the future I will address any post (tongue in cheek). I am cherokee indian but guarantee no one knows that and I do not go around being mad because someone calls someone an indian giver etc. never did. there are just things you accept. making fun of hillbillies makes money, making fun of rednecks, makes money.making fun of white fat women (or black(if I may use the term) is funny. but to some it is obnoxious. some thin perfect bodies find it obnoxious to be fat. that is life...we all come in odd shapes and sizes and colors and sex preferences.rich and poor..if you say it certain ways you even catch yourself laughing at yourself (GOD HELP US)....laughing at ourselves,an evening of smiling and laughter. AND..my daughter was a sorority girl and said.."we didn't act like that... then she said... yes we did.and laughed.