LEGALLY BLONDE

REVIEWED BY CHARITY BISHOP

Our rating: 3 out of 5

Because of: innuendo

Rated:

If ever there was a film relying heavily on the lead actress, it's Legally Blonde. Not to say that the plot isn't full of fun -- it is! -- but Reese Witherspoon is the ideal choice for the perky, fun-loving blonde bombshell who trades in her daily manicures for textbooks in one of the most girl-power films to come out of the entertainment industry in a long time. Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon) is a stylish California girl whose boyfriend considers her to be more "Marilyn than Jackie." Which is why, on the night she expects him to propose, he dumps her as he heads off to law school. With his big brother dating a Vandervelt, he can't afford to be seen with anything less than a straight-A law student.

Incredulous that he would base her worth on her appearance and hair color, Elle decides to turn the tides on Warner and prove him wrong... by applying to the Harvard School of Law. With a little help from a video expose on why she deserves to enroll, Elle finds herself in the midst of serious, dry, fashion-challenged and often stuff-shirted brainiacs who believe she's more Barbie than Judge Judy. She sticks out like a sore thumb with her wild outfits, heels, little dog and heart-shaped notepad. Not to mention the scented pink paper and model walk. The Professors don't take her seriously and Warner has apparently picked up a new flame -- a wealthy, smart, and cynical brunette. 

When Elle has finally had enough blonde jokes, she purchases a pink laptop and throws herself into her study with a passion lacking in her peers. Soon she's one of the top students in her class, running head to head with Warner and his new girlfriend. But she has her sights set on more than just stealing him back -- she wants to excel for blondes everywhere... and win a spot on the highly-coveted summer internship with Callaghan's firm. At least she has one supporter in the uphill battle for equality... Emmett Richardson (Luke Wilson), a graduate and "spy" for Callaghan (Victor Garber). 

When she's not hitting the books, Elle is helping her manicurist Pauline (Jennifer Coolidge) repair her self-confidence after a particularly nasty divorce... and spark a romance with the UPS man. Elle is more fashion-sense than legal-minded, but as she learns the legal jargon, she begins to realize that there's more to life than fashion magazines... particularly when an old friend goes on trial for murder. Callahan believes she's guilty... it's up to Elle to prove the woman's innocent. But to do this, Elle has to be at the top of her game... and she's in way over her head.

Legally Blonde is the kind of guilty pleasure that fits into the same category as Miss Congeniality -- a film with a lot of rocky points, but one that a lot of people will love despite its flaws. There's a lot to like about this blonde bombshell with her perfectly manicured fingernails and optimistic attitude, particularly in her kindness toward other people. Rather than resorting to the cruel barbs of the other students, Elle instead shows compassion toward people, whether it's the awkward guy asking for a date or a jilted wife with an inferiority complex. It also provides a valuable lesson in judging people for their heart rather than their wardrobe or hair color. She keeps her promises, is unwilling to give sexual favors, and has a lot of wisdom to offer for a child brought up by shallow and sophisticated parents. She also manages to befriend her mortal enemy by the closing credits. 

Elle, while never quite loosing her fluttery pink clothing and manicured nails, manages to put the silly and sentimental life behind her for the greater good... a profession in which she will uphold honor rather than dirty dealings. However, the flaws in the film's moral ethics make this trip to Harvard an understandably rocky one. The film does its best to lesson the impact that women are valued for their intelligence rather than their bodies by showing off a lot of skin. Not all of the immodest clothing is left on the California coast... Elle wears some outlandish, cleavage-bearing and short-skirted outfits on campus. Her friends are seen running around in their underwear in the girl's dorm under the opening credits. Her greatest asset in getting into law school is playing off the older generation with a video sporting her bikini-clad body. She also shows up in a skimpy "Playbunny" outfit for a costume party... only to learn that she's been the bunt of a cruel joke.

Skimpy clothing aside, amidst the legal talk is some innuendo, a few double entrées, some language and coarse anatomical references, and the fact that the murder trial revolves around the possibility of an adulterous affair. There's also a reference to "The Bible" in accordance with Cosmopolitan magazine. In one class, students discuss whether or not a sperm donor would have legal access to test tube children, to which case Elle and other students make some rather blushing remarks on the man's rights to his offspring. One of her friends claims to have only aced an exam because she gave her professor a lap dance afterward. 

There are least two gay characters; a female who mentions it twice through dialogue (one in the case of "semester" being masculine, another time liberally as having founded the "Lesbians Against Drunk Driving" rally); the other is male and part of the trial case in which the lawyer proves he's gay by getting him to slip the name of his boyfriend. Although not graphic or even very suggestive, Callahan comes on to Elle in his office. The acting is stellar from all involved, and it's fun to see two real-life best friends -- Reese and Selma -- play enemies. Legally Blonde has a good heart, but for more conservative viewers it won't hold up in court.