Plot
Reese Witherspoon stars in this romantic comedy, the feature film debut of award-winning Australian director Robert Luketic. As a ravishing Miss Hawaiian Tropic, sorority president, and calendar girl, Elle Woods (Witherspoon) is a big hit on the campus of her sun-drenched Los Angeles college. She's also got the perfect boyfriend in Warner Huntington III (Matthew Davis), a wealthy East Coast blue blood. Fearing that his snooty friends and family will never accept the bubble-headed Elle, however, Warner dumps her before heading off to graduate law school at Harvard University. Determined to win back her man, Elle enrolls in the same imposing institution, quickly becoming an object of scorn and ridicule, especially to Warner's old prep school flame (Selma Blair). Despite her penchant for malls, makeup, and tanning, Elle is no dummy and is soon showing elite Ivy League snobs a thing or two about class, self-confidence, and courtroom victory. ~ Karl Williams, RoviReview
Reese Witherspoon adds yet another plucky striver character to her resume with this mostly successful attempt to merge the superlative teen film Clueless (1995) with the fish-out-of-water courtroom farce My Cousin Vinny (1992). Legally Blonde has all the right elements for light entertainment: appropriately overzealous production design, an unflappable heroine played to giddy perfection, and a supporting cast that stays just south of over-the-top. And yet the comedy doesn't quite sing, in large part due to first-time feature director Robert Luketic's ineptitude with staging and shooting. For a movie obsessed with image, Blonde is poorly lit and clumsily framed: Luketic's deference to close-ups all but robs the film of Witherspoon's talent for physical comedy, and an extemporaneous, mid-film musical number fails to register. Still, as a showcase for its ebullient, never-condescending lead performer, Blonde shines, even if its young director doesn't show the same promise as his star. ~ Michael Hastings, RoviCast
- Reese Witherspoon - Elle Woods
- Luke Wilson - Emmett Richmond
- Selma Blair - Vivian Kensington
- Matthew Davis - Warner Huntington III
- Victor Garber - Professor Callahan
- Jennifer Coolidge - Paulette Bonafonte
Credit
Dan Bradford - Art Director, Kevin Maloney - Boom Operator, Joseph Middleton - Casting, Toni Basil - Choreography, David Nicksay - Co-producer, Chris McLaughlin - Co-producer, Sophie de Rakoff Carbonell - Costume Designer, Kim Carleton - Costume Designer, Kim Johnson - Costume Designer, Josh King - First Assistant Director, Robert Luketic - Director, Garth Craven - Editor, Anita Brandt-Burgoyne - Editor, Linda Arnold - Hair Styles, Ellen Gessert - Location Manager, Ned Shapiro - Location Manager, Rolfe Kent - Composer (Music Score), Anita Camarata - Musical Direction/Supervision, Kenny-King Turko - Makeup, George Richmond - Camera Operator, Melissa Stewart - Production Designer, Anthony Richmond - Cinematographer, Ric Kidney - Producer, Marc E. Platt - Producer, Ed White - Production Sound, Kathy Lucas - Set Designer, Douglas Berkeley - Set Designer, Logical Figments - Special Effects, Ed White - Sound/Sound Designer, Frederick Howard - Sound/Sound Designer, Professor Laurie Levenson - Technical Advisor, Ric Kidney - Unit Production Manager, Karen McCullah Lutz - Screenwriter, Kirsten Smith - Screenwriter, Asha MacLeod - Production Assistant, Eric Bryant - Production Assistant, Chris Corey - Production Assistant, Will Sandoval - Production Assistant, Christopher Wolfe - Production Assistant, Studio Animal Services - Animal Trainer/Wrangler, Sue Chipperton - Animal Trainer/Wrangler, Deborah Wuliger - Unit Publicist, Jonathan Richmond - First Assistant Camera, Stuart M. Abramson - Key Grip, Nicky South - Music Editor, Noelle Chapin-Green - Production Coordinator, Marci Rosenberg - Production Coordinator, Shelly Kidney - Production Supervisor, Douglas Fox - Properties Master, Marc Fishman - Re-Recording Mixer, Joe Barnett - Re-Recording Mixer, Ronit Ravich-Boss - Script Supervisor, Marcei Brubaker - Second Assistant Director, Frederick Howard - Sound Director, Michael Kamper - Sound Effects Director, Michael Mullane - Sound Effects Director, Javier Bennassar - Sound Effects Director, Dave Kelsey - Special Effects Coordinator, Tracy Bennett - Still Photographer, Frederick Howard - Supervising Sound Editor, Alan Freedman - ADR Mixer, Patty Owen - Assistant Art Director, Jeff Ferrero - Assistant Chief Lighting Technician, Erin Wilhelm-Hilkey - Assistant Location Manager, Rachael Lin Gallaghan - Assistant Production Coordinator, China Iwata - Assistant Properties, Michael P. Sweeney - Assistant Properties, Chato Hill - Assistant Sound Editor, Alec St. John - Assistant Sound Editor, Paul Tilden - Camera Loader, Dena Berman - Casting Assistant, Michelle Morris Gertz - Casting Associate, Gary Tandrow - Chief Lighting Technician, Steve Hagberg - Construction Coordinator, Michael Hertlein - Dialogue Editor, David Grant - Dialogue Editor, Chris Scurria - Dolly Grip, Central Casting - Extra Casting, Alex Renskoff - First Assistant Editor, S. Diane Marshall - Foley Artist, Jerry Trent - Foley Artist, Craig Jurkiewicz - Foley Editor, Mary Beth Lane - Key Costumer, Joy Zapata - Key Hairstylist, Brad Wilder - Key Make-up, Shawn Petersen - Post Production Assistant, Tyger Belton - Second Assistant Camera, Marisa Ferrey - Second Second Assistant Director, Adam Austin - Set Dresser, Kathy Lucas - Set Decorator, Amanda Brown - Book Author| Legalese (1998 Film), Legal Tender (1990 Film) | |
| Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde (2003 Film), Legally Blondes (2008 Film) |
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