Pygmalion (1938)

About Pygmalion

Pygmalion is a British film based on George Bernard Shaw's play of the same name. The plot revolves around a snobbish phonetics professor named Henry Higgins who makes a bet that he can transform a Cockney flower seller, Eliza Doolittle, into a refined society lady merely by improving her speech.

Making / Production

The film was directed by Anthony Asquith and Leslie Howard and was initially released in the United Kingdom in October 1938. Its screenplay was developed by George Bernard Shaw, W. P. Lipscomb, Cecil Lewis, and Ian Dalrymple.

Actors

• Leslie Howard played Professor Henry Higgins. Howard masterfully portrayed the sophisticated, yet eccentric and insensitive character.
• Wendy Hiller played Eliza Doolittle. Hiller did a commendable job showcasing Eliza's transformation from a simple flower girl to a genteel woman.
• Wilfrid Lawson performed the character of Alfred Doolittle, Eliza's father. His role brought a humorous edge to the film.

Trivia / Interesting Facts

• The film's screenplay was written by George Bernard Shaw, who also wrote the original play.
• The film is regarded as one of the best adaptations of the stage play, praising it for maintaining the critique of the British class system present in the original work.

Awards

Pygmalion was nominated for several awards, including the Best Picture and Best Actor at the 1938 Academy Awards. Furthermore, George Bernard Shaw won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, which makes him the first and only individual to have won both a Nobel Prize and an Oscar.

Quotes

• "The difference between a flower girl and a lady is not how she behaves, but how she is treated."
• "The question is not whether I treat you rudely, but whether you ever heard me treat anyone else better."

Music, Soundtrack

• The film's musical score was composed by Arthur Honegger.
• Although not a musical, the film made use of background music to enhance the emotional impact of certain scenes.