Funny Face (1957)

NEUTRAL

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86%

1957, Comedy/Musical, 1h 43m

RT Critics’ Score: 88% (UNBIASED)
RT Audience Score: 80%
Awards & Nominations: NA

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Critics Consensus

A timeless and elegant musical feast, Funny Face thrives on the agile and vibrant performances from legendary screen titans Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire

Audience Consensus

Funny Face is a timeless classic that will have you tapping your toes and humming along to the catchy tunes. Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire are a dynamic duo, and the Parisian backdrop adds an extra layer of charm. Sure, the plot may be a bit thin, but who needs a complex storyline when you have stunning fashion, witty humor, and show-stopping dance numbers? It’s the perfect movie to watch on a lazy Sunday afternoon with a croissant and a cup of coffee. So strike a pose and let Funny Face transport you to the City of Light.

Storyline

Maggie Prescott, the Editor-in-Chief of New York based Quality, a fashion magazine that sets trends i.e. leads instead of follows, has come up with her latest brainchild: to feature a model to be the Quality Woman, complete with successful Paris-based designer Paul Duval to devise a new collection inspired by her. The Quality Woman is not only to embody beauty, but also intellect. Against Maggie’s initial judgment, she relents to the vision of her head photographer Dick Avery in choosing Jo Stockton rather than one of their in-house models as the Quality Woman, Jo the clerk they met in an impromptu photo shoot they did against her will in the Greenwich Village bookstore where she works. The marks against Jo are not only that she isn’t a professional, but that she has what she even considers a funny looking face, something that Dick instead calls interesting. Jo, who abhors all that the world of fashion represents in she being an intellectual, ultimately agrees as the job would take her to Paris where she hopes to meet her idol, Professor Émile Flostre, the leading philosopher on the concept of empathicalism. But in Paris, the two worlds for Jo begin to collide in more ways than one, arguably the most important in she falling for Dick, his actions solely to get her to exude the emotions he wants for the photos.

Production Company(ies)
Walt Disney Pictures, Walt Disney Animation Studios,

Distributor
Paramount Pictures

Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)

Filming Location(s)
Château de la reine blanche, Coye-la-Forêt, Oise, France

MPAA / Certificate
Not Rated

Year of Release
1957

Technical Specs

Color:

Color
Sound mix:

Dolby
Aspect ratio:

1.85 : 1
Runtime:

1h 43m
Language(s):

English, French
Country of origin:

United States
Release date:

Release Date (Theaters): Feb 13, 1957 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 2, 2007

Genre(s)
Comedy/Musical

Keyword(s)
starring Audrey Hepburn, Fred Astaire, Kay Thompson, Michel Auclair, Suzy Parker, Ruta Lee, directed by Stanley Donen, written by Leonard Gershe, comedy, musical, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Kate Muir, Geoffrey Macnab, Charlotte O’Sullivan, Peter Bradshaw, David Jenkins, David Parkinson, Frank J Avella, Matt Brunson, Mike Massie, Richard Whitehall, Clyde Gilmour, critic consensus, producer Roger Edens, MPAA rating, fashion photography, Paris, romance, dance sequences, Givenchy, Audrey Hepburn as Jo Stockton, Fred Astaire as Dick Avery, Kay Thompson as Maggie Prescott, Michel Auclair as Prof Emile Flostre, Suzy Parker as Specialty Dancer (Pink Number), Ruta Lee as Lettie, timeless, elegant, musical feast, vibrant performances, screen titans, hurdles, agile, witty, ingenious, Parisian backdrops, fashion industry, beatnik culture, self-reflexive photography, visual effects, springtime-in-Paris flavor, outstanding chemistry, iconic, lighthearted fun, revisionist thinking, poster-perfect, stunning agility, outstanding, catchy songs, solo dance numbers, schmaltzy, meandering, tiresome, silly, pat, overdosing on sugar

Box Office Details

Worldwide gross: NA
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): NA

US/Canada gross: NA
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend:
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): NA
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): NA

Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA

Cast & Crew

Audrey Hepburn

Fred Astaire

Kay Thompson

Michel Auclair

Suzy Parker

Jo Stockton

Dick Avery

Maggie Prescott

Prof. Emile Flostre

Specialty Dancer (Pink Number)

Audrey Hepburn – Jo Stockton
Fred Astaire – Dick Avery
Kay Thompson – Maggie Prescott
Michel Auclair – Prof. Emile Flostre
Suzy Parker – Specialty Dancer (Pink Number)
Ruta Lee – Lettie

Stanley Donen

Leonard Gershe

Roger Edens

Director

Writer

Producer

Director(s)
Stanley Donen

Writer(s)
Leonard Gershe

Producer(s)
Roger Edens

Film Festivals
Berlin

Awards & Nominations
NA

Academy Awards

Top Reviews

Kate Muir

Geoffrey Macnab

Charlotte O’Sullivan

Peter Bradshaw

David Jenkins

Times

Independent

London Evening Standard

Guardian

Little White Lies

FUNNY FACE
All Critics (40) | Top Critics (11) | Fresh (35) | Rotten (5)
The great photographer Richard Avedon curated the titles and exquisitely coloured stills of Hepburn in the latest collection from Givenchy, and each one is poster-perfect. The plot, such as it is, is full of lighthearted fun.

January 2, 2018

Kate Muir
Times (UK)
TOP CRITIC
What is startling here is the eye-popping colour, the self-reflexive photography and visual effects, the dance sequences (Fred Astaire with his umbrella), and the witty and ingenious use of the Paris locations.

February 28, 2014 | Rating: 5/5

Geoffrey Macnab
Independent (UK)
TOP CRITIC
If you’re prepared to do a bit of revisionist thinking, it all makes sense.

February 28, 2014 | Rating: 4/5

Charlotte O’Sullivan
London Evening Standard
TOP CRITIC
Astaire could still dance up a storm, no doubt about it, and this has its moments.

February 27, 2014 | Rating: 3/5

Peter Bradshaw
Guardian
TOP CRITIC
It’s an intermittently charming trifle with directorial style to burn in the place of any kind of satisfactory substance.

February 27, 2014 | Rating: 3/5

David Jenkins
Little White Lies
TOP CRITIC
A timeless musical treat and the most fun you can have with really elegant clothes on.

February 24, 2014 | Rating: 4/5

David Parkinson
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Set in Paris, the dazzling movie satirizes the fashion industry, as well as beatnik culture. The great Kay Thompson steals some scenes, but it’s Audrey by whom you’re mesmerized.

January 21, 2022 | Rating: A-

Frank J. Avella
Edge Media Network
This offers much more than just the usual thrill of watching Astaire hoofing it.

October 23, 2021 | Rating: 3.5/4

Matt Brunson
Film Frenzy
It doesn’t slack on showing exceptionally choreographed routines and highlighting the stunning agility of the stars.

August 22, 2020 | Rating: 7/10

Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
The last great original screen musical.

February 3, 2020

Richard Whitehall
Los Angeles Free Press
There is an agreeable springtime-in-Paris flavor to this handsome Hollywood musical co-starring the aging but agile Fred Astaire as a society photographer and Audrey Hepburn as an intellectual chick from Greenwich Village.

October 14, 2019

Clyde Gilmour
Maclean’s Magazine
An iconic musical that hasn’t aged well, once you get past the (overlong) dance numbers Funny Face is like a great beauty with no personality.

October 7, 2019 | Rating: 3/5

Christopher Lloyd
The Film Yap…

Plot
Maggie Prescott, the Editor-in-Chief of New York based Quality, a fashion magazine that sets trends i.e. leads instead of follows, has come up with her latest brainchild: to feature a model to be the Quality Woman, complete with successful Paris-based designer Paul Duval to devise a new collection inspired by her. The Quality Woman is not only to embody beauty, but also intellect. Against Maggie’s initial judgment, she relents to the vision of her head photographer Dick Avery in choosing Jo Stockton rather than one of their in-house models as the Quality Woman, Jo the clerk they met in an impromptu photo shoot they did against her will in the Greenwich Village bookstore where she works. The marks against Jo are not only that she isn’t a professional, but that she has what she even considers a funny looking face, something that Dick instead calls interesting. Jo, who abhors all that the world of fashion represents in she being an intellectual, ultimately agrees as the job would take her to Paris where she hopes to meet her idol, Professor Émile Flostre, the leading philosopher on the concept of empathicalism. But in Paris, the two worlds for Jo begin to collide in more ways than one, arguably the most important in she falling for Dick, his actions solely to get her to exude the emotions he wants for the photos.

Trivia