Victor Victoria is a very strange film indeed. This film, about a woman disguised as a man disguised as a woman in order to get a theatrical role she was auditioning for, tends to get very confusing at many points throughout. It is a bit hard to follow, but is redeemed in some aspects by Julie Andrews' remarkable performance, as always, and the beautiful and skillful cinematography.
I don't want to diminish the importance of this film by leaving bad feedback, but there is one main problem throughout that left me feeling so confused. The plot of the film can get a bit complicated at times regarding her disguises and motives behind why the Julie Andrews character Victoria does what she does. It makes sense that in 1930's Paris, only men would be praised for their acting abilities and so that gives way to why Victoria decides to dress up as a man. It gets confusing, however, when as a man, she has to disguise herself as a woman once more. I understood that it might have been a statement regarding sexuality and gay rights back in those times, but the reasoning behind why she did what she did got quite confusing. Another part that really bugged me, as simple as it was, is the naming element. It seems like if a woman named Victoria who was infamously fired from one of her roles wanted to re-brand herself as a man, that she would pick a different name than Victor. Especially since she (or he) auditioned for a role with the same company. And a simple glance at her face would have been ample enough information to realize that it's the same woman. Either that, or 1930's Frenchmen were just really dumb.
There are many amazing aspects of this film, however, which actually made me want to sit through it. Some of these include the representation and fight for the LGBT community, the performances, and the gorgeous camera work. The main premise of the film was that the protagonist's best friend, who was gay, could not get a role because he was homosexual. So Victoria, filled with talent, dressed as a man to get the role as a woman. Times were very very different in the 1930's obviously, and this might have actually been the case for many starving actors and actresses. And as confusing as the plot is, I appreciated the story's effort to fight for equality and gay representation, even if it was 80 years ago. Another part that I really enjoyed was the work of Dick Bush, the cinematographer. Especially in the scene where the antagonist is attempting to sneak into Victoria's apartment so that he can uncover the truth. That entire sequence was shot so well, including the hiding behind the walls and the spacial unity that it entailed. The running gag of the man putting his shoes out to shine was one of the funniest parts of the film, and helped push that scene along very well. The very last piece of this cinematic puzzle that really brought everything together were the performances by Julie Andrews and Robert Preston. Julie Andrews, as widespread and stunning as her career currently is, did a fantastic job alongside her character's gay best friend played by Preston. Only one word could be used to describe their work together, and it would be charisma. They had such good on-screen chemistry and I am surprised at how much life they brought to the screen.
Victor Victoria is a good film that many cult followers of Julie Andrews will adore. It has a lot of catchy musical numbers, as well as great actors, actresses, and a stunning man behind the camera. The plot of the film runs on for a whopping 2 hours and 14 minutes and becomes quite dull and confusing, but I loved the representational message they were attempting to get across.
My Rating: ★★★
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