Gigi movie synopsis. Weary of the conventions of Parisian society, a rich playboy and a youthful courtesan-in-training enjoy a platonic friendship, but it may not stay platonic for long. Gaston, the scion of a wealthy Parisian family finds emotional refuge from the superficial lifestyle of upper class Parisian 1900s society with the former mistress of his uncle and her outgoing, tomboy granddaughter, Gigi. When Gaston becomes aware that Gigi has matured into a woman, her grandmother and aunt, who have educated Gigi to be a wealthy man’s mistress, urge the pair to act out their roles but love adds a surprise twist to this delightful turn-of-the 20th century Cinderella story.
Gigi is a 1958 American musical-romance film directed by Vincente Minnelli and processed using Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s color film process Metrocolor. The screenplay by Alan Jay Lerner is based on the 1944 novella of the same name by Colette. The film features songs with lyrics by Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe, arranged and conducted by André Previn.
In 1991, Gigi was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”. The American Film Institute ranked it #35 in AFI’s 100 Years…100 Passions. The film is considered the last great Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musical and the final great achievement of the Freed Unit, headed by producer Arthur Freed, although he would go on to produce several more films, including the musical Bells Are Ringing in 1960.
Gigi won a record-breaking nine Academy Awards (at the 1959 Oscars ceremony); however, this record only lasted for one year, as Ben-Hur broke this record the following year with 11 Oscars. In tribute to Gigi’s domination of the Oscars, the MGM switchboard answered calls the following day with “M-Gigi-M”. Gigi, eventually along with 1987’s The Last Emperor, held the record as the film(s) with the most Academy Award wins in every category in which it was nominated, until 2003’s The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King broke the record at the 2004 Oscars ceremony with 11 Oscar nominations and 11 Oscar wins.
Gigi (1958)
Directed by: Vincente Minnelli
Starring: Leslie Caron, Louis Jourdan, Maurice Chevalier, Hermione Gingold, Eva Gabor, Jacques Bergerac, Isabel Jeans, John Abbott, Cilly Feindt, Corinne Marchand, Maurice Marsac
Screenplay by: Alan Jay Lerner
Production Design by: Cecil Beaton
Cinematography by: Joseph Ruttenberg
Film Editing by: Adrienne Fazan
Costume Design by: Cecil Beaton
Set Decoration by: F. Keogh Gleason, Henry Grace
Art Direction by: E. Preston Ames, William A. Horning, Maurice Petri
Music by: André Previn, Conrad Salinger
MPAA Rating: None.
Distributed by: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release Date: May 15, 1958
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