Product Details

• Format: Black & White, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Sony Pictures Home E
• VHS Release Date: September 28, 1989
• Run Time: 6 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6300149269
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #305,148 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars PYGMALION IS WON OVER BY HIS GALATEA..., October 1, 2002

By 

Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Pygmalion [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This superlative, award winning film adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's play is as delightful today as when it was first filmed, nearly sixty five years ago. This ageless story, based upon greek mythology in which an ivory statue of a maiden, Galatea, is brought to life by the prayers of its sculptor, Pygmalion, features a professor of linguistics, Henry Higgins (Leslie Howard), who takes a cockney flower seller, Eliza Doolittle (Wendy Hiller), and bets that, within a matter of six months, he can turn her into a lady who can pass in high society without betraying her lowly origins.

Leslie Howard, wonderful in the role, is the quintessential Henry Higgins, playing him as an arrogant, aristocratic misogynist whose own mother (Marie Lohr) barely finds him tolerable. Henry makes his bet about his prospective success with Eliza with his friend, the kindly Col. George Pickering (Scott Sunderland), a wealthy gentleman who bankrolls the costs of Eliza's transformation from guttersnipe to royal pretender.

Wendy Hiller is perfectly cast in the role of Eliza, having a certain earthiness about her, which makes her so believable as the cockney upstart. Yet, she has enough of an incandescence about her, so as to make her believable in her transition from gutter to drawing room. Scott Sunderland is wonderful as Col. Pickering, the buffer between Henry and Eliza. Marie Lohr is excellent as Mrs. Higgins, Henry's exasperated mother. The scene in which Eliza has tea with Henry's unsuspecting mother and her guests is one of the funniest on the silver screen. Look also to a wonderful, comedic foray by Wildred Lawson, as Eliza's father, Alfred Doolittle.

All in all, this is a film that has withstood the test of time. The precursor for the musical adaptation "My Fair Lady", Pygmalion reigns supreme. Nominated for four Academy Awards and winning two, this is the definitive adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's play, sharp and witty. Deftly directed by Leslie Howard and Anthony Asquith, it is simply a magnificently acted, comedic film, and one that those who love classic, vintage films will enjoy. Bravo!

5.0 out of 5 stars The best production of 'Pygmalion' (and perhaps Shaw) I've seen, June 4, 2011

By 

K. Gordon - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pygmalion [VHS] (VHS Tape)

A pretty wonderful film of the great George Bernard Shaw play.

Both Leslie Howard and Wendy Hiller are terrific in the leads, and this
production brings out both the fun and wit of Shaw's words, without
losing the sharp, complex, and sometimes paradoxical political and
social observations underneath the playful extrtior.

Dated in style, yes, and it could be argued Hiller is a bit older than ideal
for the character's innocence. And some of the supporting performances
are too stagy (although some are very good indeed).

But overall this is a lot of fun, and quite thought provoking, with a
nicely ambiguous ending.

If you have a DVD player, it's worth getting the excellent Janus
'Essential Art House' DVD - which is the same terrific transfer
as the Criterion (which owns both labels) but with fewer extras
for much less money.

5.0 out of 5 stars MY FAIR LADY..., September 4, 2004

By 

Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Pygmalion (Audio Described) [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This superlative, award winning film adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's play is as delightful today as when it was first filmed, nearly sixty five years ago. This ageless story, based upon Greek mythology in which an ivory statue of a maiden, Galatea, is brought to life by the prayers of its sculptor, Pygmalion, features a professor of linguistics, Henry Higgins (Leslie Howard), who takes a cockney flower seller, Eliza Doolittle (Wendy Hiller), and bets that, within a matter of six months, he can turn her into a lady who can pass in high society without betraying her lowly origins.

Leslie Howard, wonderful in the role, is the quintessential Henry Higgins, playing him as an arrogant, aristocratic misogynist whose own mother (Marie Lohr) barely finds him tolerable. Henry makes his bet about his prospective success with Eliza with his friend, the kindly Col. George Pickering (Scott Sunderland), a wealthy gentleman who bankrolls the costs of Eliza's transformation from guttersnipe to royal pretender.

Wendy Hiller is perfectly cast in the role of Eliza, having a certain earthiness about her, which makes her so believable as the cockney upstart. Yet, she has enough of an incandescence about her, so as to make her believable in her transition from gutter to drawing room. Scott Sunderland is wonderful as Col. Pickering, the buffer between Henry and Eliza. Marie Lohr is excellent as Mrs. Higgins, Henry's exasperated mother. The scene in which Eliza has tea with Henry's unsuspecting mother and her guests is one of the funniest on the silver screen. Look also to a wonderful, comedic foray by Wildred Lawson, as Eliza's father, Alfred Doolittle.

All in all, this is a film that has withstood the test of time. The precursor for the musical adaptation, "My Fair Lady", "Pygmalion" reigns supreme. Nominated for four Academy Awards and winning two, this is the definitive adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's play, sharp and witty. Deftly directed by Leslie Howard and Anthony Asquith, it is simply a magnificently acted, comedic film, and one that those who love classic, vintage films will enjoy. Bravo!