Vincente Minnelli's colorful adaptation of Colette's 1944 novel, "Gigi," with its unforgettable Lerner and Lowe score, is so fixated in the public mind that it eclipsed the novel's renown and banished this 1949 French film into oblivion. Fortunately, a less-than-pristine print survives; although the white subtitles are often difficult to decipher, anyone familiar with the MGM musical version will have no trouble following what is almost scene for scene the same story line. However, without the songs, the story of a young girl being groomed in 19th-century French social graces intended to lure rich men moves at a faster pace than Minnelli's film and runs about a half hour less.
The Gallic flavor of the tale has hints of "Lolita" and was tidied up for U.S. audiences of the 1950's. Essentially, Gigi's grandmother and great aunt are training a 15-year old girl to be mistress to a man twice her age. Although actress Daniele Delorme was 29 when the film was made, she clearly states her age in the story as 15 and a half. When 32-year-old Frank Villard, who plays Gaston, puts his hand on her knee, he would be facing child molestation charges today. While her great aunt, played by Gaby Morlay, instructs Gigi in the fine arts of eating lobster, pouring coffee, and choosing cigars, she also teaches her to smoke, and, at one point, she cups Gigi's breasts to check her physical development.
Directed by Jacqueline Audry, "Gigi" is well acted, although Leslie Caron, Maurice Chevalier, and Hermione Gingold are sorely missed; and Louis Jourdan is more of a young girl's dream than the dour Villard. Evidently, the part of Honore was much expanded for the talents of Maurice Chevalier, and the character, played herein by Jean Tissier, is brief. Not surprisingly, the production design also suffers in comparison to the 1958 version. Filmed in black and white, the French film depicts a more modest life for Gigi and her grandmother, and even the luxurious style of Gigi's great aunt and the wealthy Gaston appear compromised herein by budget. However, a few brief glimpses of the Eiffel Tower and Parisian streets are welcome, and Gaston's new automobile is an antique-car aficionado's delight.
Also missed are the songs, especially those sung by Louis Jourdan, which express his changing feelings towards Gigi and his realization that she is no longer a child. In this shorter French version, Gaston's character seemingly flips spontaneously from seeing Gigi as a girl, then a mistress, then a wife. Despite its shortcomings, the 1949 "Gigi" is not a bad film; the story is faithful to the novel, and the performances are quite good. If Vincente Minnelli had not re-filmed the story in color as a musical, Jacqueline Audry's version would have adequately served. However, MGM did produce the 1958 Oscar winner, and this modest adaptation of Colette's novel has been relegated to the archives, where only interested movie lovers will take the time to rediscover its merits.
