LEGALLY BLONDE

 

THREE STARS - WHOLESOME

 

       The inverted story of prejudice presented by Robert Luketie in his film “Legally Blonde” is a fascinating twist.  In the usual version of such tales, people of privilege make life even more difficult for those less fortunate.   But in this tale, it is the person of privilege who is judged before anyone really understands who she is.

       Playing on the “dumb blonde” and California stereotypes, Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon) is rejected by her college boyfriend just before their graduation because he does not believe she is smart enough to be his wife.

       Coming from a long line of U.S. Senators, Warner Huntington III (Matthew Davis) has accepted the call of his family to continue their tradition.  As a part of that decision, Warner discards Elle on the very night that she believes he is going to ask her to marry him.

       This rejection sets the stage for a humorous study of stereotypes of almost every kind imaginable.    But through them all, the message is that first impressions are seldom true.

       Though we might question the validity of such a message in real life, the truth is that every person is far more than the superficial categories in which our first-impression stereotypes place them.

       This is especially true of the “dumb blonde” stereotype of Elle.  Although she has demonstrated an intelligence that has earned her straight A’s in her chosen major of fashion marketing, the assumption is that such a degree does not require the mental ability of other majors.  Warner does not believe she is smart enough to become his life partner in his political aspirations, much less get into Harvard Law School as he has done.

       This type of assumption is usually at the core of prejudices.   Rather than accepting the uniqueness of others and considering the skills their success has required, we tend to measure them by the superficial standards of our own experiences.

       This is seen in Warner’s rejection of Elle.   Not knowing or appreciating the life skills she possesses, Warner does not realize that Elle is not only capable of excelling at Harvard, but is also capable to do so while staying true to herself and her own well-developed values of kindness, integrity, faithfulness and purity.

       Elle, whose name is the feminine form of the Hebrew word for God, exhibits an unusual capacity to accept others.  Bypassing the manipulative games others are playing, Elle is able to simply and happily accept others while living comfortably within her own existence.  This skill makes her not only a winsome and endearing person, but eventually leads her to blend her own unique knowledge of fashion and law to succeed in her unexpected profession as a lawyer.

       The ability to know and accept one’s self so completely that we can come to know and accept others as they really are is seldom achieved without help.  In Elle’s life, she is fortunate to have a mentor who comes into her life and helps her be able to not only keep her integrity but also have the opportunity to excel.

       The idealism presented by Elle in “Legally Blonde” is refreshing and the moral virtues she lives with are admirable.  If prejudice is ever to be defeated, it will come not from sensitivity training and laws against hate crimes, but from people lovingly accepting themselves and others.