The Prince and the Hooker

Rating: Null/10 (25 January 2013)

To maintain their wholesome image, Walt Disney Studios released "Pretty Woman" under the umbrella of their ancillary company, Touchstone Pictures. But "Pretty Woman", a feature film about a prostitute who turns into a princess after meeting a Californian prince, is no more sleazy than Disney's animated films aimed at children. The message, values and narrative arcs are all the same.
The plot? Richard Gere plays a millionaire who's depressed because "his father doesn't love him". Disillusioned, he prepares to dismantle and downsize his giant corporate empire. Luckily he meets a hooker played by Julia Roberts. He showers her in money, riches and fine clothes, she teaches him to be a kind, good businessman who "provides jobs to shipbuilders". She rescues him from depression and "bad" capitalism, he rescues her from the slums, prostitution and, ergo, "bad" capitalism. The couple no longer screw people over, be it as prostitutes or as corporate raiders, but engage in "moral transactions". They get married, live happily ever after and he builds warships.
Like "Indecent Proposal", released around the same time, the super-wealthy are initially malevolent but reveal themselves to be caring and decent. Prostitution is good, clean, profitable, fun and "just another career choice". Women, as prostitutes, make their own decisions and are entirely independent, strong and in control of their bodies and choices. Softcore titillation is used, and the prevailing aesthetic is one which bows down to wealth, riches, materialism and money. The end goal is always monogamous marital bliss, women gladly debase themselves to be with their wealthy providers and love conquers all difficulties and is constant. Furthermore, super-rich princes are the male ideal and hookers with hearts of gold are the female ideal. Prostitution has no serious consequences, prostitution is glorified and takes place between free women and sensitive guys, and monogamous marriage, capitalism, patriarchy, and commodification are all endorsed. Elsewhere expensive finery masks amorality, men mould women into their own little dolls, corruption is unimportant (because everyone is corrupt, everyone's a whore, and so corruption is relative), corporate raiders care about people other than themselves (members from the urban poor, no less) and disparages in wealth, taste, experience and education are both cute and don't thwart romance. Compare this to Francois Truffaut's "The Soft Skin", where the provincial mannerisms of a similar woman are mocked by her aristocratic lover.
To make the film work, Big Business must be glorified as much as prostitution. Gere's a Prince Charming, climbing towers to rescue his lady. Oddly, the film is adored by women. It very much represents a post-feminist stance; as all female desire is celebrated, the fantasy of winning a rich prince is super cool, even if this first means that a woman must first unconsciously self-identify as a "whore". Servitute is embraced because the self is redefined as feminine-consumer, allowed to window-shop for any and all desires, which in this case is implicitly connected to women's magazines, the fashion industry and the disciplined use of makeup, clothing, exercise etc. Everyone can be transformed from working girl to lady of leisure, everyone is allowed to dream of being valuable and feel valued, everyone is trained in the art of seduction, self-marketing, sexual gratification and consumer display.
4/10 - "My Fair Lady" meets "Cinderella" meets "Pygmalion". Worth one viewing.