Pygmalion – A Pint at the Pub with Higgins

Okej, let’s talk Pygmalion. You know, the George Bernard Shaw deal from 1938. Directed by Anthony Asquith *and* Leslie Howard – I mean, how often do you get to see a lead actor (Howard himself as Professor Higgins) pretty much boss himself around behind the camera too? That’s like trying to teach my cousin Lena to ride a bike *and* shouting at myself for using the wrong helmet.

So, you’ve got Wendy Hiller as Eliza Doolittle, delivering a performance that’s equal parts raw stökig and weirdly sweet. Her transformation – (from proper cockney flower seller to snobby “lady”) – is mad to watch, and I genuinely cringed at the way people react to her accent. It’s almost like growing up in a småstad and moving to Stockholm – suddenly you’re ‘exotic’ and people copy your dialect but sort of laugh at the same time? Been there, trust me.

There’s this one scene – you hear the whole room go quiet as Eliza tries to impress at the fancy party. I remember sneaking into Filmstaden with my older brother in -94, right after failing my English oral presentation, and both of us felt proper seen by her disaster moment. If you ever faked confidence, this movie will poke that wound till it bleeds.

The humor hits best when it’s subtle. But, honestly, some of these posh jokes might go over a ’08 Gothenburg hipster’s head. And yeah, some parts are dated. All that “fixing” Eliza, sort of uncomfortable now with all that woke talk, huh?

But then you get those proper British spectacles and grumpy banter, and suddenly you’re in your grandma’s vardagsrum, glögg in hand. Not a perfect flick. But still, it kinda sticks, y’know?

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