The reviews for Pretty Woman are in, and the reviewers are missing the 1990 film more than they’re loving the new musical. With a storyline that’s been scrubbed clean of all the un-pretty bits that made the original material interesting, original music by Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance that adds little more than a definite ’80s feel, and direction that seems more focused on re-creating the performances of Julia Roberts and Richard Gere than taking advantage of the Broadway stars’ (Samantha Barks, Andy Karl) own talents, Pretty Woman really never steps out of the shadow of its own source material. That’s all fine news for theatregoing families and lovers of the film, but unfortunately it sounds like bad news for us lovers of Broadway… so we’re moving it down our list of must-sees.
NEW YORK TIMES REVIEW OF PRETTY WOMAN
No one should have had to step into that red dress again. I’m talking about the long, strapless number that Julia Roberts wore in the 1990 film “Pretty Woman,” in a moment of pure, movie-magic apotheosis. Let me refresh your memory of that occasion before I proceed to the less pleasant topic of “Pretty Woman…
DEADLINE REVIEW OF PRETTY WOMAN
I might not be the target audience for Pretty Woman – The Musical, seeing as how I was never a fan of Pretty Woman – The Movie. Just never thought it was cute, funny or charming when Richard Gere, in that 1990 star-making movie, jokingly snapped shut that proffered jewelry box, drawing the startled, wide-mouthed…
WALL STREET JOURNAL REVIEW OF PRETTY WOMAN
No doubt there’s a politically correct opinion of “Pretty Woman,” Garry Marshall’s stupendously popular 1990 movie romcom. I wouldn’t know: I can’t figure out whether Degrading to Women takes intersectional precedence over Sex Work Is Good. Fortunately, to lift a line from my worthy colleagues in the judicial…
CHICAGO TRIBUNE REVIEW OF PRETTY WOMAN
Samantha Barks, the truly formidable young star of “Pretty Woman: The Musical,” achieves something close to a miracle at the Nederlander Theatre. With the help of her savvy director, Jerry Mitchell, this uber-confident, pitch-perfect newbie Brit makes her end-of-the-’80s streetwalker with Cinderella dreams at…
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VARIETY REVIEW OF PRETTY WOMAN
When the 1990 movie comedy “Pretty Woman” catapulted Julia Roberts to stardom, it was widely reported that Disney and late director Garry Marshall had tweaked J.F. Lawton’s downbeat prostitute/john tale “Three Thousand” into a sumptuous rom-com, to the profit of all concerned. Its newest incarnation sanitizes…
Broadway Musical Blog 
Reading the reviews, it makes me feel like the directors could have used the potential of the broadway stars and refined the charm of the classic. But kudos to all their efforts.
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