Legally Blonde | Teen Ink

Legally Blonde

August 11, 2019
By Anonymous

I chose Legally Blonde mostly for the reason that the Remsen High School Drama Club has chosen to do the musical version of it, and for all of the Drama Club members who don’t have the time or money to watch the movie, this summary is a great chance to get to know the film.

Legally Blonde was originally a Romance/Comedy movie released in 2001, and then later revised as a musical, a number two was also released in 2003, completing the plot. 

Legally Blonde is a fantastic movie, which I give 5/5 stars. It is a movie based off of the protagonist, Elle Woods, who was originally head of her sorority at Dulwich College, in London, England. IMDB puts the beginning of the movie into a detailed and precise summary, “ Elle Woods has it all. She's the president of her sorority, a Hawaiian Tropic girl, Miss June in her campus calendar, and, above all, a natural blonde. She dates the cutest fraternity boy on campus and wants nothing more than to be Mrs. Warner Huntington III. But, there's just one thing stopping Warner from popping the question: Elle is too blonde. Growing up across the street from might mean something in LA, but nothing to Warner's East-Coast blue blood family. So, when Warner packs up for Harvard Law and reunites with an old sweetheart from prep school, Elle rallies all her resources and gets into Harvard, determined to win him back. But law school is a far cry from the comforts of her poolside and the mall. Elle must wage the battle of her life, for her guy, for herself and for all the blondes who suffer endless indignities every day.” I would describe Elle as a girl who knows her fashion, over-reacts, egocentric-in the beginning, confident, determined, kind, helpful, loyal, faithful, trustworthy, independent, and she follows her intuition. Her former boyfriend, Warner can be put into a few, short words, he is selfish, a playboy, and he only looks out for himself. After she succeeds in getting into Harvard Law School she has her first class she is brutally humiliated and then kicked out, then she meets Emmett, one of her friends throughout the film, he can be characterized as kind, intelligent, hard-working, patient, and trusting, he never fails Elle. When Elle meets Emmett she is in tears, and Emmett helps her out of the kindness of his heart and gives her tips about her teachers. Afterward, Elle discovers Warner had gotten back together with one of his ‘smart’ exes, Vivian Kensington, and has engaged. Throughout the movie she is seen as opinionated, ‘evil’, manipulative, and sheltered-has a wall built around her. At the beginning of the film, she is hostile and rude towards Elle, but as time progresses she becomes kind and helpful. 

Elle studies harder and harder during her classes and becomes an almost amazing student. She begins to find things in common with Vivian, and they become friends. When she was having tough days she visited her new friend Paulette, who works at a close nail-salon. Paulette is always seen as loyal, shy, eccentric, comforting, and as a great listener, she always has advice for Paulette and vice-versa. 

After becoming an amazing student, Elle is recruited-as well as Emmett, Vivian, Warner, and one of her other ‘friends’- for helping one of her teachers, Professor Callahan, with an official case. The case is simple, their defendant is Brooke Taylor Windham, a famous fitness instructor who was accused of killing her husband, Hayworth Windham. Her daughter-in-law said she came home and saw Brooke over Hayworth’s body, with his blood on her hands. Brooke refuses to tell professor Callahan her alibi, says she would rather go to jail. Brooke was once in Elle’s sorority and she believed Brooke is innocent, but everyone else doubts her. So, Elle goes to the jail signing in as Brooke’s sister and finds out her what her alibi is, using the trust between her and Brooke, Brooke said she is ashamed, she went to a liposuction appointment, for her stomach. Later that day the others find out she went to visit Brooke, and that Elle discovered what her alibi is, Elle refuses to tell them because she made a promise to Brooke.

That night Callahan calls Elle into his office and tells her she is smart and amazing, and the only reason he put her on the team is that she is pretty. He puts his hand on her thigh, and Vivian stops by and sees only Callahan with his hand on her thigh. Elle leaps out of the couch and runs to the elevator, crying, and before the doors close Vivian holds open the doors and says,“ You almost had me fooled... Maybe you should sleep with the jury too, in order to win the case.” Elle is devastated she goes back to her dorm room and cries and cries, but finally, she decides she wouldn’t let people put her down, she would win the case.

The next day, at the court, Brooke fires Callahan and replaces him with Elle, with Emmett for supervision. Elle wins the case by discovering the loopholes in the case, for instance, Brooke’s pool boy claims he was sleeping with Brooke, but Elle discovers he is gay. The interactions between Elle and Chutney Windham-Brooke’s stepdaughter-in the court went like this,“

 Elle : [Elle is cross-examining Chutney Windham]  Ms. Windham, what had you done earlier that day?

Chutney Windham: I got up. Got a latte. Went to the gym. Got a perm and came home.

Elle: Where you got in the shower?

The Honorable Marina R. Bickford: I believe the witness has made it clear that she was in the shower.

[Courtroom audience laughs] 

Elle: Yes, your Honor.

Elle : [a sudden brainstorm comes over Elle]  Ms. Windham, had you ever gotten a perm before?

Chutney Windham: Yes.

Chutney Windham: Two a year since I was 12. You do the math.

Elle: You know, a girl in my sorority, Tracy Marcinco got a perm once. We all tried to talk her out of it. Curls weren't a good look for her. She didn't have your bone structure, but thankfully that same day she entered the Pheta Delta Phi wet t-shirt contest where she was completely hosed to down from head to toe...

DA Joyce Rafferty: Objection, why is this relevant?

Elle: I have a point, I promise.

The Honorable Marina R. Bickford: Then make it.

Elle: Chutney, why is it Tracy Marcinco's curls were ruined when she got hosed down?

Chutney Windham: Because they got wet.

Elle: Exactly. Because isn't the first cardinal rule of perm maintenance that you're forbidden to wet your hair for at least 24 hours after getting a perm at the risk of deactivating the ammonium thioglycolate?

Chutney Windham: Yes.

Elle : And wouldn't somebody who had, say, 30 perms before in their life be well aware of this rule, and if in fact you weren't washing your hair as I suspect you weren't because your curls are still intact, wouldn't you have heard the gunshot, and if in fact, you had heard the gunshot Brooke Windham wouldn't have had time to hide the gun before you got downstairs. Which means you would have had to found Brooke Windham with a gun in her hand to make your story plausible, isn't that right?

Chutney Windham: She's my age! Did she tell you that? How would you feel if your father married someone who was your age?

Elle: You, however, Chutney had time to hide the gun after you shot your father.

Chutney Windham : [Chutney is in tears]  I didn't mean to shoot him!

[points at Brooke] 

Chutney Windham: I thought it was YOU walking through the door!

[Courtroom audience gasps] 

Elle: Oh my God.

The Honorable Marina R. Bickford: Oh my God.

Brooke: Oh my God.

The Honorable Marina R. Bickford: Bailiff, take the witness into custody, where she will be charged for the murder of Joseph Windham. Case dismissed. Mrs. Windham, you're free to go.

Brooke: Thank you, your honor.”-IMDB

 

And so, after about another three years in law school, Elle graduates from Harvard Law School as Valedictorian, with many spectacular job offers, THE END. I feel this was an excellent, inspirational film, the acting was amazing, I cried, laughed, I was angry, and I smiled throughout the entire film, that is why I give it five out of five stars. The theme in this movie I think is, You can be/do whatever you want to be/do if you put your mind to it. Elle starts out as an ignorant Sorority girl with no goals in life, and she ends up graduating Valedictorian from Harvard. So Legally Blonde is the perfect movie to watch at night with your family, boyfriend, girlfriend, friends, with blankets, and lots and lots of snacks.



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