Legally Blonde (2001)

An entertaining movie that with the title alone alerts you that it is brazenly silly, though Reese Witherspoon's character Elle Woods has challenges that make you cheer for her. Awkward social situations are well handled by the character and credit to the writers and director for resolving these with good morals. All of the major cast roles are well done.

Reese Witherspoon ("Elle") is the archetypal sorority success. Gorgeous, glamorous, clever and dating the most handsome man at her school "Warner" (Matthew Davis). Then, all of a sudden he decamps to law school and leaves his naturally blonde girlfriend behind. She's having none of that, follows him to Harvard determined to win him back from his new sweetheart "Vivian" (Selma Blair) and the battle is on. She goes from being queen of the castle to struggling girl with alarming speed, and as she comes to terms with her new status. she reappraises her sense of priorities - especially when she alights of simple old "Emmett" (Luke Wilson). Not remotely her type, or is he? Perhaps if I were American, I could get more from the "frat" culture that this is predicated on, but I'm not and so it just came across to me as a pushy girl used to getting her own way, having to deal with a few bumps in the road. There is comedy, but it is pretty puerile and one only hopes Harvard has since beefed up it's entrance exams. Witherspoon is good - she evokes well something I found detestable about the character she portrays; but I'm afraid I just found it all just a bit too predictable. By no means the worst from the spate of rom-coms that started off this new millennium, but that doesn't make it good either.