The real reason ‘Pretty Woman’ makes Richard Gere uncomfortable: “A silly romantic comedy”
From Julia Roberts’ striking red dress to Roy Orbison’s catchy yet classy soundtrack, 1990’s Pretty Woman had all the ingredients for an iconic modern classic. The romantic comedy follows the story of Edward, a super-wealthy entrepreneur portrayed by Richard Gere, who hires Vivian, a sex worker, to escort him to social engagements.
It’s a difficult premise for a modern audience to fully buy, but there was a charm to the picture that was hard for audiences of the day to ignore. At the dawning of romantic comedy’s dominance over cinema, the picture became a cult classic as it followed the now-tried-and-tested theme. It is a tale as old as time, as the pair fall in love, platonic at first, and struggle to navigate the gulf between their disparate lives.
The film is positively glistening with iconic scenes that have been parodied countless times over the years as it lodges itself ever firmer as a string to the bow of ‘90s pop culture. The movie will undoubtedly endure as a classic of its time, but audiences have taken issue with some of its messages since its release.
Beyond Edward and Vivian’s breach of Californian prostitution laws, the story glamorises the lifestyle of greedy urban bankers. “Don’t worry if you can’t find a partner, kid. Study hard, become a banker, and you can buy yourself one,” is one particularly problematic message young audiences could glean from Pretty Woman.
The divide in status and the necessity to continuously address it within the picture is a troubling social chasm that simply wouldn’t fly today. It’s a continual plot point that feels all the more tired every time it is used, and the trope wasn’t lost on the cast.
As it happens, Richard Gere picked up on this while shooting the movie and was slightly uncomfortable with it. “People ask me about that movie, but I’ve forgotten it,” Gere told Australian Woman’s Day, comparing Pretty Woman to his then-new movie, Arbitrage. “That was a silly romantic comedy. This is a much more serious movie that has some real cause and effect.”
Gere continue to take aim at the power dynamic created by financial power: “It made those guys seem dashing, which was wrong,” Gere explained. “Thankfully, today, we are all more sceptical of those guys.” It’s a vibrant reminder of just how enamoured by the power of money society was at the turn of the 1990s.
“In the 1980s, relationships were all about status,” he added. “I would rather be loved than have money and all that other stuff. I know now that I would rather have something that is true, something that is based on real love.”
At least, one could argue Pretty Woman depicts Edward as a lonely baker, seemingly disillusioned with his position in the world. Perhaps a moral balance might have been attained if Vivian had inspired Edward to take on a less well-paid yet more enriching and philanthropic vocation.
