“Be curious, not judgmental.” ~ Walt Whitman
Legally Blonde (2001) is a seemingly fluffy movie about Elle Woods a Fashion Marketing major, who expects her longtime boyfriend, Warner, to ask her to marry him just as they are about to graduate. She’s the president of her sorority and extremely popular with her friends. They are all supporting for her.
But when they get to the restaurant, it becomes clear he has other plans. He explains that he’s been thinking about his future. He’s going to enter Harvard Law School in the fall and just as she is expecting a proposal, Warner tells her he’s breaking up with her. They’ve had fun but he needs someone serious who can help him with his law practice and then his political career. Elle begins to cry loud enough for the other patrons to hear.
Elle says, “You’re breaking up with me because I’m too … blonde?”
Warner, “Well, no. That’s not entirely true …”
Elle, “Then what? My boobs are too big?”
By now almost everyone in the restaurant has heard the argument. Elle gets up and leaves offended that he doesn’t think she’s smart enough. For awhile, she’s heart broken, but when her friends take her for a spa day to cheer her up, she sees a photo of Warner’s older brother in a fashion magazine with his decidedly unattractive fiancée and she is inspired to follow Warner to Harvard and enter Law School herself so she can win Warner back.
She studies hard for the LSATs and when she gets her results back, she’s earned a 179 out of 180 which is the top score. She sends off her video essay, transcripts, and LSAT score. Since the admission committee is made up of men, and Elle is wearing revealing clothing in her video essay, they agree to admit her. In a way they can’t refuse because of her extremely high test score.
The problem when she gets to Harvard is that she’s a fish out of water. She looks like a California model instead of a serious law student. Because of this everyone assumes she’s an airhead. On top of that, it turns out that Warner has become engaged to a fellow law student, Vivian. And Vivian displays her jealousy by being rude whenever she can. Elle is excluded from all of the study groups. But she doesn’t let that stop her. By the end she has proven herself to be quite intelligent shattering all the stereotypes everyone thought about her.
Maybe it’s human nature to try to categorize people, but this movie shows that appearances can be deceiving. By the end of the movie, Elle is graduating at the head of her class. Poor Warner is at the bottom and has lost Vivian to boot.
If you’ve never seen Legally Blonde, I recommend you check it out. It’s fun and has some great lessons to share. Elle is accepting of everyone, which eventually wins her friends. This movie could be considered to be a precursor to Barbie (2023).
Here is my discussion about the movie with my sister, Celeste. Come join us on YouTube and our Facebook Group. We’d love to hear your thoughts.
Sage Woman Chronicles 