OSCAR WILD DAY 12: GIGI (1958)
If Jeffrey Epstein had a favorite Best Picture winner, it was probably this one. There is a hard ceiling for this film’s rating, and it almost feels wrong to call it adequate due to the subject matter. Despite the cringey plot, there is no denying that this film was made with an eye for style and flair, but that’s not enough to make modern audiences forget what’s so wrong with the story in the first place. Paris, 1900. Gaston Lachaille (Louis Jourdan), a wealthy 30-something playboy, finds himself bored with every aspect of his life except his occasional visits to the home of Madame Alvarez (Hermione Gingold) and her spirited young granddaughter Gigi (Leslie Caron). Gaston and Gigi have fun together in an older brother-younger sister kind of way, teasing each other to no end, but genuinely enjoying each other’s’ company. Gigi’s family hatches a plan to train her to become Gaston’s mistress- a family tradition of sorts. The plan goes awry, as Gigi and Gaston each find reasons to object,...
