Hepburn + Astaire = unhealthy relationship?

My friend of 70 years old is an arts teacher.

One of his female students felt passionately in love with him, and she is 18. He was trying to abstain from this, but eventially - after she's been chasing him for several months, he let it go on. To give a gentle hint, he is healthy enough to convey the relationship to the full extent.

The whole situation looks awkward, but I have to admit they've been quite fine together. There are indeed people that, despite their age, stay young for a long time. And, on the contrary, some of people get old in their thirties.

Gaelicguy, although this is not my favourite musical, I agree that it's a wonderful film which should be mandatory viewing.

It's a May / December romance, not an unhealthy relationship at all, although I do have to admit the romance between Jo and Dick didn't come across as the most compelling one I've ever seen. I'm quite a novice in the musicals department, however, and suspect you have to view romances differently in them than you do in a regular drama. I would agree that the "He Loves, She Loves" sequence is truly lovely.

I don't view Dick's remark as putting down Jo's intellect at all. It's a musical with a lot of numbers to include, so they can't take all day to make their point that Dick is justifiably suspicious of the professor's motives and is attracted to Jo himself. The comment is intended to quickly convey this idea in one line; viewers shouldn't take it too literally, IMO. Likewise, Dick's jealous scene doesn't mean that he's a possessive monster!

I don't think it was an unhealthy relationship. He could see what Prof Flaustre was really like & wanted to protect Jo - he didn't go about it the best way & it does seem a bit possessive, but he did it out of the best possible motive. As for the line about Flaustre having as much interest in her intellect as he did, I would like to think he was referring to their photographer/model relationship rather than a romantic attachment. I dig older man anyway! :)

Catriona x


"Fate shuffles the cards and we play" (Schopenhauer)

You're "inclined" to believe that because you don't WANT to like Astaire. Sorry to burst your bubble, but those people truly did admire the man, and people of the ballet world like Balanchine, Nureyev, Fonteyn, and Baryshnikov--what incentive did they have to praise Astaire other than to admire his dancing abilities? They weren't asked whether or not they liked Astaire, they went out of their way to pinpoint the man as a great dancer. You can't accuse Jerome Robbins of "extending a professional courtesy" when he created the ballet "I'm Old Fashioned" specifically dedicated to Astaire.

I've seen a vast range of Astaire's musicals and if your opinion is narrowed down to this one particular film, then you're not seeing a portion of Astaire's ingenuity. For starters, any dance critic will tell you that the dancing in this film is sub-par and the visual appeal of Funny Face is more notable than anything else. If you're going to hate him for something as superficial as the way he looks, then go ahead. If you're going to actually prove that he was not as great of a dancer that everyone says he was, go ahead--I would like to see you create an objective critique of one of his dances outside of this film. But don't try to turn things around and say I'm the idiot for falling for the "studio-system created mystique and fame."

By the way, Gene Kelly and Astaire were always on good terms with each other so don't try to hype up this so-called rivalry. They both had their individual styles of dancing, and I personally think Astaire had more range as a dancer, even though I admire both. When Kelly was injured, it was Astaire who stepped in for him in "Easter Parade" with Kelly's "enthusiastic approval" (quoted from John Mueller's bio Astaire Dancing). When Kelly chewed Debbie Reynold's out for her dancing during the filming of Singin' in the Rain, it was Astaire who found her crying and decided to help her with her steps.

Personally, I think you're just jealous that "old-fogey" Astaire had the opportunity to dance with the most beautiful women of the day (love goddess Rita Hayworth said the only films she could watch herself in over and over again were the ones she did wtih Fred), and that his career did not falter for a good number of decades.