In some ways (in fact, in all ways) Higgins has an objectionable personality: rude, snobbish, impatient and even misogynistic, but somehow Rex Harrison pulls it all off and makes us like Higgins without betraying the character. As to romance, his song "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face" is an ode to the kind of love which sneaks up on you. Overall, this movie is romantic, but not too sentimental. It has just enough romance to be dramatically fulfilling, but it never becomes soppy or mawkish. The word "love" is never mentioned at all and the two leads never even kiss. The famous end sequence is perfect and does the movie justice; after all, a big happy bow tied around a perfect romance at the end would simply not fit with everything we have learn about the two protagonists.
From the outset, the movie, especially the cast, weaves an enchanting spell. But as the story unfolds, the viewer finds that there is serious material and a lesson in this story. The film questions our values of class, gender, love, roles in relationships, and self-worth. Any controversy over Hepburn vs. Julie Andrews for the part of Eliza is easily overlooked by perfection in almost everything, including costumes, lighting, and set direction. Yet, for all the character's and overall charm of this movie, you'll find yourself questioning your values at the end of it, and find that the answer is delivered with love, in a most beguiling story set in an naturally enchanting setting.
Generically, in an opera two lovers unite under doomed circumstances and are parted over-dramatically by a death, as seen in La Boheme and La Triviata. But like a music video, every singer, every dancer, every actor, every actress in Moulin Rouge was perfect. Not a single hair was out of place. In an era of excess, "modern musicals- depend on plots that give way to music. This means the actors do not create their characters but embody them.
