Legally Blonde (2001)

Directed by Robert Luketic

10/10

The film Legally Blonde is based on a book of the same name, based on the author, Amanda Brown, and her experiences as a blonde in law school obsessed with fashion and beauty. I admittedly haven’t read the novel (nor did I even know there was one before today haha), but while campy and fun, the film sheds light on a woman being dismissed as dumb and shallow because of her interests without taking the person herself into account.

Legally Blonde follows Elle Woods, a blonde, hyper femme sorority girl majoring in fashion. At the start of the film, her boyfriend, Warner, breaks up with her, claiming that if he’s going to be a senator, he has to have a serious wife, one who is smart and, well, not blonde.

Elle decides that she can become the serious woman Warner wants and enrolls in Harvard law school alongside him. She is ridiculed for her flamboyantly girly fashion and personality, but eventually earns the trust of her class and even her enemies.

The movie comes to a head when Elle uses her knowledge of cosmetology to catch a witness on trial in a lie, winning the case and solidifying her place as both a serious woman, but also a girly girl. Warner tries to take her back, but Elle realizes her worth and refuses, leaving him to a life of no promise while she continues to be a successful lawyer after graduating.

The film was a massive success, making its budget back almost 8 times, and its easy to see why. Elle is a delightful woman with a bold sense of style, but the film makes sure the audience knows right away that she’s not just a pretty face. While shopping for the dress she’s going to wear to dinner with Warner, Elle successfully tears down a dishonest saleswoman, easily identifying the stitching and fabric of the out of season dress at a glance and calling her out on trying to sell it at full price.

Elle’s friends from her old school are the dumb bimbos everyone thinks she is, but they’re supportive of her, even though they don’t understand why Elle would want to go to law school. They even show up to her big trial, despite being clueless about what was going on. The girls in her sorority are also excited to help Elle, helping her study, grading her tests, and gathering around to see her read her acceptance letter. It’s incredibly nice to see women in media getting along and not being catty like a lot movies and shows do, especially from the early 2000s.

Okay, now that I’ve said that Elle is nice to all the other women she meets, I can hear people crying “But what about Vivian? Elle didn’t like Vivian for stealing her man!” First of all, you see there’s more text to this review, so calm down. Second, Elle does start out not liking her, but after they sit down and talk to each other and realize they don’t need to tear each other down all the time, they become friends. Even after Vivian pulled a prank on Elle, tricking her into dressing up as a slutty bunny for the Halloween party, Elle manages to put their differences aside and realize they need to stick together to make it.

One of my favorite plots in the film is Elle’s relationship with Paulette, the nail tech at a salon. She spills her problems about law school and Warner to her, and Paulette lends a listening ear, and in turn, Elle helps Paulette get her beloved dog back from her terrible ex husband using what little she’s learned so far. That scene is a turning point for Elle. She was unsure of herself, struggling to find footing on the landscape of law school, but seeing that she was capable of succeeding gave her the confidence boost she needed, which was incredibly sweet.

I also love that Elle’s knowledge of fashion and haircare won the case. Her realizing the pool boy is gay by his comments on her shoes and Emmett’s subsquent questioning is iconic, and the “and your boyfriend’s name is?” and subsequent outraged and flamboyant “You bitch!” line gets me every time. Not to mention the song from the Legally Blonde musical, “Gay or European?” which is just incredible. And the moment Elle realizes the witness’s testimony is false based on her knowledge of hair treatments belongs in a museum.

I like how the flim’s message isn’t the usual “girls can do anything boys can despite being girls” it’s “girls can do anything boys can because they’re girls.” Throughout the film, even in her lowest moments, Elle doesn’t try to be one of the boys by discarding her pink wardrobe or dying her hair darker. She embraces her feminitiy and it ends up being the nail in the coffin they needed for the case.

Legally Blonde absolutely deserves its staying power as both a girl power movie and a breakup movie. People legitimately feel for Elle and her struggles and love to cheer her on. That much is clear in the many adaptations of her story. It’s lighthearted and campy and fun, even with the touches of seriousness. Even if you don’t typically like romcoms, Legally Blonde is a must watch.

last update: 9.10.2025