Movie · 1982 · Music, Comedy, Romance · 2h 14m · PG · English
Curator score: 8.3/10 (53.7K ratings)
The disguise surprise comedy of the year!
Overview
A struggling female soprano finds work playing a male female impersonator, but it complicates her personal life.
Ratings
Curator score: 8.3/10
IMDb: 7.6/10
Letterboxd: 3.89/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 97%
Metacritic: 84
TMDB: 7.3/10
Director
Blake Edwards
Production
Peerford Ltd., Artista Management, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Cast
Julie Andrews, James Garner, Robert Preston, Lesley Ann Warren, Alex Karras, John Rhys-Davies, Graham Stark, Peter Arne, Herb Tanney, Michael Robbins, Norman Chancer, David Gant, Maria Charles, Malcolm Jamieson, John Cassady, Mike Tezcan, Christopher Good, Matyelok Gibbs, Jay Benedict, Olivier Pierre
Curator Review
Verdict
A charming, high-concept musical comedy with real star power, playful gender masquerade humor, and a surprisingly progressive edge for its era. Its appeal is strongest if you like polished old-Hollywood style, romantic farce, and campy wit, though some viewers may be put off by a few dated relationship beats.
Best for
fans of classic studio musicals with a modern queer reading
viewers who enjoy screwball romance and mistaken-identity plotting
people looking for a warm, witty, performance-driven comedy
audiences interested in early mainstream gender-play comedies
Skip if
you want a fully contemporary or politically clean treatment of gender identity
you dislike broad farce, slapstick, or theatrical plotting
you’re sensitive to older romantic dynamics that can feel dated
you prefer musicals with a heavier emotional or dramatic core
Overview
Victor/Victoria is one of those rare studio comedies that feels both elegantly old-fashioned and slyly ahead of its time. Blake Edwards builds the whole thing around a deliciously unstable premise, then lets Julie Andrews carry it with precision, warmth, and a beautifully controlled sense of mischief. The result is a film that plays like a champagne farce, but with a sharper awareness of performance, identity, and desire than its breezy surface first suggests.
Worth noting
What makes it endure is the chemistry of the ensemble and the confidence of the musical numbers. The film understands that glamour is a kind of costume, and that comedy often comes from people trying very hard to keep their stories straight. It’s playful, theatrical, and often very funny, with a strong sense of rhythm in both the dialogue and the staging.
Bottom line
That said, it’s not entirely seamless. A few elements, especially around the romantic resolution and some of the more intrusive comic bits, can feel dated or awkward by current standards. Even so, the movie’s charm is substantial, and its affection for outsiders, oddballs, and performers gives it an enduring appeal that still lands.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Tess (5★) · 1201 likes
- You know what I think?
- What?
- I think that the right woman could reform you.
- You know, I think the right woman could reform you, too.
Jasmine (4★) · 1139 likes
Fellas is it gay to love a woman pretending to be a man pretending to be a woman?
Ethan ☔️ · 826 likes
Ok but have we considered the possibility that Julie Andrews threw the first brick at stonewall? Because she just gave all the gays their rights.
Dino (4★) · 612 likes
*stands in doorway*
*pouts*
I’m horrrrnnnyyy!
mary (5★) · 468 likes
"how long have you been a homosexual?"
"how long have you been a soprano?''
1959 · Comedy, Romance, Crime · 2h 3m · NR · Curator 9.7/10 (658.9K ratings) · Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, MGM Plus, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
The essential cross-dressing comedy: fast, funny, and foundational for the gender-masquerade farce tradition.
1966 · Music, Comedy, Romance · 1h 37m · Curator 3.9/10 (18.8K ratings) · Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, MGM Plus, Philo, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
A brisk, old-school farce with mistaken identities, theatrical energy, and broad comic timing.
1996 · Comedy, Romance · 1h 59m · R · Curator 7.8/10 (359.1K ratings) · Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, Peacock Premium, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Peacock Premium Plus
Excluded by your do-not-recommend list, but it would otherwise be a direct tonal cousin.