# Genuine Ugly Duckling Transformations in Movies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 3, 2005, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221 "2005-11-03T01:39:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bubastis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d07c76/32.png) [@bubastis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bubastis)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/1 "2005-11-03T01:39:48Z")
Not in the “She’s all That”, beautiful girl-wearing-glasses style. That really boils me. can anyone suggest any movies where a really, truly plain looking girl is transformed into a beauty? Best I can suggest is Carrie. ---
**Author:** ![audiobottle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@audiobottle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audiobottle)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/2 "2005-11-03T01:48:06Z")
_The Princess Diaries_ actually manages to make the girl go from frumpy, not-a-second-glance, into a very attractive girl. Please don’t tell my friends I’ve seen it. Or that I rented it from Netflix. Or that I rented the second one too (which was not as good, mainly because of that stupid birthday party scene). ---
**Author:** ![monica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a183cd/32.png) [@monica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monica)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/3 "2005-11-03T02:10:16Z")
Didn’t Jawbreaker do that? ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/4 "2005-11-03T02:58:29Z")
> [@monica](#): > > Didn’t Jawbreaker do that? But that was Judy Greer, who was hot to begin with, just dressed sort of frumpy and acted mousy before her “makeover.” ---
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/5 "2005-11-03T03:00:39Z")
“Love Potion No. 9” was pretty effective as I recall with Sandra Bullock. ---
**Author:** ![Flander](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8c91f0/32.png) [@Flander](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flander)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/6 "2005-11-03T04:51:58Z")
I don’t have any have any examples relating to the OP, I just wanted to request, if possible, a before and after photo of any examples given. ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/7 "2005-11-03T05:41:47Z")
Although glasses did figure into it, I think that My Big Fat Greek Wedding had a real transformation of the heroine (mostly in the very beginning of the movie). ---
**Author:** ![panamajack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/47e85d/32.png) [@panamajack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panamajack)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/8 "2005-11-03T06:06:28Z")
Drew Barrymore did at least a halfway decent job of trying to look unattractive in _Never Been Kissed_ (I think that was it. She gets left at the door by her prom date or something.) ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/9 "2005-11-03T06:22:15Z")
The classic of the genre is _Now, Voyager_. Bette Davis goes from a plain neurotic wallflower to a vital attractive woman. Bette Davis was never a classic beauty but the transformation is quite good. Davis had another transformative role in _Pocketful of Miracles_, in which she goes from a blowsy drunken apple seller to looking like a Lady For A Day (which is the name of the original version of the story, with May Robson in the part). If one wanted to contort the definition beyond all reason, one could include Davis’s final film, _Wicked Stepmother_, in which her character magically transforms into Barbara Carrera. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Carter\_of\_Mars](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/2bfe46/32.png) [@John\_Carter\_of\_Mars](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Carter_of_Mars)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/10 "2005-11-03T06:32:19Z")
My all-time “most impressive” in this area is Talia Shire’s performance as Adrian in the first _Rocky_ movie. She starts off as a plain, shy and socially inept girl. By the movie’s end she is attractive, well dressed and confident. This aspect of _Rocky_ never gets much mention, but I think it’s one of the movie’s main accomplishments. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/11 "2005-11-03T06:35:16Z")
According to the MAD Magazine parody of _Love Story_, the sicker Ali McGraw’s character got, the more attractive she became. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/12 "2005-11-03T08:51:11Z")
I think Toni Collete in _Muriel’s Wedding_ certainly qualifies. **flander** , do your own Googling. ---
**Author:** ![Dan\_Norder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4af34b/32.png) [@Dan\_Norder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dan_Norder)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/13 "2005-11-03T10:41:58Z")
> [@monica](#): > > Didn’t Jawbreaker do that? One of the major reasons I didn’t like that movie is that the “after” in the before and after of that girl was just hideous. I couldn’t believe anyone would take that character seriously as a cool, attractive girl. ---
**Author:** ![Fortean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/96bed5/32.png) [@Fortean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fortean)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/14 "2005-11-03T10:49:18Z")
There’s also Maggie Gyllenhaal in Secretary. She goes from a cardie-hugging, shy introvert to a short-skirted, high heeled sex bomb – and all through the powers of S&M! ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/15 "2005-11-03T11:37:32Z")
I’ve always thought Jamie Lee Curtis’s brief transformation scene in _True Lies_ was very well done. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/16 "2005-11-03T11:57:54Z")
The 1995 movie [Sabrina](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114319/plotsummary) comes to mind. Actress [Julia Ormond](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000566/) at the start of the movie looks plain, wearing dresses and having really long hair, in a sweet but dull manner. I was a bit worried when I saw that, because I still feel pretty in dresses and long hair. Maybe I look like the before Julia pic without knowing. Our _ideas_ of pretty sometimes can overshadow what really suits us best. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/17 "2005-11-03T12:27:21Z")
Damn, **Otto** beat me to it. POCKETFUL OF MIRACLES is the most incredible character change imaginable, Davis is amazing. The whole movie, of course, is one of the most soppy-sweet things you can imagine. I love it. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/18 "2005-11-03T14:44:17Z")
**The Girl Most Likely To…** Stockard Channing plays an overweight, frumpy woman who has a disfiguring car accident, undergoes cosmetic surgery, and comes out of it a babe. She then sets out to get revenge on all the guys who mistreated her before. And it just came out on DVD about a month ago. ---
**Author:** ![Beadalin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@Beadalin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beadalin)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/19 "2005-11-03T14:50:10Z")
It might depend on what you think of her looks to begin with, but I thought Brittany Muprhy’s transformation/makeover in _Clueless_ was pretty dramatic. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2005, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221/20 "2005-11-03T15:12:36Z")
> [@Fortean](#): > > There’s also Maggie Gyllenhaal in Secretary. She goes from a cardie-hugging, shy introvert to a short-skirted, high heeled sex bomb – and all through the powers of S&M! My god, Yes! Even her scars were sexy! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/genuine-ugly-duckling-transformations-in-movies/329221.md?page=2)