What You Want

[ELLE, spoken]
Wait a sec! This is the kind of girl Warner wants
Someone serious
Someone lawyerly
Someone who wears black when nobody's dead!
Girls, I have a completely brilliant plan!

(sung)
What you want, Warner, what you want is me
But you need to see me in a brand new domain
Well it's plain, Warner, in a different setting
You will see you're getting all of this, plus a brain!
I'll meet you there at Harvard with a book in my hand
Big sturdy book, big wordy book
Full of words I'll understand
And right there is where you'll see it too
Warner, what you want is right in front of you

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
What you want

[ELLE]
It's clear

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
What you want

[ELLE]
Right here

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
What you want

[ELLE/MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
Is right in front of you, front of you

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
What you want

[ELLE]
It's clear

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
What you want

[ELLE]
Right here

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
What you want

[ELLE/MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
Is right in front of you, front of you

[ELLE]
Step one, he's off to Harvard Law
So I get in there, too

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR, spoken]
Step two!

[ELLE]
Make Warner reassess
Impress him with my high IQ

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR, spoken]
Step three!

[ELLE]
We throw a great big wedding

[ELLE/MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
And invite all Delta Nu!

[KATE, spoken]
That's great, nice plan
Now, can we think this through?
Harvard Law School?

[ELLE, spoken]
I have a 4.0 average

[KATE, spoken]
Yeah, in Fashion Merchandising
What makes you think you can do this?

[ELLE]
Love! I'm doing this for love
And love will see me through
Yes, with love on my side, I can't lose
And Harvard can't refuse
A love so pure and true
Don't lawyers feel love too?

[KATE, spoken]
Even if they do

(sung)
What you want, sweetheart, is no easy thing
If you're going to swing it, it will wreck your senior spring
Yeah, it's true
First, you'll need an LSAT score of more than one seventy-four
So, no more parties for you
You'll need a killer essay or do not even hope
And glowing letters from your betters
Any chance you know the pope?

[ELLE, spoken]
Uh, nope

[KATE]
Too bad, 'cause that would be a coup
And you've got a lot of work in front of you

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
What you want

[ELLE]
Yes, I know

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
What you want

[ELLE]
Even so

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
What you want

[ELLE/MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
Is right in front of you, front of you

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
What you want

(spoken)
Girl, you go!

(sung)
What you want

[KATE, spoken]
No, really! Go

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
What you want

[ELLE/MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
Is right in front of you, front of you

[FATHER, spoken]
Law school?

[ELLE, spoken]
Yes, Daddy, law school

[FATHER, spoken]
Good God, why? Law school is for boring, ugly, serious people!
And you, Button, are none of those things

(sung)
What you want, Button, hey, you just say the word
But what you want's absurd!
And costs a whole lot of swag
And hell, why, Button, when you can stay right here?
Pursue a film career

[MOTHER, spoken]
How 'bout a nice Birkin bag?

[FATHER]
Yes, the east coast is foreign, there's no film studios
It's cold and dark, no valet parking

(spoken)
All the girls have different noses!
Christ, Button!

(sung)
It's like the damned frontier!

[FATHER AND MOTHER]
Tell me, what's out there that you can't get right here?

[ELLE, spoken]
Guys, love!

[FATHER AND MOTHER, spoken]
Love?

[ELLE]
I'm going there for love

[FATHER AND MOTHER, spoken]
Love, love

[ELLE (MOTHER/FATHER)]
A love I have to win (Ah)
I can live without sun or valet
I can't just walk away
Betray what might have been

[FATHER]
Fine, okay, I'll pay your way if you get in

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
What you want

[FATHER AND MOTHER]
Make the grade

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
What you want

[FATHER AND MOTHER]
And it's paid

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
What you want

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR/MOTHER/FATHER]
Is right in front of you, front of you

[MARGOT, spoken]
Hey everybody, it's the spring fling beer bash extreme!

[FRAT GUYS, spoken]
Extreme!

[KATE, spoken]
Not for you. Time to study. Go!

[MARGOT, spoken]
This year's theme: Jamaican me crazy!

[FRAT GUYS, spoken]
Oh!

[GRANDMASTER CHAD]
What you want, you wanna be out because the sun she warm?
What you want, you wanna be study, stuck inside your dorm?
What you want, you wanna be party with us all night long?
What you want, you wanna be strong?

[SERENA/PILAR, spoken]
Be strong!

[FRAT GUYS]
Whoa-oh

[KATE, spoken]
One thirty-four, not good enough
Try again. Go!

[GRANDMASTER CHAD, sung]
What you want, you wanna be groovin', bumpin' shake da room?
What you want, you wanna be provin' somethin' and to whom?
What you want, you wanna be wonderin' where your youth is gone?
What you want, you wanna hold on?

[ELLE, spoken]
Hold on!

[FRAT GUYS]
Whoa-oh

[KATE, spoken]
One fifty-one, still not Harvard material
Once again. Go!

[ELLE (GRANDMASTER CHAD)]
Love, I'm doing this for love (What you want, you wanna be breathin' in the healthy air?)
And that's how I'll survive (What you want, you wanna be chasin' him and he don't care?)
(What you want, you wanna ignore the pity in their looks?)
Here you go, I said no, go away (What you want, you wanna say, "Sorry, gotta hit me books"?)
Right here is where I'll stay (What you want, you wanna sittin' like a lonely child?)
Until that happy day (What you want, you wanna be drivin' all the fellas wild?)
(What you want, you wanna be feelin' good to be alive?)
That day I hear them say—

[KATE]
One seventy-five!

[COMPANY]
One seventy-five!

[ELLE, spoken]
One seventy-five?

[COMPANY]
One seventy-five, one seventy-five!

[WINTHROP, spoken]
So, gentlemen
Harvard Law grants admission to Adam Cohen and Sundeep Padamadan

[LOWELL, spoken]
Outstanding

[WINTHROP, spoken]
And now, Ms. Elle Woods
Who was kind enough to send in a headshot

[LOWELL, spoken]
We should admit her, for reasons of, um...

[PFORZHEIMER, spoken]
Multiculturalism!

[LOWELL, spoken]
Multiculturalism

[WINTHROP, spoken]
Oh gentlemen, please! Get a hold of yourselves
Oh, look at that! Oh, what a shame
She didn't bother sending in a personal essay

[PILAR, spoken]
How's this for a personal essay?

[ENSEMBLE]
What you want

[LOWELL, spoken]
Goodness me!

[ENSEMBLE]
What you want

[WINTHROP, spoken]
Security!

[ENSEMBLE]
What you want is right in—

[WINTHROP, spoken]
Who are you?

[ELLE]
I'm what you want! Harvard, I'm the girl for you

[ELLE & ENSEMBLE]
And to prove it's true

[ELLE]
We all flew here on Jet Blue

[ELLE & ENSEMBLE, spoken]
Thank you!

[JET BLUE PILOT, spoken]
Thank you!

[ENSEMBLE]
This is what Elle Woods inspires
Everyone admires her
And Harvard should too

[WINTHROP, spoken]
This is not a personal essay!

[ELLE & ENSEMBLE]
Nope! An essay's so boring and so much does not fit
So we're appearing live, right here
Making clear you must admit
That Elle Woods should join the chosen few
Harvard, what you want is right in front of—

[ELLE]
May I approach?

[ENSEMBLE]
Uh-huh!
Oh, yeah!
Go Elle!
Ho!

[WINTHROP, spoken]
Now see here, Ms. Woods!
You can't just barge in here with singing and dancing and ethnic movement
This is a very flashy presentation, but I still don't see one reason to admit you

[ELLE]
How about love?
You ever been in love?
'Cause if you have, you'll know
That love never accepts a defeat
No challenge it can't meet
No place it cannot go
Don't say no to a woman in love
Don't laugh when I say love
Don't think that I'm naïve
Because even a person who's smart
Can listen to their heart
Can listen and believe
So believe in what love can achieve
Do you believe?

[PFORZHEIMER, spoken]
I do!

[ELLE]
Do you believe?

[LOWELL, spoken]
Me too!

[ELLE & ENSEMBLE]
Yes, we believe in love, how 'bout you?

[WINTRHOP, spoken]
...Welcome to Harvard!

[ENSEMBLE]
What you want

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
Now we're set!

[ENSEMBLE]
What you want

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
Let's go get!

[ENSEMBLE]
What you want is right in front of you, front of you
What you want

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
Now we're done!

[ENSEMBLE]
What you want

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]
With step one!

[ALL]
What you want is right in front of you, front of you
What you want, what you want, what you want
What you want!