...do as the Romans do
Thursday, August 29, 2013
Yesterday, CineVerse took a detour to Italy via the delightful romantic comedy fantasy "Roman Holiday." Here's an outline of our major discussion points:
WHAT IS IT ABOUT ROMAN
HOLIDAY THAT KEEPS YOUR ATTENTION AND INTEREST?
· On the surface, it’s a rather lightweight romantic
comedy without extreme dramatic shifts or plot twists. However, it functions as
an interesting short-term romance story in which we’re pulled into the chemistry
between Ann and Joe and their individual characters. That’s a function of
strong actors who can command our attention not only with physical sex appeal
but with personality appeal on a more cerebral level.
· The story serves as an interesting Cinderella or
Pygmalion tale told in reverse, or for that matter, a partial adaptation of the
Prince and the Pauper. Even subconsciously, we can relate to it on a fairy tale
level.
· It’s European authenticity is refreshing for a Tinsel
Town movie shot in the early 1950s. Roman Holiday was reportedly the first
Hollywood film to be shot and processed completely in Italy. We don’t get the
fake process shots of stock footage of the streets of Italy in the background
or artificial sets and California backlots that are meant to substitute for
Italy. The film, therefore, satisfies as a holiday or vacation for the viewer,
too, in that we get to go sightseeing around a very sanitized and picturesque
Rome.
· Knowing that this was Audrey Hepburn’s screen debut—in
a part that earned her an Oscar for best actress—makes us pay special attention
to what must have allured audiences in the early 1950s: she’s a waifish pixie,
cute as a button and possessed of tomboy traits but utterly feminine, who
exudes a chic charisma and sense of fashion.
· The film is also a great example of a showcase for the
writing talents of a blacklisted screenwriter, in this case Dalton Trumbo, who
nobody would hire after he refused to name names during the HUAC witch hunts
for supposed communists in Hollywood. Trumbo had to use a front for this
picture, although Paramount later added his name to the credits once the witch
hunting era was long over.
WHAT MESSAGES AND THEMES
ARE PROPOSED BY THIS FILM?
· Is it possible to carry on a sincere love affair when
a man and a woman operate under false pretenses and are dishonest with each
other?
· For women who dream of becoming princesses, be careful
what you wish for: it’s possible for princesses to dream about becoming regular
women.
· There’s no such thing as a perfect romance or ideal
love affair: it’s fun to fantasize about the possibilities, but the reality is
that love in this context rarely happens. Consider the ending of the film as
proof of this.
OTHER MOVIES THAT ARE
SIMILAR TO ROMAN HOLIDAY
· Princess O’Rourke, starring Olivia de Havilland, in
which a princess falls for an ordinary American Joe
· Ace in the Hole, Billy Wilder’s acerbic study of a
reporter with a scoop who abuses his journalistic privileges for personal gain
· Notting Hill
· Chasing Liberty
OTHER FILMS BY WILLIAM
WYLER
· Dodsworth
· Wuthering Heights
· Mrs. Miniver
· The Best Years of Our Lives
· Ben-Hur
· Funny Girl