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Roman Holiday (Special Collector's Edition) Customer Reviews (1 - 3 of 50 Reviews)

The Romantic Tale of a Disconnected Princess
This is a story of a princess who is young to be performing the official duties of the Royal family but loves to experience the outside world. On the night of her visit to Rome, having disconnected from the real world for long, she slips away from her residence. During this little adventure she meets an American news reporter named Joe Bradley (Gregory Peck.) Audrey Hepburn offers great performance as a naïve young woman who wants to be a common person away from the pageantry she is used to. It is a sheer luck that Hepburn was cast for this role. After she auditioned for the movie, a brief chat with director William Wyler convinced him that she is the best for the job. No one has ever regretted this decision as Hepburn went on to win the Academy award. Hepburn is a natural, and remains at ease in her portrayal as a princess enjoying the real world. No wonder Academy awarded the biggest prize in Hollywood even though she was novice to a Hollywood film and this is her first movie. Originally Cary Grant was offered the lead role but casting Gregory Peck was not the best decision one could have made. Peck has made great movies but he does not shine in this film. Shooting of the film in and around Italy adds depth to the story of movie. The princess taking a ride with Bradley in a Vespa motor scooter is an iconic symbol of American cinema. Anyone who has seen the other movie of Hepburn; Breakfast at Tiffany's could see some similarities in the story of these two films as she play a free spirited woman who doesn't know what she really wants in life. The movie was written by a Hollywood Blacklisted author Dalton Trumbo who did not get credit in the original movie but the DVD released later gives credit he really deserves.

A great movie to "escape" to
I adore Audrey Hepburn, and this is definitely one of my favorites. It's for anyone who has a longing to "escape" the everyday just for awhile...just a fun story, charming characters, and a wonderful love story that makes you want to fly off to Rome.

A Hepburn Classic
Where do I begin with this movie? There are so many highlights that it's hard to list them all. Right off the heels of the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth the year before, the time was ripe for the public to be lured in to a movie about royalty. I for one gladly took the bait. This box office hit garnered Hepburn the Oscar for Best Actress on one of her earliest roles on screen. Her depth of character, sophistication, beauty and charm won over the masses.

Hepburn's character Princess Ann or "Anya" who is at her wits ends runs from her confining keepers and royal duties then ends up being taken care of by a down and out newspaper columnist (Joe) after the sedative that was given to her kicks in. Being the gentleman that he is (This has to be the 50's) he lets her sleep on his couch. That is until he realizes who she is after being chewed out for missing the interview with Princess Ann that was scheduled for that following morning. Joe rushes back to compare the photo with the real McCoy and thinks he can redeem himself with his boss with the Princess Ann exclusive. (the royal keepers opted to tell the press that the Princess wasn't feeling well instead of admitting she was missing) And so it begins.

The chemistry between Gregory (be still my heart) Peck and Hepburn is beyond magical. The distrust in Hepburn's eyes when she is first beginning to know "Joe" is inspired. So is the joy that registers on her face when she is experiencing the many "firsts" that the confinements of the Royal treatment would never allow her. Peck said that this is one of his favorite films because she was such a joy to work with. Knowing during filming that he was to get top billing moved him to very strongly recommend that Audrey get equal billing instead because her acting was that strong and charismatic. In one of the tour sequences when they are at the " Mouth of Truth" the adlibbed move by Peck prompts a real and totally unscripted reaction which only adds to the charm of the building relationship between Joe and Anya. Hepburn's hair becomes a small focal point that stirs up a huge trend in hairstyles for the ultra short cut that she gets part way into the film.

The whole feel of the movie is wonderful and exciting as she sees Rome as she never would have as Princess Ann. The non Fairy-tale ending is wonderful. Another Wilder classic at it's best.

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