Written by: Dominick at 10:25 pm
Filed under: Miscellaneous
Movie Info:
Writers: Billy Wilder, Samuel A. Taylor, Ernest Lehman
Director: Billy Wilder
Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Audrey Hepburn, William Holden, Walter Hampden, John Williams, Martha Hyer, Joan Vohs, Marcel Dalio, Marcel Hillaire, Nella Walker
Rating: Not Rated
Studio: Paramount Pictures
Release Info:
Theatrical Release: October 1954
DVD Release Date: November 11, 2008
Online Availability: Amazon for $16.49
Gone are the days of old Hollywood, when the movies were nearly as grand as the actors who performed in them. Luckily, we have DVDs to watch and re-watch these movies that reflect the exquisite performances in timeless, classic movies. One of these actresses is Audrey Hepburn.
I first saw Audrey in the movie, Charade. I love Cary Grant. He has to be at the top of my list of favorite actors. I found the pair to be exhilarating together and the film made me interested in Audrey, as an actress. From there, I watched My Fair Lady, The Children’s Hour, and Sabrina. Just looking at the array of titles I’ve listed above it’s interesting to consider how different these four movies are. The roles Audrey plays in these movies are so diverse, they really are capable of showing her range, as an actress.
I’m not big into romantic films, but I will give any classic a whirl. I’ll be honest. I liked Sabrina. The 1995 remake with Julia Ormond and Harrison Ford simply cannot hold a candle to the original. It’s hard to beat any Billy Wilder movie, let alone one that stars Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart, and William Holden.
The second of Wilder’s films to be released on November 11, 2008, in the Centennial Collection (Sunset Boulevard is the first), if you want to see a true romantic classic, Sabrina is the film to own. If you don’t know anything about Billy Wilder, you should at least know the name of many of the films he’s directed and/or wrote.
Wilder’s name has been associated with Some Like it Hot, Double Indemnity, Irma la Douce, Casino Royale, The Bishop’s Wife and several other films you’ve heard of before. You can guarantee a good story with Billy Wilder involved in the project, and that’s just what Sabrina has to offer.
The Sabrina Plot
This is truly your typical romantic comedy story, but the excellent telling of the story and amazing performances by Bogart, Hepburn and Holden truly make Sabrina a movie gem. The movie is a standard story of a girl who is in love with a boy who is clearly out of her league, but things aren’t always so simple when it comes to Sabrina.
Sabrina Fairchild (Audrey Hepburn) is madly in love with David Larrabee (William Holden). The only problem is that Sabrina is the daughter of the Larrabee’s chauffeur. David is a wild playboy who has many women on his arm, so there is no time to notice Sabrina. The rest of the staff think Sabrina’s the ultimate catch and think David’s not worth it, merely because Sabrina is too good for him, but that doesn’t stop her yearning.
After Sabrina returns home, from attending culinary school in Paris, something about her is changed. Gone is the little girl with puppy eyes. She’s a sophisticated looking woman, and every man, even David, is noticing this. The only problem is that David is engaged to be married. His marriage is as much a marriage of convenience as it is companionship, but he still has that playboy blood in him.
Knowing it’s wrong, but unable to say no, due to her infatuation with him Sabrina is willing to let David lavish her with attention. Of course, this is unbeknownst to his fiancee. Someone who does know is David’s older brother, Linus (Humphrey Bogart), and he’s furious at what his brother is doing. He has to find a way to get him from ruining the marriage, and to get him away from Sabrina.
Linus is more concerned with business than anything. The marriage is a major business opportunity and merger that is going to be great for Linus and the rest of the Larrabee family. Sabrina’s very existence could ruin the deal, so he’ll stop at nothing to make sure David walks down that aisle, even if he doesn’t love the girl he is marrying.
To woo Sabrina away, Linus does the only thing he can think of, to do. He decides to woo her himself. Thus begins the feud between brothers to woo the fair Sabrina, a woman who would usually be off limits due to her social status. Sabrina is so irresistible, you won’t be able to stop watching until you hear what happens, at the end.
Storyline/Plot: 
Replayability:
Acting:
Directing:
Audio/Visual:
Like the other films in the Centennial Collection, Sabrina had the good fortune of being restored back in 2002. During this restoration process Sabrina was cleaned up a great bit. Still, there are differences in this version of the film that help it too look even more excellent than in the 2002 version. Minor improvements have been made to ensure for a tighter visual performance. The blacks are of a richer tone, the overall appearance is easier on the eyes, and things look remarkably well despite this being an older film.
The audio is the same as the audio on the previous release. If you have the 2002 release you won’t notice any differences in this. The audio is presented in Dolby Digital Mono in your choice of English, French, or Spanish. The effects sound good, the score works well, and the dialogue is generally easy to hear. It’s an older track and it shows in many ways. Still, for it’s age it isn’t that bad. For a mono track and the quality that is offered here, there isn’t too much to complain about.
Visual: 
Audio:
Bonus Features:
Sabrina includes a nice selection of featurettes and some basic special features. The basic features include production photos, publicity shots, movie stills, and premiere shots. One of the featurettes, “Paramount in the 50′s” is a standard on the new Centennial Collection films. This is all about the best films to come from Paramount in the 50s.
Other featurettes include “Audrey Hepburn: Fashion Icon,” which highlights Isaac Mizrahi and Cynthia Rowley. The designers all look at Hepburn and how she really managed to bring a new look to Hollywood in the 50s. “Sabrina’s World” is up next, looking at the Long Island area that was depicted in the film. If you are into high society you will definitely love this featurette.
“Supporting Sabrina” takes time to examine the character actors in the supporting cast. Each of them are given biographical sketches to make things more interesting. “William Holden: The Paramount Years” looks at the career of Holden through the eyes of family friends and associates. “Audrey Hepburn: In Her Own Words” sheds light on how Hepburn got involved with Sabrina. Finally, “Behind the Gates” looks at the cameras that were used at Paramount throughout the years.
Bonus Features: 
Bottom Line:
The kind of romantic story even the most masculine men can enjoy, Sabrina is a treasure of a film. If you like Audrey Hepburn (or even if you don’t, but who doesn’t?), Sabrina is one of her must see films. From the well written story, to the abundance of extras, you’ll find that this two-disc set will make the perfect holiday present for even the most discriminatory film fan. Sabrina, in The Centennial Collection, comes highly recommended.
Overall Rating:
Technorati Tags: Sabrina, The Centennial Collection, Audrey Hepburn, Paramount Pictures
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Written by Dominick - Visit Website
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Dominick Evans is in his late 20's. He spends his days working as a full time writer/editor and a part time musician/composer. His passions in life include music, directing films, watching movies, reading books, watching sports, wheelchair football, politics and spending time with his family (fiancée Ashtyn, son Robert, and shih-tzu Oliver). Other interests include being an advocate for the disability and GLBT communities.
