Matrixston Wow! Such a good movie.

NekoHomey Purely Joyful Movie!

Merolliv I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

BelSports This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

ironhorse_iv What a delightful captivating classic, this movie is! Without spoiling the movie directed by William Wyler, too much, based on what's seen; it really did seem like screenwriter, Dalton Trumbo really did hate the tradition fairy tale. Why? It's because, he felt that stories like that, were preventing women from experiencing & understanding the real world. So, he wrote real-world, Cinderella-like story in reverse with powerful people wanting the more simple-common life. Shot entirely on location in Rome, Italy, the film follows the story of a loyal duty regimented, sheltered, princess, Ann (Audrey Hepburn), abandoning her duties for 24/7 for a chance to check out the city, with a not-so-mild-mannered reporter Joe Bradley (Gregory Peck), while hiding under a student-like alias from those, looking for her. While, on the surface level, it seems that this concept is unique & ground-breaking; but if you peel back, the nostalgia goggles & see the movie's script as it is. The story from Trumbo isn't anything new. Theater productions have been using the concept of royal incognito as a source of comedy, since the days of Mark Twain, William Shakespeare, and even Ancient Greek. Don't get me wrong, Trumbo is a fine screenwriter; and seeing him, deny work, due to the Hollywood blacklist of the 1950s, was a shame, but I don't find, this story to be one of his greatest work. Even the original script set in America with the English princess didn't stand out. It was mediocre enough to sit on the shelf for years, until Paramount Pictures greenlight the project, in order to capitalize on recent real-life event where, Princess Margaret of United Kingdom had a belief relationship with commoner, Peter Townsend. The preproduction was horrible for Trumbo, as it came with lot of rewrites, as the original director, Frank Capra back out, with Wyler coming in, with a demand to set the film, overseas, with Paramount choosing Italy, as the location, due to assets being frozen, there. Added to that pressure, is the fact that the British Government didn't want any mention of their government in the film. Because of the rewrites, Trumbo had to use his friend, Ian McLellan Hunter, as a straw man, in order to meet the demand, while also keeping himself out of the radar from the House Un-American Activities Committee. Due to the pressures, the new script seem delivered in a rushed, yet messy matter. It had a lot of setbacks: mostly when it comes to Ann's true motives for her want for individual freedom. It doesn't make sense for her character to want to trade in, her demanding job as a royal ambassador for a life as a domestic wife. It comes across as very jarring & awkward. Look, I know, it's the standards of 1950s, to pressure young women to get marry, ASAP; but wouldn't the movie work, better, if she wanted to live life without any sense of limitative and boundaries!? You know, to be single, for a while! This movie could had really spark women's interest, more, if it took a more liberation approach. Another thing, wrong about this movie is the climax. Don't get me wrong, I like the bittersweet subliminal nature of it, but I never got how class difference would have prevented either from carrying their relationship further. It's not like she was the highest position in her country's government, nor did it seem, like her country was in the middle of a crisis. Even so, she could had abdicated, if she wanted to. It's not uncommon. So why the unhappy ending!? It seem a little forced. Films like 1927's silent film 'Student Prince of Heidelberg' & 1996's 'The Lion King' did the coming to age-royal concept return, better. In short, it should had, the 1934's screwball comedy, "It Happen One Night' style of an ending. Regardless of that, the film does beautifully hints at the power of memory (symbolized by the photographs Irving gives to the princess), of past experiences to continually affect one's life. I just wish, the movie could had been in color; rather than black & white to make that message, even more powerful. Nevertheless, the film made great use of the locations, even with budget cuts. Sites like the Mouth of Truth & Trevi Fountain are little more iconic now, because of this film. Even, products like the Vespa scooter got a surge in popularity after the film was released. It's all thanks to the skillful, distinguished, professional and eminent work from Wyler & his location crew. Not only that, but studio works, like the music by composers, Georges Auric & Victor Young were also great. Very memorable; but what takes the cake, is the acting performances. While, Peck sounds an overbearing depress father with thundering voice at times; due to his recent separation from his first wife. He was fine for the film, but a part of me, really wanted, Wyler's original choice, Cary Grant in the role. He was a bit questionable as the romantic lead. Nevertheless, it's Aubrey Hepburn who really shines. Thank goodness, Wyler pick her over Elizabeth Taylor for this role. I would hate to see the Princess portray as a spoiled heiress. The fact that Hepburn was basically an unknown actress, whom done small films, before this, heightened the story's plot. Her child-like naiveté and unvarnished innocent-like appearance, really match well with Peck, despite the huge age different. Peck was so satisfy with Hepburn's performance that he suggested Wyler that she get equal billing; which was almost unheard-of gesture for women in Hollywood, at the time. As for Hepburn's Oscar win for Best Actress. It's up in the air, as personally I found the other performances from the other ladies, a little more captivating. Nevertheless, I was really surprise, how many Academy Award nominations, this film got. 3 wins out of ten nominations is pretty damn good. Overall: 'Roman Holiday' remains an unabashed classic for good reasons. It's a must watch. So check it out!

Bella Roman Holiday (1953) is a Romantic Comedy starring Audrey Hepburn as Princess Ann and Gregory Peck as Joe Bradley. Princess Ann seems to have it all- She's beautiful, she's rich, she's classy, and everybody loves her, but inside she feels that something is missing. Princess Ann is sheltered and she wishes that there were more to her life. She runs away from her guardians and falls in love with an American newsman in Rome. The best things about Roman Holiday are the acting of Audrey Hepburn, the overall mood of the film, and the chemistry between the leads.Princess Ann is stunning and perfect. Audrey Hepburn is perfect in every film so it is no surprise that she is lovely here as well. As you are watching this film you will no doubt relate to how she is feeling inside. She has grown up now and she wants to experience the world- the simple things in life that most people experience. She doesn't want to have to be classy all of the time and keep up an act. Her part is very believable and will have you rooting for her to find love.Roman Holiday is the ultimate chick flick because it is a classic romantic comedy. Like most romantic comedies, Roman Holiday combines an interesting couple with great chemistry and unique personality traits with hilarious situational comedy. The conflicts are generally light and entertaining when done well, making it perfect for a Girl's Night In. The way that the two main leads meet is very funny. She was drunk and laying outside. When Princess Ann meets Joe Bradley, you can instantly tell that he is going to be a love interest of her's because of the chemistry between them. He examines her behaviour and makes observations. He takes her to her house in a taxi cab and continuously makes jokes. The whole scene is hilarious and lighthearted and sweet and it will have you hoping that they will get together. Princess Ann is too drunk to speak and Joe Bradley takes her to his house instead. Both Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck do a good job at acting in love in the movie and they are a great looking couple. Overall, Roman Holiday is a great classic film that I would recommend to anyone who loves watching old movies. Audrey Hepburn is only 22. She looks much older as she has perfectly formed features, is tall and commands the room. She is always classy in everything she does. Even laying drunk in the street, she looks like a goddess. This movie is spectacular even though the plot is simple. It is hilarious. I love the part where Joe Bradley tries to convince his boss that he actually went to interview the princess when he had not. Overall, the acting of Audrey Hepburn, the overall mood of the movie, and the chemistry and believably of the main leads make this an excellent timeless classic movie to watch.

jacobs-greenwood Roman Holiday (1953) was filmed on location in Rome, Italy and, per TCM's host, was shot in black-and-white vs. Technicolor for budgetary reasons. Accordingly, since Gregory Peck had already been hired to play an uncharacteristically light (for him) Cary Grant- like role as the male lead, his romantic counterpart would have to be played by a relative unknown (e.g. someone producer-director William Wyler could get cheaply).Enter Miss Audrey Hepburn, who had appeared in barely (or should that be "barely appeared in") a handful of movies since her debut in 1951. But despite her short resume, the actress so impressed her co- star during the course of filming this one that Peck convinced Wyler to put her name above the title with his. Subsequently, the Academy endorsed the actor's assessment when they awarded Hepburn the Best Actress Oscar for her performance.She would go on to earn four more Best Actress nominations, among them the title role opposite Humphrey Bogart and William Holden in Billy Wilder's Sabrina (1954) the following year and as the iconic Holly Golightly (opposite George Peppard) in Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), though Hepburn failed to earn a nomination for perhaps her most famous part as Eliza Doolittle in the Warner Bros. musical (adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's play Pygmalion) My Fair Lady (1964). She was later voted the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award (e.g. for her work with UNICEF etc.).Hepburn's unique, regal beauty made her perfect for the role of Princess Ann in Roman Holiday (1953). The story opens with the young princess at the end of an exhausting, repetitious "public relations" tour of Europe. Having been sheltered all her life, she's quite naturally bored. She'd love to find excitement given her present routine, which is so mundane that a simple faux pas (such as her losing track of a high-heeled shoe before dancing with a head-of- state) causes a stir. Tired of it all, Princess Ann becomes tearfully hysterical at bedtime while going over the next day's agenda with her secretary.Borrowing a plot device from director Norman Krasna's Academy Award winning Original Screenplay for Princess O'Rourke (1943), blacklisted writer Dalton Trumbo and screenwriters Ian McLellan Hunter and John Dighton utilized a hypodermic administered sedative (in lieu of too many sleeping pills) to handicap their princess in this one. But that's not where the similarities end: as Krasna did with his title character (played by Olivia de Havilland), once she's out of her protective custody environment, the seemingly inebriated princess falls into the hands of the unawares male protagonist who, fortunately, is chivalrous instead of lecherous, and the romance part of the comedy begins. From there the plots of these two movies diverge - Robert Cummings is a pilot and the conflict is a familiar commoner-that-wants-to-marry-into-royalty routine whereas Peck plays newspaper reporter Joe Bradley who, after learning the identity of the sleeping beauty that just spent the night in his apartment is Princess Ann, fully intends to exploit the situation by selling her exclusive story to his publisher for $5,000 (he doesn't let on that he knows who she is; the princess says her name is Anya and cuts her hair to keep from being recognized in public) - but the end of Roman Holiday (1953) is remarkably similar to a famous romance drama classic.Princess Ann's whirlwind twenty-four hour vacation in Rome includes Hepburn's spontaneous reaction to Peck's appearing to lose his hand in the Mouth of Truth and several other slapstick sequences: Joe interrupting his photographer friend Irving Radovich (Eddie Albert's first Oscar nominated Supporting Actor role) to keep him from spilling the beans (e.g. that they know her identity) on several occasions, a harrowing ride on a motorbike through several street vendors such that the three of them end up appearing before a local police chief, and a comedic brawl at an open air nightclub where the princess's countrymen find her (and try to compel her to return with them). She and Joe escape via a canal (my daughter laughed out loud when the princess grabbed her nose and jumped into the water), swimming to the other side, which is (at the very least) a more original way to get the two leads wet for their first kiss than the more stereotypical rainstorm, right? But alas, even though they've fallen in love, it's an impossible situation, so it must end.In a twist on Casablanca (1942), it's her (the princess), not him, with a sense of duty that stops the romance in its tracks ... but they'll always have Rome. Upon her return to the embassy, it's clear that she's matured quite a bit (after just one day on the outside) as she alters the bedtime ritual. But he too is noble and later - when they meet again while back in their respective roles, and Princess Ann learns that Joe is a reporter - he conveys that her secrets are safe with him (e.g. he isn't going to write about their exploits together, despite his need for the money), and then Irving gives the princess the pictures he'd surreptitiously taken as mementos of her holiday.Like Grant before him, Peck's understated performance in this romantic comedy went unrecognized in a year in which actors in two different war movies, and two others featuring Romans, were instead. Edith Head won her fourth of eight Academy Awards (from 34 nominations) for her B&W Costume Design (love those striped pajamas!), and Trumbo's widow was eventually presented the Oscar for his Motion Picture Story, which was originally given to Hunter, who'd fronted for the blacklisted writer.The film was also nominated for Best Picture, as was director Wyler, the aforementioned screenplay writers, editor Robert Swink, its B&W Art Direction-Set Decoration & Cinematography. Plus, it was added to the National Film Registry in 1999. At least AFI voters did recognize it as the fourth best love story of all time.

SimonJack "Presenting Gregory Peck … and introducing Audrey Hepburn." So the introductory credits read as the story begins in "Roman Holiday." Although she had been around pictures for four years, Hepburn was a virtually unknown actress at the time. That may have had something to do with her getting the lead role. Produce/director William Wyler insisted that the film be shot on location in Rome. So, its budget was cut, which meant it would be shot in black and white and they couldn't afford a big name actress. So, Hepburn got the role of Princess Ann and it turned out to be her breakout role to silver screen stardom. This was Hepburn's first lead role; and with it, she stormed Hollywood and took the top female honors at the Academy Awards for 1953. She was the third youngest female star at the time to win a best actress Oscar. From then on, she would never appear as less than the lead female in any of her movies until the very last one, late in her career. And, only two male stars would ever again be billed ahead of her – Humphrey Bogart in "Sabrina" of 1954 and Gary Cooper in "Love in the Afternoon" of 1957.The cinema world – movie fans and movie makers, fell in love with Audrey Hepburn in this film. It was a love affair that would last to the end of her career and early death in 1993 from cancer. She was just 63 years old. Hepburn's appeal, besides her talent, was a picture of innocence and wholesomeness that contrasted sharply with the frequent Hollywood fare and promotion of sexual temptresses. Hers was a love of respect, admiration and warmth. She didn't make many movies in her career – just 33. Many of the best actresses have small portfolios. They could pick and choose the good roles and films they would like to be in, rather than take anything that came along just to be working, to make a buck or to keep one's face in front of the public. Gregory Peck was at the height of his career at age 37. He plays American newspaper reporter Joe Bradley who is working in Rome. Hepburn is the Princess of some unknown country. This is her story, about a young previously sheltered princess who has her first experiences out from under the safety and control of a royal umbrella. Fortunately for her, when she sneaks out of her royal lodgings after being given a shot to help her sleep, she runs into Bradley. This is a warmly funny and entertaining film, with Eddie Albert as photographer Irving Radovich being the butt of many of the laughs. At the time, Rome was just becoming a popular setting for Hollywood films. The credits point out that the movie was entirely filmed and recorded in Rome. A nice plus of this film is the scenery around the eternal city. A newsreel used early in the film shows a military parade in Rome that includes the Bersaglieri regiment and one of its fanfara. The Bersaglieri fanfara is an all-brass band that performs on the run in military parades. This is the only movie I know of in which one of these bands is shown. "Roman Holiday" is a delightful comedy romance that the whole family should enjoy.