Review of Days of Wine and Roses (1963) by Richard S — 11 Jan 2008

Jack lemmon departs his patterned comedian style to explore another field of serious acting as a thespian in the sentimentalized "days of wine and roses" with debutante starlet lee remick who also offers a excellent tragic performance as hopless alcoholic.

The plot goes melodramatic: lemmon is public relation man who cannot refuse to take another drink. remick plays a office lady with indulgence on chocolate that is the typical psychological symptom of potential alcoholic, the infantile fixation on oral pleasure, and her insecure helplessness reflects upon her distant connection with her father, and in one occasion she even dismisses him as demised. the whole flick is like a demonstrative illustration on freud's analysis on alcoholism, and the character traits of drunks. and remick's case represents the perspective that one in lack of paternal intimacy would seek the original solace of oral pleasure which turns into future addiction. and lemmon's case is on the sense of instability of people-pleaser who lives with an obligatory compulsion to comply others that leads the inclination of subconcious dilapidation thru booze which also gratifies a wish to retrack back into adolescence. see the scenario that they shelter in the father-in-law's house then sneak for liquor, and lemmon even desolates the green house for the momentary impulse to obtain a jar of liquor while remick vies for daddy's attention with her own daughter. and later remick's crave for booze companion exemplifies her incapability to handle adulthood solitude.

Except the acting from lemmon and remick, this flick is a preachy melodrama based on the dated theory of freud. but the symbolism of remick's mental vulnerability is saddeningly lyrical. as she decribes that life without the narcotics is like the close sight of near sea shore, vile and ugly. life under the hypnotization of binge is like the farther horizon of ocean, enigmaticly fair as mirage.

"days of wine and roses" is heart-wrenchingly sympathetic with its characters' depressed futility on love and life as a whole. an usual piece from director blake edwards who made his fame on audrey hepburn's "breakfast at tiffany's"...and henry mencini as the music score with catchy bewailing theme on the good times which has fleed away forever.