Review of Roman Holiday (1953) by Jonathan B — 06 Jul 2012
Roman Holiday marked Aubrey Hepburn's first starring role, as well as her first Oscar nomination of five and sole win, and was ranked AFI's no. 4 romantic comedy of all time. Hepburn is as adorable here as she would be the rest of her career, and while I wouldn't call her performance exactly Oscar worthy, at least by today's standards, it isn't difficult to see how the entire planet would become so smitten with her.
My complaints with Roman Holiday have little to do with Hepburn, rather more so with the directing and her costar. Now I love Gregory Peck as much as the next guy, but he feels miscast and I never entirely bought his character's arc, especially the romance stuff.
They have a decent enough chemistry, but I wouldn't describe it as from the classic mold. The directing I also feel lacks energy and is much too leisurely for a romantic comedy, even for one depicting a "holiday" in Rome.
It's no surprise the guy who directed the borefest Ben Hur was behind this as well. The plot is as by the books as these things go, but it throws a slight wrinkle in towards the end and the bittersweet ending is a strong touch.
Roman Holiday is a perfectly likeable and charming film, albeit one I feel is a bit overrated and one Hepburn would surpass a year later with the more well-rounded Sabrina.
This review of Roman Holiday (1953) was written by Jonathan B on 06 Jul 2012.
Roman Holiday has generally received very positive reviews.
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