Sabrina

Rating:
Summary: The very rich are no different from you and me.
Review: The 1995 SABRINA was marketed as a remake of the 1954 Audrey Hepburn-Humphrey Bogart-William Holden film--adapted, of course, to modern sensibilities but not necessarily "improved." I'll confine my remarks to those parameters.

Can you have a "Cinderella story" in a democracy? The original fairy tale and film were set in a world of strictly defined class and gender roles which the protagonists struggled to transcend. There is no snobbery in the world of the 1995 Larrabees--the fuddy-duddy senior Larrabee has been conveniently dispatched, the matriarch is a tough-talking old broad but good at heart, the chauffeur Fairchild (whom Bogart bemusedly called "a terrible snob" in the original) drove the elder Larrabee "with the partition down" for years but never improved his near-Cockney accent. There is really no death--Sabrina's suicide attempt (which viewers on this site found too gross) has been expunged.

Nor is there cruelty. In the original, David/Holden is the younger brother gifted from birth with all the graces, which he uses to satisfy his yen of the moment with the assurance that someone will clean up after him. Sabrina/Hepburn goes to Paris a child (presumably fresh from high school; David speaks of her two years later as 22 but is probably boosting) and returns as glib and beautiful as David himself, fully aware of the harm she's about to do. The film is about her redemption by kissing the frog.

The remake fudges all of this. The dance at the Larrabee home to which Sabrina gets herself invited the night of her return was originally a party celebrating David's engagement, at which his neglect of his fiancee for the stunningly gowned Sabrina upset both families, threatened the planned merger and prompted Linus's intervention at the tennis court. In the remake David's fiancee is in California for a medical conference, reducing the conflict to an "I don't like the looks of this!" on her father's part. Sabrina's grand entrance has been replaced by her slipping aboard unobtrusively as one more pretty girl; she's more Judy Garland than Princess Grace, confiding her fears to David's sympathetic Mickey Rooney.

Going off to Paris for two years (to study cooking, Sabrina's late mother's calling, rather than "find herself") was tantamount to exile for working-class people in the Fifties (the middle class might manage an annual visit home.) Why Sabrina's benefactors sent her off to work for VOGUE in a klutzy hairdo and dirndl (she'd be perfect as the Village bookstore clerk in a remake of FUNNY FACE), and why she didn't get a trim till she came home, I can't imagine.

Julia Ormond was most appealing in her smiling-through-tears scenes near the end, but I never really believed her conversion. David/Kinnear asked Linus/Ford the pivotal question after Linus had finished extolling the virtues of his beautiful, intelligent, socially committed fiancee--"Why don't YOU marry her? DON'T ANSWER THAT!" The answer is, of course, that all the problems would have been solved and there would have been no SABRINA 1995.

Rating:
Summary: Not bad, but not that great either.
Review: I'll spare the details of the plot since it's quite clear already. Frankly, I found nothing extrodinary about the acting done by Julia Ormond. She looks the same, acts the same, and I see no change in the Sabrina character. I think the only attractions to this version are Harrison Ford, who does an excellent job as the older brother, and Greg Kinnear, who plays the younger brother. However, I am doing a 'comparison' which is very unfair because the older cast of the original had that 'classic' touch of the time and Audrey Hepburn plays all her parts with a believable and natural grace that is hard to come by in today's actors. I really felt like giving this movie only 3 stars, but it was only because of Acting reasons that I had qualms with I decided to give it 4 stars instead because it would be somewhat biased of me since I am a Drama Student so I look at these things more closely than the usual viewer. If you haven't seen the original, then this is a good movie to watch, but if you are like me and watch acting closely...this might leave you with a twitch.

Rating:
Summary: Cinderella has nothing on her
Review: I was surprised at how good this movie is. A remake of a movie starring Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart and William Holden, directed by one of the greats of American cinema, Billy Wilder, is not exactly the kind of task for the faint of heart. The fact that Sydney Pollack (They Shoot Horses Don't They? (1969), Tootsie (1982), Out of Africa (1985), etc.) decided to do it must have raised a few eyebrows in Hollywood land.

And let's just say I had preconceptions as I sat down to watch this. No way could this be anything near as good as the original. And for the first twenty minutes or so I was not dissuaded. Julia Ormond, who was given Miss Hepburn's title role, seemed nothing far removed from ordinary; and Greg Kinnear, who played the playboy David Larrabee, seemed a poor imitation of William Holden. Of course Harrison Ford, I told myself, is another story, since he is the embodiment of the fulfillment of the desire of many woman, and a fine, accomplished leading man. He would be, I suspected, the lone bright spot. In the original, Humphrey Bogart, a little past his prime, and in not exactly the best of moods, and not entirely pleased with the relatively inexperienced Audrey Hepburn, played the cool tycoon Linus Larrabee with some distracted forbearance in what many consider one of his lesser performances. Surely Harrison Ford could improve on that.

He did, but what really surprised me was just how diabolically clever the oh, so romantic script by Barbara Benedek and David Rayfiel turned out to be. I mean, Cinderella move over. Sabrina could not have achieved a more glorious existence had she died and gone to heaven. It is hard to imagine a more fulfilling fantasy for a chauffeur's daughter than what transpires here.

Quickly here's the premise of this celluloid fairy tale/romance: Pretty but ordinary Sabrina, born of working class parents, her father the chauffeur of the ultra rich Larrabees, grows up living above the garage in the palatial Larrabee estate. She watches the lavish parties thrown by the Larrabees from a spot in a tree and falls madly in the kind of puppy love that never goes away with the younger of the Larrabee brothers, David, who is the kind of guy who gives playboys a bad name. When she comes of age, she goes away to Paris (apparently to work for a fashion magazine: in the original Sabrina, she goes to a cooking school in Paris), picks up confidence and a new kind of eye-popping sophistication, comes back and...well, gets noticed.

The basic skeleton of this, the story from the first Sabrina (1954), which is dreamily romantic enough and then some, is greatly augmented here with some very fine psychological touches including developing Sabrina's character beyond the pretty and stylish to something bordering on the wise and heroic. Suffice it to say that we come away feeling she deserves every rainbow's end she gets. I can see Benedek and Rayfiel exclaiming with riotous joy as they are writing the script (trading e-mails perhaps): "They want romance, they want woman's fantasy? They want Sabrina to have a pot of gold and true love everlasting? How about riches beyond counting and the doting attention of the two handsome, very rich brothers? She can take her pick. We've give 'em romance, we'll give 'em dreams come true!" And they do. Not only that, but they keep us guessing about who gets the girl until the last possible moment, and they do that very cleverly.

Of course it helps to have professional direction by Sydney Pollack and a fine cast including Harrison Ford--at his best, by the way--and Julia Ormond, a hard-working and talented actress (I recall her from Smilla's Sense of Snow, 1997), who knows how to be cute without fawning, supported by Greg Kinnear, Nancy Marchand, John Wood and Angie Dickinson. I mention Miss Dickinson because, as the mother of a perspective bride about to throw an incredibly lavish wedding, she gets to deliver this "let them eat cake" line: "We thought we'd use recycled paper" (for the wedding invitations).

The script is full of similar witticisms, some verbal, some like eye candy. For example, when Sabrina removes her glasses (the usual Hollywood signal for the adolescent ugly duckling to become a beautiful swan) after gaining sophistication in Paris, she quotes aptly but surprisingly from Gertrude Stein: "America is my country and Paris is my home." (Of course Gertrude Stein never heard of Paris, Texas--but that is another film, and besides, I digress...)

I also liked it when Sabrina is in the arms of her Paris would-be lover who kisses her, and--noticing that she is not as engaged as she might me-observes with perfect decorum, "I'm embarrassed that you're somewhere else."

Memorable was the shot of Harrison Ford momentarily looking jealous and hurt. By the way, he has a number of good lines, and he delivers them well. I especially liked it when he sadly confessed: "I was sent to deal with you. I sent myself."

It is probably better if you haven't seen the original and can experience this on its own merits without the odiousness that sometimes comes with comparisons. Comparing Audrey Hepburn with Julia Ormond is like comparing Grace Kelly with Jennifer Lopez. They really are very different people. And comparing Billy Wilder's 1954 film (from the play by Samuel Taylor) is a little like comparing Lon Chaney's Phantom of the Opera with Andrew Lloyd Webber's.

Bottom line: see this for both Harrison Ford who wears the business-first character of the "only surviving heart donor" very well, and for Julia Ormond whose intense and beguiling performance makes us forgive her for not being Audrey Hepburn.

Rating:
Summary: A great film in is own right!!
Review: Ok so I have never seen the origional, who cares this version was great, it made me want to go to paris. this is one of the best (family films) to come out of hollywood in the last decade. a great film.Julia Ormond is badly underated in the US

Rating:
Summary: Light entertainment
Review: This movie isn't the best, I'll be completely up front. Julia Ormond is just completely lacking of charm, and if you've seen the original, it comes across even more plainly. However - it really is a fun film with witty dialogue that I find watching over and over despite its problems.

The banter and camaraderie of the house servants, as well as the sharp wit of Linus and Mrs. Larabee, provide a humorous and entertaining aspect that makes this film worth owning for a rainy day.

Rating:
Summary: Glossy and picture perfect
Review: This is mainly a Harrison Ford vehicle that doesn't live up to the original by Billy Wilder with Audrey Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart. Which is a shame since it's a remarkably well-made, smooth romantic comedy. Julia Ormond is exceedingly charming, and if her leading man doesn't quite deliver his usual suave charm, the excellent cinematography and classy musical score make up for some of the disappointment.

The story of Sabrina never fails to charm, though, regardless of the players. Her awkward dreamer character grows up, and then beguiles and humanizes the awkward, crusty businessman. Pick up the classic version for a night when a master's work can be appreciated. This version is light and cheering for a relaxing evening.

Rating:
Summary: love it!
Review: I know, I know, the late great Audrey Hepburn is supposed to be the quintessential Sabrina, but I have to confess, even though I like Humphrey Bogart I couldn't see him as Linus. And I love Julia Ormond and Harrison Ford together. I also like the newer movie's depiction of Sabrina's life in Paris. Even if you're a die hard fan of the old Sabrina, give this one a shot. You may be pleasantly surprised.

Rating:
Summary: A sweet renovation of a classic love-story.
Review: When i was but 14 years old, i knew nothing about classic movies and actors. I didn't know why i loved Audrie so much and how could bogat be so stiff when kissing this imortal girl.
All i knew was that when i first saw this movie, i was touched.
I was moved by the sweetness, by that girlishness, and by that thing that made that wonderfull story so authentic even by today's standards.

Sabrina's story - in this latest producsion- didn't loose much of its old charm.
The actors - if not Hepborn & Bogart -than at list the wonderful
Ormond & Ford.
With all my admiration for the late Bogy, i still think that ford has done a much better job on the older brother,
and Ormond came quit close to our beloved Audrey, so close that she has in-fact captured that certain magic.
The story is still the same though,: A girl falls in love with her idole, girl lives home, girl comes back -refined-, idole makes a pass at her- not recognizing her-, and so on to the plonder with the older brother and ofcourse the inevitable HAPPY-END.
Gotta love it, even- and aspecially- today.
"5 thumbs up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Rating:
Summary: It's a lot of fun
Review: OK, let's say upfront - I have had a crush on Harrison Ford for about 25 years now (since the first time I saw Star Wars) and Humphrey Bogart has never done anything for me. I'll state for the record that I'm not a fan of Casablanca. This review includes spoilers for the movie -- don't read if you don't want to know - although you can probably figure it out from the cast list. Also, you'll have to get story details from other reviews -- this is very general and very actor-centered.

So now that I've dated myself and established my biases - this
is a perfectly fine mindless romantic comedy. I can't compare it to the previous version because I've never seen the previous version (and frankly, I can't think of a reason I'd want to see the previous version - see opening statement.)

If you want to spend an enjoyable 2 hours watching people you like try to straighten out their love lives, get this movie (refers to VHS version - haven't gotten DVD yet.) Mr. Ford is fun to watch and Ms. Ormand makes a very good transition - not to mention coming to her senses - I mean come on, who wouldn't choose Harrison Ford over Greg Kinnear? [Apologies to G Kinnear fans - this is a totally subjective opinion.] (G Kinnear is cuter and more appealing than I would have expected, since I had no clue who he was when I first saw the movie.) Enjoyable supporting cast helps make the movie fun. I've bought the VHS tape and eventually I'll buy the DVD - I'm predictable, I'm afraid. I do strongly recommend it for those who share my predilictions.

ndm

Rating:
Summary: One of my all time favorite's
Review: This is truly a wonderful film. Julia Ormand (Sabrina)is perfect. Harrison Ford is wonderful. All the characters play out their parts to perfection. It is one of those movies that you will want to watch over and over again. It has such charm, and it's decent. I am glad that once in a while Hollywood puts out decent movies, for those of us who are on a higher plane of thought.