Customer Reviews

The Audrey Hepburn DVD Collection (Roman Holiday / Sabrina / Breakfast at Tiffany's)

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What could be more pleasurable than watching screen legend Audrey Hepburn in her most career-defining roles? This is a great three-movie set at a great price, as all three are deserved romantic comedy classics directed by masters - William Wyler, Billy Wilder and Blake Edwards. Her natural charm and grace are pervasive throughout and further proof that she was among the most consistently affecting of actresses. In my humble opinion, there will be no one like her again.

In a beautifully restored print, 1953's "Roman Holiday" provides a most enchanting introduction to the then-24 year old actress thanks mainly to director William Wyler's expert direction and Dalton Trumbo's sweetly observant script. In hindsight, it is a modest performance compared to Hepburn's later work, but Wyler knew enough to let her natural breeding serve its purpose in conveying the carriage of a princess. It works wonderfully, as she is perfectly believable as a royal who experiences her first glimpse into the world outside her hermetically sealed world. The revelation here is really Gregory Peck, handsome and stalwart as always but in this movie quite relaxed with a surprising light comedy touch. It is actually his Joe Bradley that goes through the dramatic character arc that makes the ending so bittersweet. Even though this film is hardly mentioned in the same breath as his other classics like "The Best Years of Our Lives", Wyler's humanistic touch is everywhere - from the comic haircutting scene with the smitten barber to the famous Mouth of Truth scene where Peck pretends to lose his hand to the concluding press conference, which turns into a dance of acting nuance and unspoken feelings. This DVD has the most extras, including an excellent documentary on the production itself (watch for Hepburn's first Hollywood screen test) and other short films on the film's restoration process and Edith Head's contribution to Hollywood costuming.

With its cynical humor and the European-based sensibilities around different classes, 1954's "Sabrina" is most definitely a Billy Wilder picture. The film is not quite in the same league of other Wilder classics like "Sunset Boulevard", "Some Like It Hot" or "The Apartment", but on its own, it's an airy souffle of a comedy served on a perfectly lovely warming dish. What I like most about this movie is that Wilder keeps the fairy tale trappings of the story grounded in mordant wit and shrewd observations about business mergers, bribery and class snobbery. This is what keeps this movie surprisingly fresh. Torn between the characters played by her leading men, Humphrey Bogart and William Holden, Hepburn as a chauffeur's daughter is charming. This was her first introduction to Givenchy fashion onscreen, and the difference in her appearance between "Roman Holiday" and "Sabrina" is actually more startling than the one in the movie itself. It is no wonder she became such a style icon from that point forward. While Bogart is too dour in his role of older brother Linus (a role pegged for Cary Grant who canceled at the last minute, damn the luck), Holden is hilarious as shallow, ne'er-do-well younger brother David. The ending is inevitable, but leave it to Wilder to mix sweet and sour better than a Cantonese restaurant. There is a brief making-of documentary on this DVD.

1961's "Breakfast at Tiffany's" has the most contemporary and provocative story of the three, yet it seems the most dated perhaps because director Blake Edwards tries awfully hard to capture the upscale bohemian atmosphere of early sixties New York. In a role that author Truman Capote wanted to cast Marilyn Monroe, Hepburn is delightful as the aptly named Holly Golightly and somehow dances around the fact that her character is a high-priced call girl through her sense of style, fun and vulnerability. Holly's fear of commitment is the crux of this story, even though she is hopelessly drawn to a failed writer played by George Peppard, who is kept in fine style by a wealthy matron played with conniving sophistication by Patricia Neal. I still think Peppard is the weak link here as he doesn't have the light touch required to keep up with Holly's shenanigans. The rest of the cast can be best described as eccentric, in particular, Buddy Ebsen (pre-Jed Clampett) as Holly's backwoods first husband and Mickey Rooney as the Japanese neighbor upstairs. As a Japanese-American myself, I have to admit I find Rooney's Japanese make-up a bit much, but his accent is spot-on and his casting consistent with the loopiness of this film. Henry Mancini's romantic music provides the perfect accompaniment, and Hepburn's plaintive, ukelele-strummed version of "Moon River" is still the most definitive. Of the three films, this one has the most romantic ending, and the rain-soaked kiss in the alley is just about as lovely a scene as you are likely to see in movies. Sadly there are no extras on this DVD other than the trailer.

This set is highly recommended obviously for fans of Hepburn but also for those who can appreciate Hollywood classics in the romantic comedy genre.

I'll never forget when I fell in love with Audrey Hepburn. I was 16 and home sick from school. My mother had rented a bunch of old movies for me and Breakfast At Tiffany's was one of them. I knew, from the first strain of "Moon River" as Holly Golightly stepped out of the cab in front of Tiffany's, that I was hooked. I watched the movie three times in the next two days. I was completely enamored of Audrey's grace, style and beauty. Breakfast At Tiffany's has been my all-time favorite movie ever since (a great cure for the mean reds)! I still cry at the final sequence in the rain.

Over the next few weeks I rented every Audrey movie I could get my hands on, I have seen them all numerous times by now and own most of them, and Sabrina and Roman Holiday are two of my other favorites. Roman Holiday was Audrey's first American film for which she won an Oscar. She and Gregory Peck are truly magical in this sweet movie about a Princess out in Rome for a day of no responsibilities. Sabrina is the ugly duckling into a swan story, although ugly duckling is as far from Audrey as you can get! While Humphrey Bogart is my least favorite part of this movie (he and Audrey reportedly did not get along on the set), Audrey shines and her wardrobe is something to see in and of itself.

I can't recommend Audrey Hepburn or her movies enough. If you've never seen her movies, start with this trio. If you know nothing about the woman, find out. She was not only a wonderful actress but a phenomenal humanitarian. Her work with UNICEF should be her greatest legacy.

I know that there will never be another Audrey. But I am thankful that her movies will allow her beautiful personage to live on forever. But don't take my word for it. Watch this trio of movies and see for yourself. And while you're at it, pick up Funny Face, Charade, How To Steal A Million, My Fair Lady...

Hey, I was just looking to pick up a copy of Roman Holiday, when I found that someone had packaged three of Audrey's best movies together. And I said, "Three?! Thats it??? Why not six? Oh, well...it will have to do." So I upgrade Breakfast at Tiffany's from VHS to DVD, and I finally pick up Sabrina, which, despite a small crush on Julia Ormond, I must admit is superior to the remake.

Its easy to see why Audrey Hepburn has remained such a popular film star, and why so many actresses fail miserably to be the "next" Audrey Hepburn. There was only one actress who combined the sense of innocence, sweetness, beauty, humor, grace and charm into one. And don't we all wish she had made more movies? And don't we all wish they could still make movies like the ones that Audrey starred in? No wonder she's still our favorite!

So, in chronological order...we get Roman Holiday(1953), Audrey's breakout Oscar winner where she guaranteed she would be a star, then her next movie, Sabrina(1954), which cemented her as Hollywood's sweetheart, then Breakfast at Tiffany's(1961), simply one of my favorite movies of all time. I would have liked to have seen Charade, My Fair Lady, and Funny Face included, really I would...will there be a Volume 2?? It would be quite a nice cure for the mean reds. If you haven't fallen in love with Audrey Hepburn yet, then buy this nice set and you will!

Audrey Hepburn was -- and remains -- the perfect illustration of elegance and sophistication in Hollywood. A lot of actresses have tried to imitate her look, but they couldn't manage the same onscreen grace and skill.

And the "Audrey Hepburn Collection" brings together three of the films that helped shape that image. Okay, they're not her most impressive. But all three are all funny, charming, romantic movies, and they are also the ones that Hepburn is still best known for doing.

Bored young Princess Ann (Hepburn) goes on a "Roman Holiday," when she gets upset, is sedated by a doctor, and has an odd reaction to it. Soon she has wandered out of the palace and into the streets of Rome, where she is found by struggling American journalist Joe Bradley (Gregory Peck). Since she appears to be drunk, he takes her home.

When Joe realizes that he has the missing princess in his apartment, he takes her on a whirlwind tour of Rome, with his pal taking photographs for a full article. But he doesn't count on falling in love with Ann. And Ann has a tough choice to make -- should she give up her royal life and stay with Joe, or fulfil her responsibilities as a princess?

"Sabrina" (Hepburn) is the daughter of the chauffeur at the palatial Larabee estate. She's also in love with the ne'er-do-well second son, David (William Holden), but is sent away to Paris to attend a cooking school. And with the help of a fairy godcount, she gains sophistication, ambition, and confidence... as well as the ability to make a souffle properly ("A woman unhappily in love, she forgets to turn on the oven!").

When she returns to the Larabees' estate, David is instantly smitten. But even if marrying a chauffeur's daughter were okay with his family, his brother Linus (Humphrey Bogart) has arranged a business marriage for David. And to make sure David doesn't run off with Sabrina, Linus begins wooing her too... and falling in love for real.

"Breakfast at Tiffany's" is a daily ritual for Holly Golightly, a social butterfly who hosts parties, entertains drunken men, and dreams of owning a horse farm in Mexico. When Paul Varjak (George Peppard) moves into a neighboring apartment -- courtesy of his rich patroness -- he is instantly enchanted by the ditzy, sweet-natured Holly.

But for all Holly's fun, Paul starts to realize that all is not well with her. She's desperate to marry rich, visits a notorious gangster, and hides that she was an illiterate teen bride. As Holly's life starts to deteriorate, Paul sets out to show her what her life will be like without real love.

Yes, they are all romantic comedies, completely unrelated except that all three have Audrey Hepburn. But all three are fun, well-written ("You can't live here! I live here!" "Hi, neighbor!"), and charming. They're good for daydreaming as well, since they take place in chic apartments, palatial mansions and the streets of Rome.

Unlike many actresses, Hepburn's best-known roles were NOT all alike, nor were they all carbon copies of her. Even when we shouldn't really like the characters, she gave them warmth, sensitivity and likability that can't be faked. And she could be very funny too -- it's hard not to laugh when Holly yells "Timber!", as a drunken guest keels over.

The Audrey Hepburn Collection is the ideal trio of movies for people who are just falling in love, or who appreciate a good romantic comedy. Charming, cute and sweet.

If you love Audrey Hepburn and enjoy watching classic love stories of a by-gone era, get this collection. While by no means a definitive Hepburn film collection, it will give you the three most popular (and my personal favorite) DVD's, illustrating the pinnacle of Hepburn's work. If you're not that familiar with Hepburn (where have you been..?!), this is a splendid beginning for a lifetime's love affair with the classically stunning actress who stole all our hearts and made us believe in grand, Hollywood-movie style love. "Roman Holiday" is a Cinderella-type story, except Hepburn is the Princess looking for her average-Joe Mr. Right (and she doesn't do too shabbily with Gregory Peck!). "Sabrina" (this is the best version--but see the re-make with Harrison Ford & Julia Ormond to compare) is Hepburn's rags-to-riches tale come to life with the help of great actors, Bogart and Holden. The story will sweep you off your feet as you watch the tale of young girl who comes to learn the meaning of true love in the most unexpected way (I can only say SO much without giving the story away!). And, of course, "Breakfast at Tiffany's" is a lovely story about a young woman who expends all her energy trying to live a glamourous & fabulous life to hide the fact that she is missing the one thing she wants most (take a wild guess what that is). Even the most jaded of you will leave these movies with a sparkle of romance ignited in you. By no means a "chick-flick" set, this is a collection not to be missed by fans and movie lovers alike. A great set--don't miss it! If you want more Hepburn movies along the same plot lines, check out "Funny Face" (with Fred Astaire), "Charade" (with Cary Grant; this was recently re-made with Mark Wahlberg under the title "The Truth About Charlie") & "My Fair Lady" (with Rex Harrison). To explore more of Hepburn's range in acting, I'd recommend "The Nun's Story" (awesome!), "The Children's Hour" (with a young Shirley MacLaine), and "Wait Until Dark" (super, super film!).

I bought this 3 discs in one case collection over her other collections because each movie had special features. This is a great price for these 3 movies.

Breakfast A Tiffany's - Color, Romantic comedy. Probably her most famous and best role, Holly Golightly, is based on Truman Capote's novella. She is a carefree New York playgirl with an unstructured lifestyle. Holly befriends a nameless cat and a struggling writer(George Peppard)who is "sponsored". Widescreen Version, Enhanced for 16.9 TVs, SPECIAL FEATURES: "Making of a Classic", Commentary by Prouducer, "It's So Audrey: A Style Icon", "Audrey's Letter to Tiffany", more.

Roman Holiday- Black and White, This is Audrey's American debut in film. A great picture, it was nominated for ten Academy Awards. Audrey received an Oscar for her portrayal of a modern day princess overwelmed by her duties decides to escape for a holiday in Rome. She meets Gregory Peck a newsman, who pretends he doesn't know who she really is so he can get an exclusive story. Eddie Albert is Peck's fun loving cameraman pal. The screenplay was written by a famous writer blackballed during the McCarthy era. Directed by William Wyler. Features: "Remembering Roman Holiday,", Restoring Roman Holiday", "Edith Head- The Paramont Years", more.

Sabrina- Black and White, Romantic Comedy, Hollywood's great stars Humphrey Bogart, Audrey Hepburn, and William Holden team up for this Cinderella story. Bogart and Holden are mega rich brothers and Audrey is the chauffeur's daughter, who is in love with the youngest brother. Special features include "Sabrina" Documentary.

Audrey Hepburn has been remembered all throughout her career for her beauty, poise, and exceptional presence. Though she did other romantic movies, and other comedies, these three are the most alike in tone -- happy, funny, sad and always, always sweet.

"Roman Holiday" features young Princess Anna (Hepburn) who is being taken through Rome on a boring round of interviews, tours and appearances. After being given a sedative, she wanders out (intoxicated by the drug) into the Roman streets and is found by a struggling American journalist, Joe Bradley (Gregory Peck). The next morning he realizes that the intoxicated schoolgirl is the missing princess. The two of them go on a tour of Rome, where he takes a series of unique photos. But when they begin to fall in love, what will Anna choose -- her duty or her love?

"Sabrina" is perhaps the best of the three. Sabrina Fairchild (Hepburn) is the naive daughter of the Larrabee family chauffeur, hopelessly in love with the playboy David Larrabee (William Holden). But after a few years at a cooking school in Paris, the ugly duckling becomes a swan: She's beautiful, confident, poised, and David instantly falls for her. However, his family has affianced him to an heiress, and so David's brother Linus (Humphrey Bogart) tries to distance her from him. The problem is, Linus is starting to fall for Sabrina himself.

"Breakfast at Tiffany's," while not particularly faithful to the original story, is nevertheless a sweet story. A writer/kept man named Paul Varjak (George Peppard) moves into an apartment building, and befriends a party girl named Holly Golightly. He begins to fall for Holly, though he soon discovers that she has an obsessive older ex-husband, and is planning to marry an extremely rich man. But Paul can see through the gold-digging and commitmentphobia to the woman underneath -- but will she be willing to love him back?

In all three movies -- no matter the character -- Hepburn embodies sweetness and a kind of innocence. No matter how worldly the girl, she always seems to have that wide-eyed innocence. She sparkles, in a way that few actresses can. Her costars Peck, Peppard and Holden play off her wonderfully, with amazing chemistry; Bogart less so, probably because he disliked Hepburn in real life.

The movies are definitely romantic -- one theme they share is love that doesn't come easily, whether the problem is one of the people involved, parents or overprotective staff. There's also slapstick comedy (like David sitting down on champagne flutes and injuring his butt), and more sophisticated comedy (like when Anna and Joe pretend that they were speeding on their way to get married).

Hepburn did a lot of other movies -- some of them theoretically better, like the frightening "Wait Until Dark," the sizzling "Charade" and suspenseful "Children's Hour." But these movies are what people think of her as, and they remain funny, sweet, romantic and thoroughly enjoyable. A must-see for fans, romantics, and those with a sense of humor.

You can tell this package is a mixed bag just from the case covers: Sabrina is part of the "Audrey Hepburn Collection," Roman Holiday is part of the "Paramount Collection" and Breakfast at Tiffany's is part of the "Widescreen Collection." The individual packages for Sabrina and Roman Holiday feature a copyright date of 2002, but Breakfast goes all the way back to 1999. As you'd expect, this older transfer fails to measure up to the other two, both of which are in glorious black and white and look probably as good or better than the films looked at their premiers all those years ago.

First up: Roman Holiday, which according to the little sticker on the outside of the box has been "meticulously restored frame by frame." It shows! The viewer is treated to William Wyler's lush, grandiose frame composition and gorgeous lighting. Though not as jaw-droppingly beautiful as many of the shots in Sabrina, the look of Roman Holiday will leave you breathless. That's a good thing since so much time is spent, not in character or plot development, but in showing the audience the sights of Rome. One of the first films to double as a travelogue, Roman Holiday wouldn't work half so well without the sharp details and the subtle shades of blacks and greys throughout. Hepburn's character comes across as very natural and charming and Peck is a revelation. This film was shot before he was obligated to play "Gregory Peck" in every movie. Though the humor is played a little too broadly in spots, this film's a good one and the chemistry between Hepburn and Peck is wonderful. Incidental details like a taxi driver crying like a baby to communicate the Italian word "bambino" and a landlord who hauls out his old rifle to guard Hepburn's room complete a picture already delightful, subtle and moving.

The next film, Sabrina, is the true masterpiece of this set. With cinematography that looks like it came from Citizen Kane, supporting characters with pop and dazzle, and writing that never fails to astound, Sabrina is Billy Wilder's second-best film (after Sunset Blvd.) Where parts of Some Like It Hot and Seven Year Itch fall flat, Sabrina fires on all cylinders all the time. Bogart plays against type and truly shows how versatile an actor he really was. The oft-neglected William Holden is perfect as always. (Compare his performance here with his performance in Stalag 17, Sunset Blvd., The Wild Bunch and Network. You'll find no overlapping.) Audrey Hepburn has never been so charming as in Sabrina. Unlike films like Breakfast at Tiffany's, none of the emotion here seems forced. Instead, the gentle and exquisite beauty of the scenes is matched by genuinely likeable characters. First-rate writing, oddball "throwaway" details like Bogart's resilient plastic, and a romantic resolution as moving as anything in Henry James makes Sabrina an underappreciated joy. The bright new transfer will truly take your breath away, especially when Hepburn is up a tree, gazing wistfully at the party lights just over the hedge. The final embrace on board the ocean liner is still unmatched in terms of romance. It communicates everything without any dialogue or any plot device such as a drenched cat.

Finally, Blake Edwards' Breakfast at Tiffany's. And I ask, how could we ever lump Blake Edwards in with directors such as Billy Wilder and William Wyler? Surely, this is the only instance in which he could even be mentioned in the same breath with these two giants. A favorite movie of wispy boys and starry-eyed girls, Breakfast at Tiffany's is the weakest of the three. Yes, Audrey Hepburn shines in it, but Mickey Rooney's racist and unfunny and George Peppard's a humorless dud. Watching this movie again, I was struck how many of the events were completely inessential (Buddy Ebsen's Doc, for instance). It's the kind of movie people remember fondly simply because for many, it's the first movie in which they were exposed to Ms. Hepburn's charm. She's perky and likable in spite of the rest of the film, not because of it. On the whole, it doesn't really work. The "wild bohemian" party is attended by a cast of conservatively dressed squares (all a little long in tooth for such activities), punctuated by a few cartoons like Mag Wildwood and Rusty Trawler. The broad strokes here make Mr. Edwards' later forays into the adventures of Inspector Clouseau look like the work of Truffaut. Sure, the cat steals the show at the end, and the soaked threesome in the alley is bound to squeeze a tear out of even the most jaded viewer, but in order for this scene to work on a purely emotional level, you've got to distance yourself from nearly everything that's gone before. The DVD quality here is abysmal compared to the other two; in fact, the trailer looks better in places than the actual movie! Note also that the voiceover narrator from 1960 pronounces Truman Capote's name like "compote" rather than "Quixote." Nothing like a little care and attention for the writer, eh?

My advice: Buy the set. Everyone should have a copy of Breakfast at Tiffany's around, just so you don't have to rent it when you forget how slipshod it really is. And the other two movies-Sabrina and Roman Holiday-are films you'll want to watch again and again, enjoying them even more with each subsequent viewing.

This review refers to the Audrey Hepburn DVD Collection...

Can you think of anyone better to spend a weekend with than Audrey Hepburn? And with her, she brings some wonderful gifts. She brings, Gregory Peck, Humphrey Bogart, William Holden, George Peppard, Patricia Neal, 'The Mouth of Truth' (this is one of my all time favorite movies scenes), "La Vie En Rose", "Cat" and "Moon River"..sigh.

You don't need me to tell you, what a gift Audrey Hepburn was to the world, or how wonderful these films are. Pure Movie Heaven... "Roman Holiday"(1953), "Sabrina"(1954) and "Breakfast At Tiffany's"(1961) are three films with all those great cinematic moments, that once seen, will never be forgotten. They are directed to perfection by Hollywood legends, William Wyler, Billy Wilder and Blake Edwards. Audrey Hepburn will tug at your heartstrings, she'll make you smile, laugh and cry. The stories are very romantic, funny, dramatic, and poignant. The music is wonderful, and the locations charming.

Still haven't pushed that "buy now" link yet? Okay here's more..The DVDs are fabulous. I was especially impressed with the restoration of the Black and Whites. Sabrina and Roman Holiday look brand new. Crisp, sharp and clean. Breakfast At Tiffany's looks great in widescreen with excellent color and has the options of DD5.1 or stereo. It may also be viewed in French and has English subtitles for deaf and hearing impaired viewers, as does RH and Sabrina. Not much in the way of Special Features for Breakfast, but Roman Holiday and Sabrina have some great ones. RH includes an entertaining and informative documentary "Remembering RH" with quotes from the cast, a featurette on the restoration, an Edith Head featurette and a photo gallery. Sabrina, also includes a documentary and a photo gallery. Each disc is in their own keep case, with scene selection insert, and the price is right for these three classics, sure to be viewed over and over again.

Ride along with Audrey and Bogey as she serenades you with "La Vie En Rose"... as Sabrina's says... "It's the closest thing to heaven"...Laurie

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This is one great set. It has two of my favorite Audrey Hepburn Movies (Roman Holiday and Breakfast at Tiffany's.) I would of preferred My Fair Lady over Sabrina, but I am not complaining. Three great movies[at a great price], what a deal.