Quite A Holiday
Audrey Hepburn stars as Princess Ann while Gregory Peck plays Joe Bradley of the American News Service. Exhausted by the daily routine of her status, the Princess decides to sneak out of her home one night and see Rome as she hasn’t before. She ends up falling asleep on a bench when Joe Bradley bumps into her. She doesn’t know who he is, but he knows her – yet his journalistic nature keeps him from spoiling what could be a wonderful chance at a great story. Bradley’s partner, a photographer with a clever camera hidden in a lighter, snaps photos of the two having fun in Rome. Bradley considers putting a story out, but as he falls in love with Ann, he decides he cannot betray her. Her ‘holiday’ is later explained as an illness, with only a very select few knowing the true story of the Princess’ whimsical, carefree ‘holiday.’
The film won several Oscars for wonderful acting portrayed by Hepburn and Peck. There’s little question that this film did a lot for both of their careers as they went on to become two of Hollywood’s greatest, most memorable performers.
The Centennial Release
Earlier I reviewed another Audrey Hepburn Centennial Collection release in Sabrina. The Centennial release of Roman Holiday is unsurprisingly very similar, but that’s not a bad thing. Once again there is a removable jacket that is primarily gold and black. Once removed, a two disc keep case is revealed that contains both discs as well as an eight page, color booklet with several pictures pertaining to the film, including from the movie and when the film was in production. As with the Sabrina release, there is also some text that acts as a short documentary or reflective piece about the film, its release, and about Paramount; it’s well worth a read.
Both discs have similar gold and white art on them. Disc one contains the movie itself, in full screen, black and white presentation. I thought the film looked and sounded great, although I haven’t seen the DVD release from several years ago, so I can’t compare it to that directly. That said, the quality of the presentation for this classic is more than sufficient. On the second disc, you will discover several extras:
-Audrey Hepburn: The Paramount Years – A thirty minute feature very similar to the William Holden feature of the same name on the Sabrina release. This feature is basically a documentary that features plenty of stills and scenes from Audrey’s Paramount films.
-Remembering Audrey – Son Sean Ferrar and friend Robert Wolders discuss Audrey and their memories of her in this twelve minute feature.
-Rome With A Princess – This is similar to a Sabrina extra in which the area used for filming is shown as it is today. In this case, the area discussed is Rome, where the film was shot; total run time is just under ten minutes.
-Dalton Trumbo: From A-List to Blacklist – Another twelve minute documentary, this one about the author of the story, Dalton Trumbo and how he found himself part of rampant scandals in Hollywood in the 40s and 50s.
-Restoring Roman Holiday – At around seven minutes, this feature includes interviews with some folks from Paramount that discuss what was involved in restoring the original film when it first came to DVD in2002.
-Behind the Gates: Costumes – Just over five minutes, this is a Paramount feature as opposed to a feature about Roman Holiday. It discusses many of the costumes used by Paramount through the years.
-Paramount In the 50s – A ten minute, Paramount focused feature that discusses their successful films produced during this decade.
-Galleries– Dozens of stills from production to premiere are included for viewing as well.
Not quite as many extras as the Sabrina release, but you’re still getting almost an hour and a half here, not bad, and certainly more than the 2002 release.
Take A Holiday
It’s hard not to like Roman Holiday. The script and actors come together to make a timeless romantic comedy. If you like Sabrina, you’ll like this, and if you’re a fan of Audrey Hepburn or Gregory Peck’s, you don’t want to miss the Oscar caliber performances turned in here. The Centennial Collection release is a welcomed release for collectors and fans alike in that it’s the most robust and complete release of the film ever, and the first standalone release of the movie in six years.