As Robert Osborne of TCM says, Roman Holiday is one of the best movies, maybe the best movie. It's not grand in scope, like Gone With the Wind or Citizen Kane. It's really a simple romantic comedy: Royalty goes slumming for a day to rub shoulders with the commoners, while a couple of benign hustlers try to make a buck from it. Hustler and Blue Blood fall for each other, big surprise. The settings in Rome are nice, the photography is OK. The plot is sweet, the dialog clever. So what makes this movie so great? It's Audrey and Gregory. One could say she was the most beautiful woman in the world at that time. (Along with Liz Taylor?). Her youth, enthusiasm, sweetness, charm, pretty face and slender figure make a package that is so spectacular it's probably never been surpassed since. It's hard not for anyone not to fall in love with her. And they dress her to show it all off! Gregory, himself tall, dark, handsome and slim, is also remarkable with his comedic style. He also has a charm that is unique to him and is very attractive. They are both the best of actors, and the script let's them shine.
What some consider the best scene is when Gregory puts his hand in the mouth of the statue and pretends his hand is being bitten. Audrey's reaction, they say, was completely natural, as Greg's acting was so good it fooled her.
Eddie Albert is very good, as is his beard!
Of course, when you look at who directed it, Wyler, who made some of filmdom's greatest, like Wuthering Heights, Ben Hur and many others, it may make sense that this movie is so good. But putting together a "dream team" has often flopped. But there's no smugness or overconfidence here. Like in the scene when Princess and Reporter separate in front of the palace. The vulnerability and emotion is remarkable. And the end, with the "making love", as they used to say, with their eyes, again remarkable.
For such a lighthearted movie, it has at bottom a dark theme: the classes cannot mix. The audience feels this as the source of the sadness at the end of the film. It's reminiscent of The Great Gatsby: people can interact with the Rich, thinking they may be treated as equals or even ascend, but in the end the Old Guard accepts no newcomers and even tramples whomever it encounters.
A rating score of 10 is the best that can be given in IMDb. This movie rates higher than that.
What some consider the best scene is when Gregory puts his hand in the mouth of the statue and pretends his hand is being bitten. Audrey's reaction, they say, was completely natural, as Greg's acting was so good it fooled her.
Eddie Albert is very good, as is his beard!
Of course, when you look at who directed it, Wyler, who made some of filmdom's greatest, like Wuthering Heights, Ben Hur and many others, it may make sense that this movie is so good. But putting together a "dream team" has often flopped. But there's no smugness or overconfidence here. Like in the scene when Princess and Reporter separate in front of the palace. The vulnerability and emotion is remarkable. And the end, with the "making love", as they used to say, with their eyes, again remarkable.
For such a lighthearted movie, it has at bottom a dark theme: the classes cannot mix. The audience feels this as the source of the sadness at the end of the film. It's reminiscent of The Great Gatsby: people can interact with the Rich, thinking they may be treated as equals or even ascend, but in the end the Old Guard accepts no newcomers and even tramples whomever it encounters.
A rating score of 10 is the best that can be given in IMDb. This movie rates higher than that.