2. Roman Holiday (1953), dir. William Wyler

[strange_complex]

So, why watch one film about Rome in a weekend when you could watch two? I have been meaning to watch this for like a million years, actually - I don't know why it took me so long

Comments

[altariel]

mraltariel, an authority on the romcom, says this one is his favourite. It is gorgeous. She is gorgeous. He is gorgeous. All gorgeous.

[strange_complex]

Yes, there is certainly much gorgeousness. Do you or he know how unusual it is for romcoms to have a bittersweet duty-over-love ending like this one, though? It strikes me as quite surprising, but then I don't watch that many straightforward romcoms.

[altariel]

I suspect it's probably not typical for romcoms, but might be fairly typical for the period (not long after the war). I also wonder what the timing is in relation to the Princess Margaret/Peter Townsend romance (which of course has the same duty-over-love ending).

Notting Hill (1999), which is essentially the same story (London replacing Rome), has a happy ending. That's forty years for you!

[strange_complex]

A quick Google sez that the actual ending of that romance post-dates the film. But a documentary included on the DVD said that the existence of the relationship was part of what the film was drawing on for inspiration nonetheless.

[strange_complex]

Oh yes, I was most impressed by Roma Città Aperta - I thought it was fantastic. So self-assured and powerful and well put-together, especially given when it was made.

Thanks for the link to the song, too. I think it probably needs appropriate visuals to really bring it out, but it's certainly lovely.

[strange_complex]

Thanks for the rec - I am always interested in films set in Rome (obviously, given this post!).

[myfirstkitchen]

One of my favourite films. Another love thwarted job, like most of my faves.

[strange_complex]

Yes, that ending really made it for me. I was kind of dreading the approach of the end, assuming that it would be all schmaltzy and contrived. But steering clear of that really made the difference between yet another standard love film and a great classic, in my view.

[the_lady_lily]

I watched this a very long time ago and loved it, although I wasn't thinking in terms of What Rome Does so much - but it's amazing what you see in films once you start looking for it.

[strange_complex]

Oh, thanks for the link - I enjoyed reading your review. You're dead right to single out Eddie Albert for special mention too - I thought his role was fantastic, and loved it when he presented the princess with his photographs of her day of freedom at the end of the film.