A Sabrina Sunday
Skip the Oscars-Find the Classics!!
“Once upon a time on the north shore of Long Island, some thirty miles from New York, there lived a small girl on a large estate. “
I know! I know! It is Oscar Night.
Tonight, we walk the Red Carpet.
We hope for great comedy, production numbers, maybe a few mishaps to wake us up… we fill out our “brackets” and look to see who is sitting with whom. For movie lovers, the Oscars are our Super Bowl, but the truth is, we probably fall asleep somewhere in the middle of the broadcast.
I LOVE movies. But if I am being honest, this year, in the midst of this moment, I cannot get excited about too many of the titles for Best Picture or the race that is probably already a sure thing. The animation category was actually my fave.
Movies have always been an escape. That was their monetization model after all for so many years. Through Depression, Wars, and social upheaval, the movies were the fluff, the fun, the romance, the laugh that everyday life denied.
Sure, they should make us think. Introduce new worlds. Amaze us with wonder. Great films should push the edges and challenge us. Film is an art form. And like all art, film is an important “conversation”. One that we used to ALL be able to be a part of. With streaming, multi-platform distribution, and the pandemic’s impact on actually sitting in a movie theatre, that common shared “loved that movie” experience is really a nostalgic wish. The actual definition of what a “movie” is is transforming as well. If it debuts on Netflix, Amazon, or HBO, is it Oscar-worthy? What have we lost by not sitting in a theatre together, stepping on popcorn kernels and tipped over soda cups while blaring sound buries the screenwriters’ words? I admit to missing “going to the movies” like I once did.
But, right now, with a world literally exploding, and so much reality in our face 24/7, I need to run away from time to time. I need the escape, the romance, the beautiful, the heart-filled, the Kleenex moment, the joy…and that feeling after you finish a wonderful flick that sits with you for days.
I have always loved Classic film. Movies produced long before I was. Some fall out of date. Some don’t stand the test of time. Many are tone-deaf, often racist and sexist, and yet reflective of their time, revealing a society that had a lot to learn! But many are “classic” because they DO hold up. They still enchant us, entertain us, and let us run away for an hour or three. And what is wrong with a Happy Ending right now, or ever?
So, this Oscar Sunday, I am spending it with one of my go-tos (I have many!) Sabrina. Directed by Billy Wilder, written by Ernest Lehman, the 1954 production of Sabrina has all the ingredients to be called a “Classic”; fabulous sets, exquisite costumes by Edith Head and Givenchy, a cast that sparkled from Humphrey Bogart to William Holden, and of course…Audrey Hepburn…even rumors of a juicy romance between Audrey and Bill Holden.
Of course, it is a Hollywood fairy tale.
But, THIS is the Hollywood I return to again and again. The Hollywood that says it is OK to run away from time to time. Sadly, the world and all its insanity will still be here when the lights come up.
And so a fairytale it is. Billy Wilder's fairytale stands the test of time-a charming classic where all the parts fit and the romance is nontraditional, unexpected, and simply perfect. Enjoy! And remember, Paris is always a good idea!
"The estate was very large indeed and had many servants. There were gardeners to take care of the gardens, and a tree surgeon on retainer. There was a boatman to take care of the boats, to put them in the water in the spring and scrape their bottoms in the winter. There was specialists to take care of the grounds- the outdoor tennis court and the indoor tennis court, the outdoor swimming pool and the indoor swimming pool, and there was a man of no particular title who took care of a small pool in the garden for a goldfish named George.
Also on the estate, there was a chauffeur by the name of Fairchild who had been imported from England years ago, together with a new Rolls-Royce. Fairchild was a fine chauffeur of considerable polish, like the eight cars in his care, and he had a daughter by the name of Sabrina."
"It was the eve of the annual Six Meter Yacht Races, and as it had been traditional on Long Island for the past 30 years, the Larabees were giving a party.
It never rained on the night of the Larabee party; the Larabees wouldn't have stood for it.
There were 4 Larabees in all: Father, Mother, and two sons. Maud and Oliver Larabee were married in nineteen hundred and six, and among their many wedding presents was a townhouse in New York and this estate for weekends. The Town House has since been converted into Saks Fifth Avenue.
Linus Larabee, the elder son, graduated from Yale, where his classmates voted him the man most likely to leave his Alma Mater 50 million dollars.
His brother, David, went through several of the best eastern colleges for short periods of time and through several marriages for even shorter periods of time. He is now a successful 6 goal polo player and is listed on Linus' tax return as a $600 deduction. Life was pleasant among the Larabees, for this was as close to heaven as one could get on Long Island."
Thus begins Billy Wilder’s enchanting fairy tale of the chauffeur’s daughter named Sabrina, whose father warned her not to reach for the moon, and the Larabees’ two sons-handsome playboy David /William Holden, and crusty, stiff old bachelor Linus/ Humphrey Bogart.
I won’t give it all away... but that little girl, the one who grew up on the outside looking in, living above the garage with her nose pressed against the ballroom window, all the while hopelessly and madly in love with the ne’er-do-well David…and who like a “nobody” watched as David twirled the society girls around the dance floor or met them with champagne in a rendez-vous at the indoor tennis court, all to the orchestra playing “Isn’t it Romantic”... is sent off to cooking school in Paris by her Father in the hopes she will “get over David”.
Sabrina, however, arrives back on Long Island, chic and transformed, along with her poodle named… David.
The real David is instantly smitten, though he has no idea who she is...and...well…
Yes, Sabrina does get to go to the ball and wear that iconic Givenchy gown, but oh, what happens at that ball!
“I have a lovely evening dress with yards of skirt and way off the shoulder, should I wear it?”
"He's still David Larabbe and you're still the chauffeur's daughter, and you're still reaching for the moon.." No Father, the moon's reaching for me"
Of course, I adore Audrey Hepburn in this film, but for me, it is the remarkable Humphrey Bogart, a softer Bogie under the spell of a sublime Audrey.
... it’s as though a window had been thrown open and a lovely breeze swept through this stuffy old house”
Sabrina has a perfectly perfect romantic twist with an ending that puts a new spin on Happily Ever After.
I felt the same as you last night. So excited about the animated movies but so conflicted on the best picture nominees. All of them so intense or depressing. Yes to a happy ending and a flick that stays with you for days!