I don't think that the plot is important here, but the way the actors performed and the place where the story is set.
In Rome, a European princess manages to escape the rigid and boring life and have and unforgettable experience, living for one day as a normal person. She does all the things that she was not allowed to do before, such as cutting her hair, eating ice-cream, strolling down the streets and why not, falling in love with an ordinary man.

This is the role that brought Audrey Hepburn an Oscar and made her a well-known star.
It is the natural and ingenuous performance that makes her such a charming and unforgettable character, a graceful presence on the screen.

Her companion is Gregory Peck who has also a great performance and makes the film even more delightful. He plays the part of a young and charming journalist, looking for news that might increase sales of his newspaper and bring some money in his pocket.

The DVD includes also a section with a kind of "making of": interviews of the people who participated at the shooting, memories, etc. This is even more interesting, as you will have the chance to listen to the people who were involved in this project, and the stories behind the scene. You will also see that time did not alter too many of Audrey Hepburn's features and even at an older age she still looks refined and elegant.

I have one complain about this movie: 118 minutes seemed to be not enough for such a romantic story. I believe that everyone of us would like to dream about what is like to be lost in the "eternal city" for one day and enjoy the simple things of life.


What a totally charming movie! I was enchanted!   February 12, 2001
 14 out of 15 found this review helpful

Roman Holiday brought a young, bright, immensely appealing Audrey Hepburn to the attention of the public, and we haven't been the same since. As Princess Anya, she combines grace, warmth, a sweet elegance, curiosity, a believable youthful impetuousness, with a regal bearing.

Gregory Peck is amusing as a conman/ reporter who's too used to fast-talking his way out of any jam. Eddie Albert adds another jovial touch as his photographer buddy, who joins Peck and the Princess on a day-long excursion into the real Rome of the early 1950's. Forget that this movie is in black and white, it's got charm, romance, humor, and a bittersweet romantic ending that left me sighing. Peck's transition from smooth-talking reporter to a man falling in love with the Princess, and "doing right by her" in respecting her privacy and their time together, was credible. How I longed for them to STAY together, after they returned to his apartment, after their eventful night at the dance, near the Castel SantAngelo.

And Audrey's transition from overprotected child Princess, to a woman of substance and depth, and true regal bearing, was breath-taking.

Watch this movie once, then again and again. How perfect for Valentine's Day! How refreshing to watch a "clean" movie with intelligent dialogue, tongue-in-cheek humor, playfulness, and TRUE romance. It's a keeper!


Both a Roman and romantic holiday for princess and viewer   April 6, 2004
 14 out of 16 found this review helpful

Roman holiday-a time of enjoyment derived from the suffering of others.

Well, that's a dictionary's definition, but I guarantee that suffering is the diametric opposite for anyone watching Audrey Hepburn's starring debut. Ms. Hepburn stars as Princess Anne of some unnamed European kingdom. Fed up with her heavily scheduled public relations agenda in the Eternal City, Anne goes into hysterics and flees the palace, but not before the doctor injects her with a powerful sedative. She's rescued by Joe Bradley, a reporter with the American News Service, who takes her to his apartment and being a gentleman, does not take advantage of her in her drugged-out state.

It isn't long before he finds out who she is and after tailing her, "bumps" into her on Rome's Spanish Steps, where she's had a new haircut and enjoying an ice cream. There was difficulty in shooting this scene due to the heckling of spectators.

Bradley enlists the aid of Irving Radovic, a photographer, promising to cut him in on an exclusive story he wants to make on the princess. Some of the things he does to Irving to prevent their game from getting rumbled would only work in this kind of comedy. Together, the princess, ostensibly incognito to her charges, gets the free day she wants. Her half-lie that she's a schoolgirl playing hookey only makes her outing all the more fun.

The title concept holds true as Anne goes walkabout while causing her chaperones much alarm, to the extent of sending men-in-black after her. Also, Anne's excursion takes place in the Eternal City after all. But it's also one for Bradley, whose boss wants him to get an exclusive on the princess, and Bradley's initial exploitative objective eventually turns into a holiday he wants Anne to have. Also, the phrase "Roman holiday" is derived from the gladiatorial contests the ancient Romans enjoyed, especially in the Colisseum, which ironically is where the half-insensate Anne mumbles as her place of residence to Bradley upon their first meeting.

There are also a few bits of slapstick involved. One is the Mouth of Truth scene, the relic sculpted on the Colisseum, a face with eyes and mouth. Legend says that if a liar sticks his/her hand in there, it will be bitten off. Something silly does happen, which I will not reveal.

This was nominated for ten Academy Awards (but not Best Actor!!!) Surely Gregory Peck's solid, dependable, and ultimately romantically touched performance deserved a nomination at least? Eddie Albert (Irving) was nominated for Best Supporting Actor (and lost). It also lost Best Picture, but won for original screenplay and costume design. Hmm, I seem to have forgotten one, but which one? Hmm... All kidding aside, Audrey Hepburn won, beating out Deborah Kerr, Ava Gardner, and Leslie Caron for Best Actress.

And it took five years for it to reach production. Writer John Dighton was actually blacklisted writer Dalton Trumbo. Co-writer Ian McClellan Hunter had to act as a front, taking credit for the Oscar-winning story for 40 years until a posthumous Oscar was given to Trumbo's widow.

Shot totally in Rome, this unforgettable movie marked Audrey Hepburn's road to stardom. Her photogenic quality is well demonstrated with a fetching smile, that graceful figure, and of course a charming personality. Watching this movie is itself a Roman holiday.


Unforgettable movie of a romance never to be   August 18, 2002
 13 out of 14 found this review helpful

Princess Ann (Audrey Hepburn)(by some accounts, based on Britain's Princess Margaret) is on a trade tour for her unnamed European nation. After a highly formal and boring ball (enlivened, in a hysterical scene by the Princess removing her uncomfortable shoe and then losing the shoe!) she rails against her regimented lifestyle and is given a sleeping pill. The half-drugged girl sneaks out of the Roman villa where she's staying, to be discovered by a reporter (Gregory Peck), who takes her home to recover. Peck soon realizes the girl's identity, gathers a photographer with a hidden camera, and takes her out for a day of "enjoying herself", perfect for an expose with lots of candid shots. But he soon finds himself falling for her . . .

No doubt today the movie would end quite differently. But the classic, climactic scene, as they express their never-to-be love in coded words with dozens of others present, sets this movie apart, along with the acting of Peck and Hepburn (for which she won a deserved Oscar), and the many scenes of early-Fifties Rome (watch for the great, ad-libbed scene at the Mouth of Truth), make this movie one of the greatest ever.

In this era of blatant acting, Peck and Hepburn, well-directed by William Wyler, show how much can be done, and better, with a mere facial expression.

You'll love it.


An enchanting fairy tale movie...   July 21, 2002
 11 out of 11 found this review helpful

This movie is one of my all-time favorites, and always leaves me in a good mood. It features two wonderful classic actors, Gregory Peck (though Cary Grant would have been better in the role - he was offered it first but turned it down) and Audrey Hepburn (in her first starring role, which won her an Oscar). Additionally, it is a wonderfully romantic, sweet story, with a good script and many funny moments!

Essentially, Roman Holiday is about a young Princess Ann (Audrey Hepburn) who gets tired of her sheltered life as a princess and decides to run away and explore the world for herself. She leaves the palace and stumbles along until falling asleep on a park bench in Rome, where she is found by a cynical newspaper reporter (Gregory Peck) who reluctantly takes her home. As soon as he realizes who she is, however, he decides to take her around Rome and use his experience with her to write a tell all article on the princess and her life. Accompanied by a hilarious photographer, they go on a tour of Rome - creating many hilarious and romantic scenes along the way!

All in all, this movie is really wonderful, and is perfect for the whole family to watch. If you have not already seen this, what are you waiting for?