Cover Photo: stylised from IMDB & Getty Images; artwork by Angela Nicole Guiral
Photo: stylised from IMDB & Getty Images; artwork by Angela Nicole Guiral
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Today’s spotlight is on Audrey Hepburn as we revisit some of her best films of all time
For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone... The British actress and humanitarian Audrey Hepburn once defined the value of true beauty—a piece of advice that remains relevant today.
Among the other things Hepburn left behind, apart from her words and wisdom, are her inspirational humanitarian footprints and her film legacy, which the latter remains classic and of quality today. Every time the question of who your favourite actress or film icon is asked, there is no doubt that Hepburn is among the answers. Her legacy spans generations, unquestioned by all who watched her through the years.
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As we celebrate her birthday today, May 4, here’s a quick trip down memory lane as we remember her best movies:
Sabrina (1954)
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In 1954, the British actress starred in Sabrina, a romantic comedy-drama film directed by Billy Wilder. It was based on Samuel Taylor’s play Sabrina Fair.
The film revolves around the titular character, a chauffeur’s daughter, who returns home as a beautiful young woman from her two-year stay in Paris. Upon her return, she immediately catches the attention of the playboy son of her father’s affluent employers.
“I have learned how to live, how to be in the world and of the world, and not just to stand aside and watch. And I will never, never again run away from life. Or from love, either,” says Hepburn as Sabrina Fairchild.
Roman Holiday (1953)
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In Roman Holiday, Hepburn worked with director and producer William Wyler.
If you’re one for the rich-middle-class tropes, this one’s for you. The actress’ character, European princess Ann, is overwhelmed by her schedule and takes off for a night while in Rome. She falls asleep on a park bench due to a sedative she took from her doctor hours before and is found by an American reporter, Joe Bradley (played by Gregory Peck), who takes her back to his apartment for safety. The next morning, Joe finds out about Ann’s identity.
“I have to leave you now. I’m going to that corner there and turn. You must stay in the car and drive away. Promise not to watch me go beyond the corner. Just drive away and leave me as I leave you,” says Hepburn in one of her lines in the film.
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Funny Face (1957)
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Funny Face earned four Academy Award nominations.
The film tackles issues surrounding fashion and photography. New York City-based fashion photographer Dick Avery (played by Fred Astaire) is struck by the beauty of Jo Stockton (played by Audrey Hepburn), a shy bookstore employee he has photographed by accident. The story only revolves from there.
“If the individual rights are not respected by the group, the group itself cannot exist for long,” says the character Stockton in one of the scenes.
My Fair Lady (1964)
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Hepburn also had the opportunity to try musicals. My Fair Lady is a musical, comedy, and drama film adapted from the 1956 Lerner and Loewe stage musical, which was also based on George Bernard Shaw’s 1913 stage play Pygmalion.
The plot takes place in London, where a snobbish phonetics professor named Henry Higgins (played by Rex Harrison) agrees to a wager that he can make crude flower girl, Eliza Doolittle (played by Hepburn herself), presentable in high society.
“I sold flowers; I didn’t sell myself. Now you’ve made a lady of me, I’m not fit to sell anything else,” says Doolittle through Hepburn.
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Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)
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Of course, who would forget one of Hepburn’s highly regarded films of all time? Breakfast at Tiffany’s catapulted the little black dress to become a staple in the fashion industry.
The film revolves around a young New York socialite becoming interested in a young man who has moved into her apartment building. Her past, however, threatens to get in the way.
One of Hepburn’s most iconic lines in the film is this: “The answer is good things only happen to you if you’re good. Good? Honest is more what I mean… Be anything but a coward, a pretender, an emotional crook, a whore: I’d rather have cancer than a dishonest heart.”
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Angela Nicole Regis Guiral is a digital editor at Tatler Philippines. She studied journalism and has since written features that look closely at how culture, lifestyle and social impact converge, while occasionally wandering into the worlds of style and travel.
