Sabrina – United States/Germany – 1995 – Romance, Comedy, Drama
Directed by: Sydney Pollack
Written by: Barbara Benedek; David Rayfield
Main Players: Harrison Ford; Julia Ormond; Greg Kinnear; Nancy Marchand; John Wood; Richard Crenna; Angie Dickinson; Lauren Holly; Paul Giamatti
Once upon a time in the north shore of Long Island, there lived the Larrabee family, in a mansion almost like a castle. In addition to the gardens, tennis courts and swimming pools, there was a large garage full of snazzy cars where the chauffeur Fairchild (Wood) lived, along with his daughter Sabrina (Ormond).
She would watch the uber rich party at the estate from afar, and knew the ins and outs of the family drama. Linus (Ford) was the businessman, on the cover of Time and focused on making sweet Larrabee Communications deals, while monitoring the Tokyo markets. His brother David (Kinnear) was into women, and his red Ferrari 348 Spider, and naturally caught Sabrina’s eye. Unfortunately, she was overlooked by the playboy and it made her feel like a nobody.
Good thing she was leaving for France, which gave her limited time to profess her love to David. Things did not go as planned, and she headed off abroad, to work for Vogue. As time passes, Sabrina received a life overhaul and we move forward a few years. When she returns home, she will be nearly unrecognizable. When she arrives in New York, will she be able to win David’s heart?
This update of Sabrina works very well, and also features a charming cast. The subtle shifts in storytelling fit the tale perfectly, and between the original play and the 1954 movie, the script had plenty to draw on. The atmosphere is classy and it brings nice humor touches to the romantic drama. The main actors settle into their roles extremely well.
Sydney Pollack has a firm handle on the feature and brings his experience to the lens. The film is mostly well paced and is nice to look at, but could do with a slight trimming on runtime to keep it all fresh. Characters are given a chance to grow, and the story plays out as expected. While I may not like it as much as the 50s version, it remains a nice companion piece as well as update. I would even say that this version does some things better, such as giving a better passage of time and evolution for Sabrina during her time in Paris.
See This If You Liked:
Sabrina (1954); Roman Holiday (1953); Breakfast at Tiffany’s; Love in the Afternoon (1957); The Lady Eve; Charade (1963); The Seven Year Itch; Before Sunrise; Garden State; Midnight in Paris; Sleepless in Seattle
Score:
7.0