Review of Audrey Hepburn Box Set

Introduction

I should state first off that the discs in this boxset are nothing more than the standalone DVDs which are currently available. The only difference being the nice white box and a very keen price over the single films. If you`d like to read the other DVD Reviewer site reviews you can search for Audrey Hepburn and you`ll find them. There`s really nothing more for me to add in terms of Content over the summary above. These aren`t complicated films to understand in the slightest and are very easy to watch from start to finish. What stands out are the cast performances. Hepburn is mesmerising and charming in all the films, not forgetting how well she gets on with everyone else.

Let`s get on with looking at the discs themselves.

Video

Video quality is quite different on each disc so I`ll sum it up with scores.

Breakfast At Tiffany`s: 4/10
The 1.78:1 anamorphic transfer is quite grainy all the way through which I found to be a disappointment. I played this back on a standalone DVD player and on DVD-ROM and it looks the same. I`m amazed it`s been released at all like this without some effort to clean it up. It`s not the oldest film of the collection but it certainly looks the worst.

Sabrina: 7/10
This is the only black and white film here and is presented with a full frame (1.33:1) transfer. Surprisingly the level of detail is quite high with a little grain and few problems else. The contrast has been boosted to bring out more of the detail and it shows a little with some edge enhancement coming through and of course there are some minor flecks of dirt from time-to-time, but given that the film is 47 years old, it`s forgivable.

Funny Face: 7/10
Quality throughout isn`t bad considering the film is 45 years old. We get a 1.78:1 anamorphic transfer which has a certain level of grain but isn`t too distracting. This film was made before Breakfast At Tiffany`s and yet has better image quality. There`s good use of colour nearly all the way through though there are some soft scenes. Contrast has been boosted slightly to improve on detail and it shows with sharp edges.

Paris When It Sizzles: 8/10
This looks to have the best quality video transfer of the four films. Presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic it`s hardly grainy at all and very easy on the eyes. The colours are well rendered with a good level of detail. I couldn`t spot any signs of compression or other encoding problems. A very pleasant picture.

Audio

All films in the set are encoded with the original mono track. This can sound a bit crackly and hissy in places but given the age of the films it`s not too bad. It sounds quite clear from the front and I don`t have expectations of a fantastic wide soundstage. When there`s music this can sound somewhat restrained but not annoyingly so.

Features

All films have nice static menus with at least one movie trailer - which is of the usual fare - and the additions as follows. Sabrina has a Photo Gallery with about two dozen stills. Then there`s the 11 minute Sabrina Documentary. This is quite interesting without being too long and it`s a shame there aren`t any other pieces like this on the other discs for the other films. Funny Face has a Photo Gallery and the Retrospective Documentary - Paramount in the 1950`s which is a 10 minute PR affair on Paramount. Interesting just the one time. There`s also an abundant array of subtitle options on all the discs.

Conclusion

Breakfast At Tiffany`s is the classic and somewhat whimsical Hepburn movie. She has elegance, poise and this part is very Audrey, if you know what I mean. A nice light film with a young George Peppard turning in a good performance as the next door neighbour. I think Mickey Rooney`s portrayal of the irrate Chinese neighbour is a bit in poor taste by today`s standards but this doesn`t spoil the film. How can anyone forget Mancini`s `Moonriver`, this sums up the film perfectly.

My personal favourite out of these films has to be Sabrina with lovely performances from Bogart, Holden and Hepburn, they play so well in this romantic movie. Billy Wilder`s direction is superb and there`s never a dull moment.

Funny Face is a nice romantic tale with Fred Astaire and there are a few great song and dance routines. I did feel that the songs spoiled the pacing of the film a little though. There`s good use of colour and locations.

Paris When It Sizzles is a little bit of silly fun. I think that the film gets away with an awful lot due to the premise of the story and because of this, the film feels quite lightweight. There are good performances though, and Audrey always looks fine. It`s got a great look to it with lively use of colour.

Sadly however there are no extra features specific to this boxset which I found to be a little disheartening. It would have been nice to have a booklet of sorts with some production notes for all the films or a mini bio on Audrey and other leading cast, just something which would make this boxset special. Despite this small niggle though there are two key things in its favour. Audrey Hepburn and value for money! It`s a steal as a collection and at the time of writing could be had for less than £30 at Play247, less than 8 quid per film! This is a nice way to start your Audrey Hepburn DVD collection if you haven`t already got any of the movies.

I adore Audrey and think she`s a true star so I`ll never tire of watching her best work. If you too are an Audrey Hepburn fan then this collection has to be on your shelf. You could be missing out on some real charm if you don`t have any of her movies!