Paris - When It Sizzles

This was a visually lush, generally amusing and occasionally clever (especially when dealing with movie conventions) satirical comedy, but sometimes it feels static (most of the action is confined to one room) and it often becomes a little too self-conscious for its own good (were the references to "My Fair Lady" really necessary?). William Holden is perhaps a little too gruff for this kind of film, but Audrey Hepburn is at her sexiest and most animated in this movie, particularly when she lets her hair down. (**1/2)

I love practically all movies for one reason or another, and I absolutely adore Audrey Hepburn. However, when I watched this movie, it was with two people who would never have considered watching an "old" movie. Fortunately for them I had the remote and they were forced to watch it, and to my great surprise, they loved it. To the intelligent lover of movies who enjoys the stop and go style of movies from that era, you will not be disappointed. The plot may seem slow at times, but when it moves, it flies. Definitely check it out if you are in an Audrey kind of mood.

This movie isn't everyone's cup of tea. Hepburn called it her least favorite film. Audiences shunned it. At the time of writing, IMDb gives it a measly 6.0 rating. Nevertheless, it is one of my all-time favorite movies.

The problem with this film is that it isn't what everyone seems to be expecting it to be: a mindless romantic comedy. Quite on the contrary: this is a work that I can only compare with "Adaptation". It is a story about how stories actually get written: non-linearly, spasmodically, through much self-doubt and simultaneously excessive (narcissistic, really) introspection. (Although, to be fair, in Hollywood the practice has mostly been to call in a whole bunch of writers to fix up the messes left by writers of earlier drafts, so this is least true of how Hollywood movie scripts get written, but it is true just about everywhere else.) Like "Adaptation", this is a movie that takes the plunge into the mind of the writer as he creates a miniature, constantly shifting and bubbling world for us to visit, only to find a second world inside that first, and probably more where that came from. I don't think that you can appreciate it without having written something yourself, but if you have, then you know the feeling: life mimicking art, mimicking life, mimicking art. Personally, for me, the greatest cameo in this movie isn't the appearance of Tony Curtis or Frank Sinatra, but the fact that in mid-shooting William Holden had to be checked into a rehab clinic. How's that for life and art? Again, like in "Adaptation", the story makes no sense, and, in fact, cannot make any sense. Its what the movie is about. To let us watch and keep our sanity, humor is used abundantly. It is well written wit and quite funny, but it isn't what this movie is about, and taking it to be what the movie is about is perhaps what led to its being so underrated.

"Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain" says the Wizard of Oz, and as far as box office success goes, he's right. Audiences don't like it when the magician shows how the trick is performed. This movie is a prime example. Another is Schwarzenegger's "Last Action Hero". If you like romantic comedies, you should probably avoid this movie. If you want to see a smart film about the madness of writing, this is a soft introduction to the topic.

This is a film that only screenwriters and budding screenwriters will get. You have to have more than a passing interest in the process of writing a screenplay to enjoy the witty satire, wry comedy and not have a lot of the in jokes fly over your head. In that regard the film is brilliant and contains one of William Holden's best performances. Audrey Hepburn too is perfectly cast in the role of his secretary/ultimate partner and is a performance that stands right up there alongside her more celebrated roles in "Charade" and "Breakfast at Tiffany's". One of those films that seems too smart for a general audience. I have watched it over the years too with family and friends only to have them get left behind by the plot and start saying how stupid they thought the picture was. Maybe the best movie about the madness of screen writing ever made. Period.

In Paris, the successful alcoholic forty-two years old screenplay writer Richard Benson (William Holden) has three days to write a script to his producer that has paid in advance. The typist Gabrielle Simpson (Audrey Hepburn) arrives to his hotel to type the screenplay. Along the three days, she helps him to develop the story and they fall in love for each other.

"Paris – When It Sizzles" is absolutely silly and naive, but also charming and delightful and only works because of the chemistry between the gorgeous Audrey Hepburn and the ironic William Holden. There are many jokes with the cinema, with many stories within the lead story, and the most hilarious scenes have the uncredited participation of Tony Curtis. Marlene Dietrich and Mel Ferrer have also uncredited participation. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Quando Paris Alucina" ("When Paris Gets Crazy")