L'amour à l'italienne

A wonderful romantic movie that in my view is highly underrated. While this is by no means a great film, it is hard to find much better if you're in the mood for pure romantic escapism. Pleshette, Dickinson, and of course Donahue are a feast for the eyes. The sets are gorgeous, particularly Angie Dickinson's place. To wear those clothes they wore and have a chic little dinner in an apartment like that we can only fantasize about in this day and age. The scenery of Italy takes back seat to nothing in this film but for my money the greatest scene is at the romantic little restaurant when the singer sings "Al di La". Folks, buy it or rent it because you will never see this type of movie on the big screen anymore.

Warner Brothers in the early 60s had a new roster of stars that they were promoting heavily to become the heirs of the stars of the golden era: Troy Donahue, Connie Stevens, Gardner McKay, Chad Everett, Suzanne Pleshette, etc. They were what people in media today would call "P&G" (i.e., they could be spokespersons for Procter & Gamble: white, wholesome, "All American" types). They were sexy but did not advertise their sexuality. ROME ADVENTURE is a typical vehicle for Warners of this period. Basically, this is a silly movie. BUT it's also quite enjoyable. Set in the Kennedy 60s before the world turned so ugly for us baby-boomers, the film embodies the zeitgeist of the time. That time has long past and maybe that's why this movie is so appealing despite its naiveté. The Birth Control pill had not yet come on the market, so premarital sex was a big gamble for young people. The choice was basically celibacy or matrimony. The price for unchastity could be heavy emotionally, in addition to the obvious risks. And thus was the plot of so many films of that period driven. People still went to church back then. In one scene Suzanne Pleshette says that she goes to church as often as she can and asks Troy Donahue, "Don't you pray? I pray a lot." I don't think a film made today could have a scene like that without being ridiculed.

Tellingly, Ms. Pleshette was the only one of Warner's early 60s young stars to have a long and respectable career. In this movie she plays a vivacious young schoolteacher who resigns her position at a prudish all-female institution and heads for Rome in search of adventure. Her mother worries about her: "So many things can happen!" Prudence: "How terrible if they don't!" (I'm paraphrasing.) She takes a ship over and in route meets Rossano Brazzi, an amorous rich Italian architect, who realizes that she's too young for him, so he introduces her to his student and protégé, Troy Donahue. It's love for these two, despite the bland performance of Donahue. Also in the cast are Angie Dickinson in a very hackneyed role, Constance Ford (in a rare sympathetic role), and Hampton Francher (impressive as a nerdy student). The romantic heart of the film is a trip the two "lovers" take together to Tuscany and Lombardy (while trying to keep their relationship secret from others). The gorgeous Italian scenery and the excellent cinematography combined with Max Steiner's Nino-Rota-influenced score make it quite the blissful holiday.

Yes, it's dated and a lot of the dialogue is ridiculous. Clichés abound. The plot creaks. But it's fun. I'd love to see it again.

ROME ADVENTURE has two things going for it: Gorgeous photography of famous Italian landmarks and landscapes, and a lush and very appropriate Max Steiner score that makes the most of "Al Di La." The scenery alone is worth giving the film at least 6 points, so it's a shame that the boy meets girl/boy loses girl/boy wins girl plot is so tiresome and moves at a snail's pace. By concentrating on the music and the scenery though, you can get a lot of pleasure from just watching this travelogue unfold.

And, of course, no film about Italy in the '60s would be complete without the suave presence of ROSSANO BRAZZI as the older man that SUSANNE PLESHETTE finds hard to resist. But it's her affair with TROY DONAHUE--the blond Tab Hunter type of the '60s that teen-age girls swooned over--that occupies most of the story. The real life attraction between Pleshette and Donahue is evident in many of their flirtatious scenes. Alas, their good chemistry should have been given a more substantial script.

The "other woman" role is ably played by ANGIE DICKINSON, who wears her stunning outfits to great effect. With all the eye candy going on, it's easy to see why ROME ADVENTURE was an easy pill to swallow.

Max Steiner certainly comes to the rescue with a handsome score, its main source of pleasure being repeated hearings of the song "Al Di La." Summing up: Pleasurable fluff will have you dreaming of a luxurious vacation in the Italian alps.

The first thing you have to ask yourself about this film is is it a travelogue about Rome or is it a a romance movie??? Eighty percent of the film is Troy Donahue and Suzanne Pleshette riding around Rome on a motor scooter while the camera pans all the historical sights in Rome. I have never learned so much about Rome all rolled up into one film!!! Troy Donahue, who was at the peak of his career in soap operas when this film was made gives another super soaper-doaper heart throb performance. Donahue was riding high with soapers like "Imitation of Life", "Parrish", "Susan Slade" and "A Summer Place"......the following year he was another hearthrob in the light headed "Palm Springs Weekend" with Stephanie Powers. In Rome Adventure Donahue is a student mired in Rome in a love mixup with the lovely Angie Dickinson and a young, very young Suzanne Pleshette. Who does he like better...sort of hard to figure at points in the film....Donahue runs around the entire film chasing both women. Rosanno Brazzi plays a very suave Italian gentlemen who is of wealth in Rome and tries to fall in love with Pleshette but he appears to be many years older than her.....it just wont work with a 20 year age difference!!! Substance wise this film did not give Brazzi the actor appeal he showed in "South Pacific"......in that film he was the hearthrob.....the famous "Al Di La" song rang out throughout the whole film and was a record hit in the US in 1962 from the movie soundtrack. All in all this film is a soaper special......teenage and young girls no doubt flocked to the theaters to see Donahue in 62 at the height of his career. Angie Dickinson had second fiddle in this film and you wonder how she liked playing second fiddle to Pleshette. The venerable Constance Ford, who usually plays a mother from hell is top notch as the owner of a book store in Rome where Pleshette gets a job....she was always a Delmer Daves favorite for his soap operas. Check out her voracious, aggressive dog..... This is a film that Warren Beatty probably could have played at the time too.....he and Donahue were top Hollywood hearthrobs at this time in the early 60s.....however, Beatty usually chose much more complex characters with mixed emotions like in "Splendor in the Grass" and "All Fall Down".......as for Rome Adventure cook up some popcorn and relax to a nice little love story from the early 60s when romance was more on the sweet side.

Rome Adventure is not only intrinsically enjoyable but is an excellent illustration of the power of restraint, innuendo, and "naughtiness" in romance films. It was made just before the dam broke and everything was allowed to go in movies. The lovebirds' struggle over whether to end Suzanne Pleshette's virginity has a charm, heat even, that cannot exist amidst the too-much-information sex scenes we see today. Boxed-in attitudes manifested in Rome Adventure make the slightest double entendre unexpected and powerful, even giggly. The kissing is tender and tongueless but very intimate for all that. I have no interest in promoting abstinence in life or in film, but see this picture and then try telling yourself that nothing was lost when big screen freedom came in.