Missives

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Location: Rochester, Minnesota, United States

Saturday, April 28, 2007

Isn't It Romantic


What with spring in the air - flowers blooming, birds nesting, bees...being...I can't help but be reminded of the old saying that goes...hmmm...how does it go..."Spring is the time when young men's minds turn to flights of fancy"...or is it "spring is the time when young men's flights become fancy"? Maybe it's "Now is the spring of our discontent". Anyway, romance is in the air. It happens every time this year. And New Year's Eve. With large quantities of champagne.

I'm not a huge fan of 'An Affair to Remember'. I like it. It's high on the list of chick flicks. It has to be now, after Sleepless in Seattle. But tonight I dusted off the ol' Roman Holiday. The ultimate couch date DVD. Gregory Peck. Eddie Albert (perennial 50's sidekick long before Green Acres). Introducing Audrey Hepburn. The guys get to laugh through all but the last 15 minutes when the chicks take over and weep inconsolably.

How can you get more romantic than Roman Holiday? Gregory Peck, struggling newsman in Rome unwittingly saves Audrey Hepburn's Princess Anne (no bearing on the real one, of course) from a sedated sleep on the streets of Rome. Under the always misunderstood motive of cold, hard cash, Gregory Peck (Joe ...damn! I just watched it!...Belden? Ah! Bradley. Joe Bradley. I should have remembered Bradley University) woos an innocent, naive and thoroughly charming Audrey on her one day transformation into true womanhood. Come on, you know the story. Completely unaware they fall madly in love with each other. They each want to be with each other desperately and know how incredibly wonderful they would be together. No promises are made, no words are spoken, but they know. Eight frames of close ups tell us: they know. But obligations and personal duty make it impossible for these meant to be's to...well...be. (Segueing somewhat awkwardly back to the birds and the be's.) So they must content themselves with silent, requited yet denied love for all of eternity.

That kind of stuff just doesn't happen anymore. I guess I'm not sure it ever did. But you can't help but wish that somewhere in the alternate movie universe that the Princess and the Paperman are living happily ever after.


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