Breakfast at Tiffany's
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| Breakfast at Tiffany's | |
|---|---|
 Movie poster from 1961 |
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| Directed by | Blake Edwards |
| Produced by | Martin Jurow & Richard Shepherd |
| Written by | Truman Capote (novel) George Axelrod (screenplay) |
| Starring | Audrey Hepburn George Peppard Patricia Neal Buddy Ebsen Martin Balsam Mickey Rooney |
| Music by | Henry Mancini |
| Cinematography | Franz Planer & Philip H. Lathrop |
| Editing by | Howard A. Smith |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
| Release date(s) | October 5, 1961 |
| Running time | 115 min. |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $2,500,000 |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
- For other uses of "Breakfast at Tiffany's", see Breakfast at Tiffany's (disambiguation).
Breakfast at Tiffany's is the 1961 Oscar-winning movie starring Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard, and featuring Patricia Neal, Buddy Ebsen, Martin Balsam, and Mickey Rooney. It was directed by Blake Edwards. The portrayal of Holly Golightly as the naive, eccentric socialite is generally considered to be Audrey Hepburn's most memorable and identifiable role. She herself regarded it as one of her most challenging roles to play, as she was an introvert who had to play an extrovert. Ms Hepburn's singing of "Moon River" helped garner an Oscar for Best Song for composer Henry Mancini and lyricist Johnny Mercer. The film also featured what was arguably George Peppard's greatest acting role and the high point of his career. The film is based on the novella of the same name by Truman Capote.
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[edit] The screenplay
The Oscar-nominated screenplay was written by George Axelrod, loosely based on the novella by Truman Capote.
To Capote's displeasure, a number of changes were made to make the storyline acceptable to a film audience and fans of Audrey Hepburn and to adapt the story to fit the medium of cinema. Capote's novella included language that was toned down for the film. The character of 2E (Patricia Neal) was invented for the movie. And the film changed the novella's unresolved, open ending to a more conventional "Hollywood" romantic happy ending.
It's a Hollywood myth that Capote wanted Marilyn Monroe to play Holly and may have written the original story with her in mind. The "reason" given as to why Monroe didn't get the part was that she was launching her movie career at the time and her manager felt that a call girl character might get her a bad reputation, so therefore the producers selected Hepburn instead. However, it should be noted that by 1961, Monroe already had a successful movie career, therefore the myth is entirely inaccurate.
[edit] Summary
The movie is about Holly Golightly, a young woman always on the run from herself. Lacking a stable childhood, she marries at the age of fourteen, has the marriage annulled, moves to Hollywood to start a film career, leaves Hollywood for New York (where she earns money as a (non-sexual) escort and by unknowingly carrying coded messages for an incarcerated mafia boss), and plans to leave New York for Brazil to marry one of the world's richest men.
The main plot of the movie is Holly's relationship with neighbor Paul Varjak, who has confidence problems of his own. The story explores the relationship between Holly and Paul, Holly and her other paramours, and the resolution that occurs within Holly's own mind and between Holly and Paul. The film includes Audrey Hepburn singing the original performance of "Moon River" and the famous closing sequence that shows Paul's "lecture" to Holly and Holly's self-discovery of who she really is and who makes her truly happy. The film ends with a famous scene in the rain.
It has been rumored that the film's on-location opening sequence, in which Holly gazes into a Tiffany’s display window, was extremely difficult for director Blake Edwards to film. Although it was simple in concept, crowd control, Hepburn's dislike for pastries, and an accident that nearly resulted in the electrocution of a crew member are all said to have made capturing the scene a challenge. However, Edwards, in an interview given for the 45th anniversary DVD, said that the sequence was captured rather quickly due to the good fortune of an unexpected traffic lull despite the location in the heart of Manhattan.
Audrey Hepburn introduced the film's signature song, "Moon River", by Henry Mancini, with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. Sung by Hepburn herself, it was written to her singing range as she was not an experienced singer (although she had performed vocal solos in 1957's Funny Face). However, her definitive version of the song was not released on an album until after her death. Instead, "Moon River" became a major hit for Andy Williams, who made it his theme song. Soul singer Jerry Butler also charted with it, and before Andy. According to Mancini and Edwards, a studio executive hated the song and demanded it be cut from the film; Hepburn, who was present when this proclamation was made, responded to the suggestion by standing up and saying, "over my dead body."
Wisp-thin Audrey Hepburn as Holly, carrying a cigarette holder, is considered one of the iconic images of 20th century American cinema. The film rejuvenated the career of 1930s movie song-and-dance man Buddy Ebsen, who had a small but effective role in this film as Doc Golightly, Holly's ex-husband. His success here led directly to him being cast in his best-known role as Jed Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies.
Some critics consider the film's sole blunder to be Mickey Rooney's racially stereotyped performance as Holly's Japanese neighbor. In the 45th anniversary edition DVD release, producer Richard Shepherd repeatedly apologizes for this; Edwards does not. Edwards does, however, indicate that he would not have cast George Peppard in the lead male role of the film if he were to do it over again.
[edit] Academy Awards
| Ratings | |
|---|---|
| Argentina: | Atp |
| Australia: | PG |
| Finland: | K-16 |
| Iceland: | L |
| Netherlands: | AL |
| Sweden: | 15 |
| United Kingdom: | PG |
| United States: | Approved |
[edit] Award wins
- Grammy Award for Best Soundtrack Album or Recording or Score – (John Addison)
- WGA for Best Written American Drama – (George Axelrod)
[edit] Award nominations
[edit] Cast
- Audrey Hepburn: Holly Golightly
- George Peppard: Paul "Fred" Varjak
- Patricia Neal: 2E
- Buddy Ebsen: Doc Golightly
- Martin Balsam: O. J. Berman
- José Luis de Villalonga: José da Silva Pereira
- Mickey Rooney: Mr. Yunioshi
- John McGiver: Tiffany's salesman
- Alan Reed: Sally Tomato
- Dorothy Whitney: Mag Wildwood
- Stanley Adams: Rusty Trawler
- Claude Stroud: Sid Arbuck
- Orangey: Cat (trained by Frank Inn)
[edit] DVD availability
Breakfast at Tiffany's was one of the first Audrey Hepburn films to be released to the home video market in the early 1980s, and is also widely available on DVD. On February 7, 2006, Paramount released a 45th anniversary special edition DVD set in North America with featurettes not included on the prior DVD release. These include a widescreen-only restored print of the film, commentary track by producer Richard Shepherd, a tribute to Audrey Hepburn, a brief history of Tiffany & Co., and an accounting of Audrey Hepburn's letter to Tiffany & Co. on the occasion of the company's 150th anniversary in 1987. A featurette on the making of the film is also included, featuring interviews with Blake Edwards, Patricia Neal, the "laughing/crying" woman from the party scene, and Sean Ferrer (Hepburn's son).
[edit] Tributes
In 1995, the Texas band Deep Blue Something had a hit with a song called "Breakfast at Tiffany's." The song is about a crumbling relationship between two people with nothing in common except that they "both kinda liked" the film Breakfast at Tiffany's. The song reached the top five in the United States and number one in the United Kingdom.
In 1966, David Merrick produced a Broadway musical of the same name. The troubled production closed after four previews.
The band Jets to Brazil takes their name from the poster seen in Holly's apartment.
The Japanese toy company Jun Planning produced a doll based on Holly Golightly, for the March 2006 Pullip doll.
The Gossip Girl series often mentions Hepburn and the film.
[edit] Trivia
- In the original novella Mag Wildwood, a model with a stuttering problem, moves into Holly's apartment after Holly falls-out with the novelist upstairs. The true nature of the relationship is not detailed in the book although both characters are described as heterosexual and both engage in subsequent heterosexual relationships later in the story. Wildwood still appears briefly in the film, a guest at the party at Holly's, with her stutter intact.
- In a letter to his aunt, Mary Ida Faulk Carter, Truman Capote wrote that Marilyn Monroe would play Holly Golightly in the film version of his tale - a role that producers instead gave to Audrey Hepburn.
- Steve McQueen was offered the role of Paul Varjak but was unable to appear due to his Wanted: Dead or Alive contract.
- George Peppard was a student of method acting, a style Hepburn found difficult to work with. Nonetheless, the two actors remained close friends until her death.
- It was made into a play that was a giant flop that closed after previews. When a new screenwriter was hired, he made drastic changes.
- One of three dresses designed by Givenchy for Audrey Hepburn for possible use in the movie sold at auction by Christie's [1] on December 5, 2006 for £467'200 (~US$800,000), about seven times the reserve price. [2]
[edit] External links
- Breakfast at Tiffany's at the Internet Movie Database
- Breakfast At Tiffany's On The Cast Album Database
| The works of Audrey Hepburn |
|---|
| Feature films Dutch in Seven Lessons (1948) | Laughter in Paradise (1951) | Young Wives' Tale (1951) | One Wild Oat (1951) | The Lavender Hill Mob (1951) Monte Carlo Baby (1951) | We Will All Go to Monte Carlo (1952) | The Secret People (1952) | Roman Holiday (1953) | Sabrina (1954) War and Peace (1956) | Funny Face (1957) | Love in the Afternoon (1957) | Green Mansions (1959) | The Nun's Story (1959) | The Unforgiven (1960) Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) | The Children's Hour (1961) | Charade (1963) | Paris, When It Sizzles (1964) | My Fair Lady (1964) How to Steal a Million (1966) | Two For The Road (1967) | Wait Until Dark (1967) | Robin and Marian (1976) | Bloodline (1979) | They All Laughed (1981) Always (1989) (cameo) |
| Television Mayerling (1957) | Love Among Thieves (1987) | Gardens of the World with Audrey Hepburn (1993) |
| Works by Truman Capote |
|---|
| Novels: Summer Crossing · The Grass Harp · The Thanksgiving Visitor · Other Voices, Other Rooms
Breakfast at Tiffany's · Answered Prayers: The Unfinished Novel |
