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The Audrey Hepburn Story
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Wikipedia article
'The Audrey Hepburn Story' is a 2000 American biographical drama television film based on the life of actress and humanitarian Audrey Hepburn. Covering the years 1935 to the 1960s, it stars Jennifer Love Hewitt, who also produced the film. Emmy Rossum and Sarah Hyland appear as Hepburn in her early years. The film was shot in Montreal, Canada, and premiered on ABC on March 27, 2000.
Plot
The film opens with Hepburn acting in the title sequence from 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' and reminiscing about her life up to that point. These include her experiences in early childhood, studying to be a ballerina, coming to grips with her parents' divorce, and life in Nazi-occupied Netherlands during World War II. She then settles in the United States where she succeeds in making it big as an actress. The film also looks at the men who woo her and her marriage to Mel Ferrer. The closing credits feature footage of the real Hepburn during one of the UNICEF missions she undertook in her later years.
Cast
* Jennifer Love Hewitt as Audrey Hepburn
* Frances Fisher as Baroness Ella van Heemstra
* Keir Dullea as Joseph Hepburn-Ruston
* Gabriel Macht as William Holden
* Peter Giles as James Hanson, Baron Hanson
* Emmy Rossum as young Audrey (ages 1216)
* Eric McCormack as Mel Ferrer
* Seana Kofoed as Kay Kendall
* Michael J. Burg as Truman Capote
* Marcel Jeannin as Hubert de Givenchy
* Sarah Hyland as young Audrey (age 8)
* Lenie Scoffi as Colette
* Ray Landry as Humphrey Bogart
* Sam Stone as William Wyler
* Swede Swensson as Gregory Peck
* Peter Feder as Billy Wilder
* Joan Copeland as Cathleen Nesbitt
* Adam MacDonald as Nick Dana
Production
Producer Kimberly Rubin sought to make a film that explored Hepburn's life in detail, beginning with her childhood and World War II experiences up to her success on stage and in film. She halted the script after the birth of Hepburn's first child, due to the age of her lead actress. Jennifer Love Hewitt, who was 21 at the time of the filming, and "[W]e would not be able to successfully age her past 33", Rubin explained. Hewitt had been recommended for the role by director Steven Robman, who had previously directed her in 'Party of Five'.
The $7 million production was filmed on location in Montreal between April 13 and May 29, 1999. Nearly 80 roles were cast. Canadian professionals involved with the film included Jean-Baptiste Tard, production design; Rene April, costume design; and Pierre Letarte, director of photography.
Release
Several versions of the film were aired. In the United States. It aired as a three-hour film on ABC on March 27, 2000, while in other countries a longer version was broadcast over two nights.
Reception
Critical reviews noted that the film overcame several potential pitfalls, including the usual insipidness of television movies and the difficulty of mounting a biopic of a revered actress who had died only seven years earlier. 'Entertainment Weekly' wrote that Jennifer Love Hewitt had "guts" to take on the role, and called her "excellent at conveying Hepburn's studied modesty". While the review describes the other actors as "a cast of impersonators who are mostly much worse than herself [Hewitt]", it sums up the film as a "corny, curious, but achingly sincere and fitfully enjoyable TV movie".
'Variety' praised the performances of the two young actresses who played Hepburn as a youth, Sarah Hyland and Emmy Rossum, saying they gave "depth and likability" to Hepburn's character and gave Hewitt, who plays Hepburn as an adult, "a ball that's already rolling". This review commended Hewitt for her "onscreen maturity". The Apollo Guide called the screenplay "a mildly pleasant surprise" for a television film and praised Hewitt's performance for conveying the "mannerisms and accent" of Hepburn without taking on a full-blown impersonation. It reserved its greatest praise for Rossum's performance, which "demonstrates both her [Hepburn's] heart and the development of her strength of character and explains, in part, why she was unique". A Moviehole.com review agreed that Hewitt conveyed "both the look, and the voice" of Hepburn, but disliked the script for presenting such a large number of scenes in Hepburn's life rather than the "most gripping" ones.
Negative reviews focused on Hewitt's inability to portray Hepburn's physical qualities. According to 'The Baltimore Sun' review: "What's impossibly wrong with this film is that Hewitt has no physical grace while Hepburn was the very embodiment of it. ... Director Steve Robman ... has to use every trick from slow motion to shooting only legs and arms of body-doubles to make it look as though Hewitt could have been a ballerina". 'Radio Times' noted the incongruity of the "buxom" actress portraying the gamine Hepburn. On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 20% based on reviews from 5 critics.
References
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