Product: The Audrey Hepburn Story [VHS] (2000)
Rating: 2.0
Ms. Hewitt misses the essence of Hepburn
I wondered when I watched this movie why anyone who had the reckless incomprehensible desire to produce a biopic on Audrey Hepburn would have cast Jennifer Love Hewitt in the role. Then I saw that she was the producer.If I were trying to be ugly, I'd say that Ms. Hewitt's portrayal amounts to a cheap knockoff of the completely unique Audrey, but that's not really true. It was more like one of those expensive Hollywood star dolls put out by The Franklin Mint. The clothes and pose are close but the indefinable essence is missing particularly from the face, which is vacant and doll-like bearing little resemblance to the real thing.This movie had one of Audrey Hepburn's swains say something like, "Just let us look at you." And it was true that Audrey Hepburn was something to look at, but the most vital part of her considerable charm was the fact that she was looking back, engaged, interested, fearless, which is why she did well as characters with questing spirits like Holly Golightly, and like Sister Luke and even Princess Ann. She made you feel the absolute need she had to connect with the world and other people.Ms. Hewitt would have done well to try and capture that essence rather than busy herself with copying the Hepburn mannerisms and accent rather poorly. The one time she comes close to the spirit that was Audrey Hepburn is in the scene where an older actress is trying to help her line readings for the part of Gigi on Broadway. For one brief, all too brief moment you felt the character's eagerness to learn, her satisfaction and joy at having mastered something difficult. And I thought, "Yes, it could have happened like that."I don't know who directed Ms. Hewitt, but she was not well served. Too bad.