Sabrina(1954) Movie Review | Teen Ink

Sabrina(1954) Movie Review

December 6, 2023
By addiesecca BRONZE, Methuen, Massachusetts
addiesecca BRONZE, Methuen, Massachusetts
1 article 0 photos 0 comments

Who isn’t obsessed with a little cliche love triangle between two brothers and an unexpected beauty? 

     I think that everyone has gone through a time in their life where they were extremely self critical and “everyone” includes Aubrey Hepburn in her role as Sabrina in Sabrina. As a lower class and younger woman, Sabrina is in love with her father’s boss's son, David, and I mean in love.(even her dog is named after him!) He never truly saw Sabrina until she came back from Paris, a new woman. She finally begins to woo him with her new hairdo and knowledge from an older man she met in Paris. And just like in her dreams, she falls into his arms. Unbeknownst to her, a business deal is on the verge of going through for The Larabees, the family Sabrina’s father works for. This deal left no room for the lust and obsessions growing between David and Sabrina. David’s older, wiser brother Linus, has put everything into this deal and can’t let it slip away, so he attempts his brother’s playboy ways to turn Sabrina’s head away from David.  

     The dream of “happily ever after” is a complete fantasy but not for Sabrina Fairchild, She believes that it is achievable, even for the daughter of a chauffeur for the Larabees, who own a huge company. The Larabee Family, wife, husband and two sons, David and Linus are the owners of the Larabee Corporation. David is your typical playboy, juggling women in one hand, drinking champagne in the other. While his older brother Linus, is his “father’s son” and a huge asset to the Larabee Corporation. Both brothers saw Sabrina as their chauffeur’s daughter, hardly ever acknowledging her even though her whole life has been dedicated to winning over David and being as beautiful as the women he has loved. After her return from Paris, she not only catches the attention of David Larabee, but in some ways, Linus’s too.

     The movie, Sabrina, was directed by Billy Wilder in 1954. It stars Aubrey Hepburn as Sabrina, Humphrey Bogart as Linus Larabee and William Holden as David Larabee. It was filmed in the George Lewis Mansion and overall, as the movie states, in New York. Sabrina shows how love and money classes affect people using the love triangle between two wealthy sons and their chauffeur’s daughter.

     This movie’s soundtrack plays a huge part in not only mood and tone, but Sabrina’s decisions in love. Before Sabrina went to Paris, she saw life from a negative point of view, deciding that she is worth nothing if not David’s love. She never truly knew who she was and fighting for David, made her lose herself even more. Although she never truly finds out “who she is”, she is taught to look at life through “rose colored glasses”, and see how truly unrealistic perfection is. The rose colored glasses are a symbol to live life in optimism and make the best out of every situation. She adapts the ability to let things go.

     If you’re a hopeless romantic like me, I definitely recommend watching Sabrina. Like most people, I’ve always been a fan of Aubrey Hepburn as she is a beautiful and incredibly talented actress. Although a lot of teenagers now see a movie in black and white and gasp in horror, I do quite the opposite. I love older romance movies because of the way they show us that love can be a good thing, not all heartbreak and pain, as love is viewed nowadays. As I’ve made clear, david is a typical playboy and plays music to “woo his women” and while Linus tries to get the attention of Sabrina, he tries his brother’s tactics but ends up almost making a fool of himself showing how he wasn’t afraid to show himself for the woman he wanted. 


The author's comments:

My name is Addison. I am a huge rom-com fan, I enjoy drawing, writing poetry and I am big into music. This piece is a review of one of my favorite romance movies, Sabrina.


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