‘Sabrina’ (1954)
Billy Wilder loved romance. He loved love in all its kooky, varied complexities, whether it was the hopeless romanticism of Bud and Fran in “The Apartment” or the silly, physical barriers preventing Joe and Sugar’s dalliance in “Some Like It Hot”. His most touching romance, however, has to be “Sabrina”, which pairs a 55-year-old Humphrey Bogart against a 25-year-old Audrey Hepburn and never once references the age disparity. It is important to the plot, however, which tells the story of chauffeur’s daughter Sabrina Fairchild, who’s obsession with David, the playboy youngest son (William Holden) of the rich family her father works for, nearly turns tragic if not for the attentiveness of the family’s eldest son, Lionel, played by Bogart. After spending two years refining herself in Paris, Sabrina returns home to find David’s affections suddenly turned in her direction. At first she’s overjoyed, but as Lionel spends more time with her in an effort to push David towards another suitor, she realizes her tastes have changed and that someone more mature may in fact be better for her. In this sense, age becomes an important factor as Lionel soon realizes how time he’s spent focused on financial bottom lines rather than living his life. —HR