Determined to cure her of this hopeless crush, her brisk and butlerish father
banishes her to a job in Paris where he (somehow) has a contact
at Vogue. This glamorous world weaves its spell and she returns to
Long Island transformed into a ravishing creature that David (unaware of her
identity) will pick up in his car at the drop of a hat. But David’s current
fiancée (Lauren Holly) just happens to be the daughter of a major
rival dynasty, so it falls to Linus to divert Sabrina before she ruins a
successful business marriage.
Remaking the 1954 film, Sabrina is at once a repackage of Harrison
Ford and a showcase for Julia Ormond. On the first count, it doesn’t really
hack it: Ford has all the boyish charm and the necessary insecurity, but the
role also requires us to believe that underneath the pleasant façade
he’s actually a complete and utter bastard who values the family business
above all else. But he’s just too nice here. (Whatever happened to the
brutish heavy he played in 1974’s The Conversation?) On the second
count, though, hack it the movie does: Ormond - finally given a role that has
more to it than merely playing second fiddle to Sean Connery (First
Knight) or Brad Pitt, (Legends Of The Fall) steals the film from
under Harrison Ford’s nose with an utterly beguiling and thoroughly assured
performance.
On Laserdisc, both the improved picture and the CD quality sound make quite
a difference over the VHS version; however, widescreen presentation makes
less of an impact. This movie has been shot with 1.33:1 television screens
very much in mind and although 1.85:1 looks better (particularly in opening
shots of the Larabee mansions and estate and later footage of Parisian
fountains), there’s little gain in terms of information otherwise lost off
telly sides in the VHS pan and scan version.
The disc also boasts some decidedly odd chaptering. If Chapter 7 begins where
you’d want it to with Sabrina/Ormond getting off the bus on her return from
Paris - in the middle of the likeable main music theme - Chapter 2 (the real
oddity) starts not before the establishing shots of the Seine and the offices
of Paris Vogue (where you want it), but just after. This chapter
doesn’t even wait until the music stops - no rhyme or reason there at all.
While the side change is sensible (if a bit brusque), Pioneer have managed to
squeeze 122 minutes on to two CLV sides, making the disc extremely good value
for money as far as running length goes.
Sabrina is, in the end, a charming romantic fable - enjoyable enough
entertainment if not especially challenging to the grey matter. This PAL disc
is undoubtedly the best way to see it in the home.
As of April 2009, Blu-rays and DVDs reviewed by the editor are watched on a Panasonic TH-37PX80B
37" Plasma TV with a Sony BDP-1500 Blu-ray player and played through a Yamaha DSP-AX820 amplifier.
PC games reviewed by the editor are on:
Since Jan 2011: Intel Quad Core Dell XPS 8100, i7 CPU 860 @ 2.80Ghz, 8Gb RAM, nVidia GeForce GTS 240, Windows 7
Since Nov 2005: Intel Pentium D 830 3.0Ghz, 1Gb RAM, 128Mb nVidia GeForce 6700XL, Windows XP
Since Aug 2003: Intel Pentium 4 2.66Ghz, 512Mb RAM, 128Mb GeForce4 MX440 graphics, Windows XP
Since May 2003: Intel Pentium 4 2.6Ghz, 512Mb RAM, 128Mb ATI Radeon 9600TX graphics, Windows XP
Since Jun 2002: Intel Pentium III 600Mhz, 384Mb RAM, Windows 98 SE, 64Mb ATI Radeon 8500LE
Since May 2000: Intel Pentium III 600Mhz, 384Mb RAM, Windows 98 SE, Voodoo 3 3000 AGP
