In 1964, Audrey Hepburn and William Holden were among the very top movie stars in the world. Because of this and their excellent track records, you would expect "Paris When It Sizzles" to be a very good if not a great film. Well, this would be a mistake, as even though the film featured these two likable and bankable stars, it's a terrible movie--a complete misfire and a waste of their talents as well as Tony Curtis' and Mel Ferrer's (Hepburn's husband at the time)--who appear in a few short cameos. I have no idea if the film lost money, though I am pretty sure it must have. It also, according to IMDb, was Audrey Hepburn's least favorite among her films.
William Holden plays an alcoholic* playboy who occasionally takes time off from this busy schedule to write a film here or there. He's been under the gun to stop his partying and get to work when he hires a new secretary (Audrey Hepburn). Most of the rest of the picture consists of the pair talking out the plot to a particularly stupid film. And, as they talk, you see the pair acting out the film as if they are the stars. You also see that despite Holden's best efforts, they fall in love.
"Paris When It Sizzles" sure has the look of a vanity project. The film is way too cute and self-aware. And, if he love the joke or are a die-hard Hepburn fan (and there are some who simply cannot accept that this actress EVER made a bad film), then you'll probably like the film. But the end results are not particularly convincing and the film that the pair talk about throughout the film is just plain stupid. Overall, the film comes off as boring inside joke.
*This is a sad case of art imitating life, as Holden was rather notorious for his heavy drinking that appears to have helped put him in an early grave. This seems to a rather bad inside joke--referring to his drinking problems (which, according to IMDb, were severe enough to force him into rehab just before the actual filming was complete).
William Holden plays an alcoholic* playboy who occasionally takes time off from this busy schedule to write a film here or there. He's been under the gun to stop his partying and get to work when he hires a new secretary (Audrey Hepburn). Most of the rest of the picture consists of the pair talking out the plot to a particularly stupid film. And, as they talk, you see the pair acting out the film as if they are the stars. You also see that despite Holden's best efforts, they fall in love.
"Paris When It Sizzles" sure has the look of a vanity project. The film is way too cute and self-aware. And, if he love the joke or are a die-hard Hepburn fan (and there are some who simply cannot accept that this actress EVER made a bad film), then you'll probably like the film. But the end results are not particularly convincing and the film that the pair talk about throughout the film is just plain stupid. Overall, the film comes off as boring inside joke.
*This is a sad case of art imitating life, as Holden was rather notorious for his heavy drinking that appears to have helped put him in an early grave. This seems to a rather bad inside joke--referring to his drinking problems (which, according to IMDb, were severe enough to force him into rehab just before the actual filming was complete).