Breakfast at Tiffany's: 50th Anniversary Edition [Blu-Ray]

Blake Edwards

BY Robert BellPublished Oct 3, 2011

Just to get it out of the way, this 50th Anniversary Edition Blu-Ray release is almost an exact replica of the recent Centennial Collection release, only this time it's available on Blu-Ray for the first time ever, with slightly improved picture, colour that's a little too awkwardly vibrant and the same tinny sound. The extensive supplements are all the same, covering the whole racism angle by interviewing Asian film scholars about Mickey Rooney's yellow-face portrayal of Mr. Yunioshi, as well as an extensive mini-documentary about Audrey Hepburn, the making of the film, the Tiffany's label and a look behind the scenes. Some of the supplements are also available in HD, should anyone want some added clarity on interview subjects all saying the same thing. This essentially means that the only selling feature is the fact that it's Breakfast at Tiffany's on Blu-Ray. And how heart-warming it is to see a couple of self-loathing, materialistic whores fall in love with each other over a fire escape rendition of "Moon River" and an endless series of kooky shenanigans involving secret marriages and a runaway cat. In fact, what's most interesting about this – arguably the most memorable of Audrey Hepburn films – is what it says about the time that it was made. Surely, Truman Capote's reported distain of the cinematic depiction of his film – in particular the face that he envisioned more of a Marilyn Monroe-type in the role of Holly Golightly – suggests that the forced artifice of the characters and their deeply wounded psyches were a by-product of an insincere NYC culture based on materialism. But reaction to the film had people fawning over Hepburn's wardrobe and feeling fuzzy about the hesitant love story between two people looking to use others for personal gain. I guess, indirectly, audiences proved the original point.
(Paramount Pictures)

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