Audrey Hepburn: Love in the Afternoon... Review and Style Highlights

[Spoiler alert]

I discovered this gem of a cute romantic comedy on netflix this week... while the plot is improbable, Audrey Hepburn is absolutely adorable. After looking at these stills, I think you'll agree with me. What's less certain, is if a man used to sleeping with numerous women and not becoming emotionally attached can turn around and stay faithful to one woman. If so, then this is the tale of a lifetime... :)

Basically, the story is about a private detective and his overly inquisitive daughter...

After reading through his files, Ariane (Hepburn) is filled with admiration for the romantic tales they contain. Unfortunately the files mainly contain illicit flings, and her father tries to warn her against them. She however has other ideas and upon hearing that one client is planning on murdering a certain ladies man (Frank Flannagan) that her father has been watching, she decides to step in and save him.

Only, the man in question, Mr. Flannagan (Gary Cooper)... realizes that Ariane is actually a very interesting woman. From that point on, he tries to figure out who she is... and when she falls for him, she ends up working on making him jealous. The part I don't get, is how her father lets them go off and get married, knowing as he does Mr Flannagan's past history. It's a tale essentially a tale of 1950's honor and societal expectations. While the story may not be wise to imitate in real life, it is fun watching.

Now, for the fun part... the style in this movie is amazing. I wish girls still dressed like this... seriously, it may be slightly less practical but it is so much more attractive. And by attractive, I don't mean the sexy in tight jeans/miniskirt technique used by some girls today... but a real wholesome sexy, feminine, and yet not slutty look. There is absolutely nothing wrong with a woman who looks feminine and cute... that is as The Mirror of Graces instructs us, that modesty is the most attractive thing that exists. In effect, it's the balance between enticing and good taste that makes for an exquisite and delicious wardrobe.

Look at the way the skirts are designed... people used to get a dress and not just a tightly wrapped towel-like thing...

And even when they were tighter, they still had length and give :)

For the opera, strapless with gloves and elegant binoculars... a total win! :)

And look at her jacket... this is so much more stylish than the bolero's that many girls today use to make their strapless outfits more 'modest'.

And I really want a tailcoat, etc. for white tie... I'm going to start with a tux (black tie), but this is my dream! :)

And this coat is lovely! It flatters her figure in the best possible way, and does it elegantly.

I'll close this out with a snapshot of her saying goodnight to Mr. Flannagan one evening... :)