# Breakfast at Tiffany's: What's the Appeal? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 10, 2001, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461 "2001-10-10T00:44:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![tsunamisurfer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a698b9/32.png) [@tsunamisurfer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tsunamisurfer)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/1 "2001-10-10T00:44:32Z")
Okay, I’ll confess. I enjoyed this 1961 movie with Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard. And, yes, Henry Mancini’s score was simply incredible. I’ll also concede that the movie has a certain panache, is clever and sometimes funny. That said, why do so many people consider it an absolute classic? Was it a triumph of style over substance? What’s your take on Breakfast at Tiffany’s? ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/2 "2001-10-10T02:17:29Z")
Well, Deep Blue Something liked it. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/3 "2001-10-10T02:31:02Z")
Maybe because of Hepburn herself? ---
**Author:** ![Infidel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/839c29/32.png) [@Infidel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infidel)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/4 "2001-10-10T02:39:25Z")
I thought it was an excellent movie. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/5 "2001-10-10T02:41:34Z")
Well, Guinastasia has nailed it, as far as I’m concerned. There’s something about Audrey Hepburn in this movie that’s just…right. She’s a great actress in general, but this is my favorite movie with her in it, because she makes her character alive(Does anyone else’s heart break when she’s looking for Cat in the rain?) That, and the whole subtly tortured romance thing with “Fred” in this movie does it for me. ---
**Author:** ![frock75](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ad7895/32.png) [@frock75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/frock75)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/6 "2001-10-10T02:52:55Z")
I fell in love with Audrey Hepburn the first time I watched that movie. ---
**Author:** ![Violet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/ebca7d/32.png) [@Violet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Violet)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/7 "2001-10-10T03:43:19Z")
Very classy. I like everything with A. Hepburn in it. ---
**Author:** ![Zenster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/cdc98d/32.png) [@Zenster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zenster)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/8 "2001-10-10T06:07:31Z")
Another vote for A.H. in the cat scene. What a classy dame! ---
**Author:** ![Nacho4Sara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Nacho4Sara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nacho4Sara)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/9 "2001-10-10T06:15:52Z")
I love Audrey Hepburn in this movie - she IS Holly Golightly, she absolutely becomes the character. And I love the juxtaposition of what both Holly and Paul appear to be and what they actually are - it’s amazing. The “Moon River” scene on the fire escapes is my favorite part, but the ending is wonderful. It’s the odd feeling I get after watching the movie - that I want to be Holly for obvious reasons but not really - that makes me watch it again and again. ---
**Author:** ![tsunamisurfer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a698b9/32.png) [@tsunamisurfer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tsunamisurfer)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/10 "2001-10-10T13:01:54Z")
**Allow me to add…** After 40 years, Breakfast at Tiffany’s still looks timeless. Another timeless movie? “Rear Window” ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/11 "2001-10-10T13:20:51Z")
Audrey Hepburn wearing Chanel? What’s not to like? Throw in Mickey Rooney as the Japanese upstair neighbor (“Miss Gorikree, I must protest!”) and you’ve got a winner. I like the party scene the best (Martin Balsam in the shower with with woman named “Irving” is priceless). ---
**Author:** ![frock75](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ad7895/32.png) [@frock75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/frock75)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/12 "2001-10-10T13:33:40Z")
[hijack] In the Bruce Lee biopic “Dragon”, Bruce goes to the movies with his girlfriend to see this movie. The look on his face during the Mickey Rooney scene, broke my heart. One of the few things I liked about “Dragon”. [/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![naughty\_wicked\_zoot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@naughty\_wicked\_zoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naughty_wicked_zoot)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/13 "2001-10-10T13:48:07Z")
i think that one of the things that people find so wonderful about this movie is hepburn’s performance. she is so perfect as holly golightly, a little country girl who moves to the big city and becomes someone else. women want to be her, and men want to meet her. hepburn is charming and graceful and beautiful. the script is well-written, the acting is superb, the music is wonderful and the settings used in the movie are perfect. in all, i think the movie is a beautiful story of love conquering fear, which is a universal theme. and yes, the scene with her looking for Cat in the rain reduces me to a blubbering mass of protoplasm every time i see it. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/14 "2001-10-10T17:54:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by plnnr \* > \*\*Audrey Hepburn wearing Chanel? What’s not to like? > > \*\* Um, actually, it was Givenchi. And actually, I have never seen the film. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/15 "2001-10-10T18:46:58Z")
AFAIK, Capote hated the thought of Hepburn in the role. He wanted…Marilyn Monroe I enjoyed the movie, not just for Ms. Hepburn (a great movie of hers, but I also love Sabrina, Roman Holiday and even Charade) but also for the concept: the phony who isn’t a phone because she believes it… The book is great, too - I thought it really read like the movie - it’s really collectible in first edition… ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/16 "2001-10-10T19:18:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by WordMan \* > **Capote…wanted…Marilyn Monroe** Man, _there’s_ a bunch of words I never thought I’d see strung together. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/17 "2001-10-10T21:05:57Z")
Another vote for Audrey Hepburn’s performance. Reading the book, I can see why Capote would have chosen Marilyn Monroe–but I know that if this movie had been an MM vehicle, it wouldn’t be one of my favorites. Hepburn is Holly Golightly for me. Her cool, chic, urbane-yet-gamin charm made her a role model for my youth. Another reason that I enjoy this movie so much is the way the romance progresses. Paul and Holly are buddies before they fall in love (in a rather interesting sexually ambiguous way). They check out millionaires together: Paul [when Madge brings the Brazilian guy to Holly’s party]: “He’s all right, if you like men who are tall, dark, and handsome with piercing eyes.” They go to strip-clubs together: Holly [coolly observing a stripper]: “Do you think she’s deeply and importantly talented?” Paul: “I think she’s superficially and amusingly talented…but not deeply and importantly talented.” (Note: I’m quoting from memory, so the above lines may be a bit off.) Not to mention my favorite scene, where Holly escapes the drunken “rat” in her apartment and runs up the fire escape to Paul’s apartment, finding the woman who’s keeping him just leaving. She climbs in the window and, after a short conversation, curls up to sleep beside him. There’s a sexy sophistication to all of this that you rarely see in movies of that era–or today, for that matter. Plus, what other movie ends with a clinch involving a man, a woman, and a dripping wet cat? (I have a great admiration for that fine feline actor who portrayed Cat, who really had to put up with a lot in that final rainy scene). ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [October 10, 2001, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/18 "2001-10-10T22:52:40Z")
Wordman-PLUUUUEEESSEEE tell me you didn’t get that from that Audrey biopic by that AWFUL Jennifer Love Spewitt? UGH!!! The THOUGHT of her playing Audrey disgusts me. I have to see that movie, though. I have the Mattel Audrey doll from the movie-in the black dress, tiara, etc etc. I even saw a tiara at Claire’s that was almost EXACTLY like Audrey’s really tiny, the kind you just put around a little bun. _sigh_ ---
**Author:** ![Nacho4Sara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Nacho4Sara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nacho4Sara)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2001, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/19 "2001-10-11T03:48:28Z")
> [@](#): > > Throw in Mickey Rooney as the Japanese upstair neighbor (“Miss Gorikree, I must protest!”) and you’ve got a winner. Actually, this is the only part of the movie I don’t like. It just smacks of racism. I’m sure it had to piss off some people in the 60’s too. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2001, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461/20 "2001-10-11T12:39:04Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Guinastasia \* > \*\*Wordman-PLUUUUEEESSEEE tell me you didn’t get that from that Audrey biopic by that AWFUL Jennifer Love Spewitt? > > \*\* Guin, I am pluuuuueeeeesssed to report that I did not see the aforementioned JLH tv movie (why would anyone allow that movie to happen? “JLH…Audrey…yeah, let’s do it!”) Anyway, I have a first edition of the book the movie is based on and was doing some research about that when I came across the Capote preferring MM for the role bit… I hope I am somewhat redeemed in your eyes… WordMan PS: Okay, if someone were to play Audrey Hepburn today, who would it be? As it stands now, the only person I think MIGHT be able to pull it off would be Natalie Portman… [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breakfast-at-tiffanys-whats-the-appeal/86461.md?page=2)