Ending was great.. Just how I wanted!!! SPOILER
Many other 'Hollywood' endings would have ended the opposite way. Congrats to Roman Holiday for keeping it real.
shareThe perfect ending to a perfect movie!
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MovieChat Forums > Roman Holiday (1953) Discussion > Ending was great.. Just how I wanted!!! ...
Just don't watch it before you go to bed! What's my favourite romantic movie? Rome, by all means, Rome. But I gotta say, it leaves you feeling morose now and then. Maybe I should go watch "My Fair Lady" now...
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For me, the second the words "The End" come up over that magnificent final shot, the film goes from being an above-average 'It Happened One Night' remake to something far more.
I think it's the way it subverts your expectations that makes you consider what went before in a totally different light, as her 24 hours of fun and freedom with Joe become hugely more poignant and touching than if she had just ended up running away altogether. All she gets is this one fleeting glimpse of normal life, but it's enough, and it'll always be their cherished secret.
The ending absolutely makes the film, in my opinion. A real masterpiece!
I think it's the way it subverts your expectations that makes you consider what went before in a totally different light, as her 24 hours of fun and freedom with Joe become hugely more poignant and touching than if she had just ended up running away altogether. All she gets is this one fleeting glimpse of normal life, but it's enough, and it'll always be their cherished secret.Well put, nnerveanaa!
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Call me the typical Hollywood ending lover, but I disliked the ending because it was so sad. It's sad how Princess Ann would continue to have a miserable life, even if she did have the memories of that one day...
I would have loved to see a romantic, happy ending, no matter how 'Hollywood' it would be.
billy_sanchez69 is right - "Just don't watch it before you go to bed!"
Needless to say, I DID watch it right before going to bed...
HARRY&GINNY2008.
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This is not so simplistic, but she DIDN'T have a "miserable life", just a life she wasn't quite ready to live... she needed a little life experience, and the point of the film is that in 24 hours, she learned what she needed to conduct herself going forward. To make it a simple "love story" would have belittled the significance of her responsibility as well as his self-control over the desire to capitalize on the story.
Remember that this was 17 years after Edward took Wallis Simpson and left the throne of England, and the concept was no fictional fairy tale but a real life situation, and the decision to be faced was as realistic as it was poignant and heart-wrenching.
In my opinion, a perfect film perfectly cast and directed.
Joe and Ernie gave up a huge opportunity for the princess. That is sweet.
But I wish the princess did them some favor.
I mean, now Joe owes a grand to his boss and months of rent to that Via Marcuta owner, moreover he spent some amount for her...
It was also *right* around the time that Princess Margaret renounced her relationship with Peter Townsend, another commoner--also in the name of duty. It's amazing how true to current events the whole basic emotional conflict was, because I'm pretty sure the story wasn't actually inspired by Princess Margaret's dilemma--it was a coincidence.
I love the ending--perfectly bittersweet. That last scene, as they say everything with their eyes, and through their halting exchanges: "I am...so glad to hear you say it." Oh, it just brings tears to your eyes.
but I disliked the ending because it was so sad.You shouldn't dislike things because they're sad, but because they're ugly. The ending of Roman Holiday is sad, but beautiful. No doubt the most realistic ending of any film I saw.
"Life isn't always what one likes... is it?"
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I completely understand the ending, and how it realistically workedfortheplot...but at the same time, I couldn't help but want Anne and Joe to end up together. Call me a typical Hollywood viewer, but I just wanted them with each other!
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"We've all got massive egos, my dear." -Freddie Mercury
Crazy Diamond #20
Somewhat agreed. I absolutely loved how it made her one day as a normal girl into something she would cherish for the rest of her life, but it was also kind of like, I love the classic Hollywood ending. I would have loved Joe Bradley and Princess Ann to stay together....but it's just not realistic. And I watched it before bed too lol.
Congrats to Roman Holiday for keeping it real.
I should have read this discussion before I watched the movie as Ive just watched it before bed and now cant sleep - a warning should be put out at the beginning! It is refreshing for a Hollywood ending to shock a viewer but I couldnt help but be disapointed they didnt end up together, Wyler purposely dragged out Jos exit so that we all think Anns going to call out to him - its just mean!
shareI know I agree. The way it was ending I thought that she would race out and yell his name. I'm kind of torn between what I would have liked the ending to be. In a way I like how it ended. But it would have been pretty cool for them to get together in the end.
Screws fall out all the time, the worlds an imperfect place. - The Breakfast Club
God, I know! I was waiting and only realised at the very end when he turns back slightly. I didn't think I was saccharine but I'm sitting here with my lower lip stuck out feeling VERY upset :P
At least I didn't watch it before bed.
Yeah, the ending was realistic, which I give points to. As evident in the horrible "The Prince and Me," trying to force an everyday person with royalty is not all jewels and tiaras.
shareWell for The Prince and Me, it's just that the dialogue in the graduation scene seemed forced. It was what people probably wanted to hear, but just saying it doesn't make it so, especially with royalty's power in present day.
shareI am guessing from this board that they don't end up together.
I don't think i am gonig to watch it ={ lol
It shouldn't always be the end of the world if the couple gets together. It's thinking like that brings out generic romantic comedies with no thought or real feelings involved.
Besides, she's a princess! If you want the Happily Ever After setup (despite a character being royalty), there are the fairytales that brought about this setup, or picking up a romance novel (unless you're waiting for Prince William to marry Kate Middleton, just like the press is).
The first time I saw it, that ending cemented me as a fan, since most romances almost always end with the couple united at the end.
"I...Drink...YOUR...MILKSHAKE!!" -Daniel Plainview, "There Will Be Blood"
I thought the ending was brilliantly sad.
It probably would have been too cliche for her to run after him but I so desperately wanted her to! When The End came up I was shouting "WHAT???" at the screen!
I'm reading your entry about P. William and Kate Middleton from March 2009 on April 29, 2011 and they just got married today. Funny.
Well like the person said, the press was waiting for a long time for Prince William to marry Kate Middleton and make her a princess. I think the press said they could have had about a 10 year-old kid for the time since they met, although there was a break during that period.
shareI agree, it was perfect. As you said, not the cliché Hollywood ending. It's heartbreaking, but also romantic and bittersweet. A great film, and brilliantly acted by Gregory and Audrey. It’s a shame that those two did not make another film together, they have such great chemistry.
Elizabeth Bennet: Do you dance Mr. Darcy?
Mr. Darcy: Not if I can help it.
Just finished watching this gem (again). I think the fact that I ~SO~ want there to be a different ending is the reason this ending is perfect.
shareEverybody keeps gushing about how "sad" the ending of this film is... what about the pessimism of it? What about the fact that Joe is making the STUPIDEST DECISION OF ALL TIME by not printing the story? It's not just that he doesn't get the girl in the end--he's about to lose tons of money to his boss and he's going to remain at the same miserable job he's been at in Italy. Going back to New York? Probably not.
"What I don't understand is how we're going to stay alive this winter."
Ah come on! She knows where he lives, his name and also where he works. She could always write to him using her Smitty alias and remain in touch for as long as she wanted. It's not uncommon for celebrities and powerful people to have friendships of this kind.
At the very least he would always get professional preference for the occasional journalistic favors, interviews, etc. After all, she owes both men a HUGE deal, considering the gigantic favor they did her by killing such a scandalous story and pictures; it would be the least she could do. And in return she has a true friend and ally in the press.
What about the fact that Joe is making the STUPIDEST DECISION OF ALL TIME by not printing the story? It's not just that he doesn't get the girl in the end--he's about to lose tons of money to his boss and he's going to remain at the same miserable job he's been at in Italy. Going back to New York? Probably not.
Not everyone is that cheap.
Besides, by the end of the film both Irving and Hennessy know what has happened. share