Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)

A young New York socialite becomes interested in a young man who has moved into her apartment building.

Director:

Blake Edwards

Writers:

Truman Capote (based on the novel by), George Axelrod (screenplay)

Stars:

Audrey Hepburn, George Peppard, Patricia Neal

Won 2 Oscars. Another 9 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Audrey Hepburn	...	Holly Golightly
George Peppard	...	Paul Varjak
Patricia Neal	...	2-E
Buddy Ebsen	...	Doc Golightly
Martin Balsam	...	O.J. Berman
José Luis de Vilallonga	...	José (as Vilallonga)
John McGiver	...	Tiffany's Salesman
Alan Reed	...	Sally Tomato
Dorothy Whitney	...	Mag Wildwood
Beverly Powers	...	Nightclub Stripper (as Miss Beverly Hills)
Stanley Adams	...	Rusty Trawler
Claude Stroud	...	Sid Arbuck
Elvia Allman	...	Librarian
Putney	...	'Cat' - a Cat (as 'Cat')
Mickey Rooney	...	Mr. Yunioshi

Storyline

Struggling writer Paul Varjak moves into a New York apartment building and becomes intrigued by his pretty, quirky neighbor Holly Golightly. Holly's lifestyle confuses and fascinates Paul; in public she flits through parties with a sexy, sophisticated air, but when they're alone she changes into a sweetly vulnerable bundle of neuroses.

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Plot Keywords:

apartment | neighbor | writer | party | cat | 

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Taglines:

Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly. . .the most hilarious heroine who ever rumpled the pages of a best-seller. . .is serving wild oats and wonderful fun!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

TV-G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Portuguese

Release Date:

4 November 1961 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Muñequita de lujo

Filming Locations:

167 East 71st Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,500,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Jurow-Shepherd

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

After seeing Buddy Ebsen in his country role in Breakfast at Tiffany's, the creator of The Beverly Hillbillies wanted him to play family patriarch Jed Clampett. At the time, Ebsen was thinking of retiring, but the producers sent him a copy of the script, and he changed his mind.

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Goofs

The door behind Holly and Paul when they enter her building has a lock with a cylinder that alternates between being right-side up and upside-down in different scenes.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Sid Arbuck: [seeing Holly enter her building] Hey!
[he chases her inside]
Sid Arbuck: Hey, baby, what's going on here?
Holly Golightly: Oh, hi!

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Connections

Referenced in Cuatro estaciones (2010)

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Soundtracks

"Moon River Cha Cha"
(1961) (uncredited)
Words by Johnny Mercer
Music by Henry Mancini

User Reviews

Audrey Hepburn - The "It" Girl of the 60s

I've loved "Breakfast at Tiffany's" since I was nine. Even before I completely understood about Holly's "profession", I was captivated by the grace and magic that was Audrey Hepburn.

George Peppard plays Paul Varjak, a writer who has to earn his living through a wealthy socialite, Patricia Neal, as her "kept" man. Audrey, who plays Holly Golightly, is a gold-digging call girl, who is looking for the right rich man to marry. Though you would think these two would be unflattering characters, they are both very charming and put on phony personas (especially in Holly's case) in order to survive.

You have to marvel at how a woman like Audrey could look so good in anything she wore. At the beginning of the movie when she first meets Peppard, she's only wearing a simple white shirt that she wears as a nightgown or at the party scene when she first comes out and greets her friend O.J. Berman wearing nothing but a sheet made up to look like a dress! Gorgeous!

It's a marvelous piece of acting when Holly first meets Paul in her apartment, and she's talking about how she has to get ready to meet one of her "clients" in jail, Sally Tomato, and she's talking about her profession, looking at herself in the mirror, getting dressed, asking Paul to find one of her shoes, etc., and then, voila! the famous basic black dress and hat with the wide brim. Very stylish - and in the scene she is given much to work with, the way she has to juggle the dialogue and the action of what she is doing all at once. Very natural and sophisticated at the same time.

Audrey is very believable as Holly because her character is someone who is pretending to be sophisticated, hanging around with phony people, but really comes from humble beginnings. Once in a while you will hear in her voice the "country-girl" drawl, and you will see through the facade of Holly Golightly who she really is. George Peppard is also very handsome and believable as the "starving" writer who also has to sell himself out in order to earn a living.

Many complaints have been made about Mickey Rooney and the "stereotypical" portrayal of the landlord Mr. Yunioshi. Yes, it is stereotyped, but nonetheless, I still thought it was funny. The party scene is one of the best in the movie - hilarious! Wonderful score by Henry Mancini. Of course it's a classic scene when Holly pulls up in front of Tiffany's in the New York taxi, drinking coffee and eating a danish in front of the window. New York City itself is like a vibrant, interesting character in the movie. I could go on and on.

And to top it all off, it's a very romantic love story about two people who find happiness in the crazy, mixed-up world we live in. A classic. Recommended to anyone who loves old Hollywood cinema.