Two for the Road

I am only 20 years old and by no means close to marriage, but from what people tell me, marriage is a lot like what is portrayed on screen in Two For The Road. It details the relationship between a husband and wife who basically have a love hate relationship. It's not sugarcoated at all. Audrey Hepburn and Albert Finney are great but really do you expect anything different? Hepburn is really the only reason I know of this movie and I'm glad that I watched it. Most of the old movies always have the typical romantic feel to them. There are bumps in the road but really you know watching that in the end they will end up together. With this film it's unclear what the ending will be and that makes for a much more fun ride along the way.

You can tell from the very opening scene that the two leads despise each other, but then in the next segment they hadn't met. For me at first it was a bit jarring not knowing this film was going to take a different approach. It's told in the non linear and jumps around every 10 minutes or so. It's a very effective approach but there were times where I thought it was choppy. For this time of filmmaking it must have been extremely experimental doing a movie this way.

There are times where Finney and Hepburn are unlikeable but even then it's hard not to root for this couple to somehow resolve their long term marriage. It seems that in order to have a successful marriage you have to be willing to make some big sacrifices and ultimately that's what it comes down to. I really liked the scenes in the middle of their relationship where you can start to see the flaws, but at the same time you realize the young love that is blossoming. By the way can Audrey Hepburn be any more beautiful? She is around 40 years old in this movie and looks better than ever. It must be that long hair look...

Not only is it a fun film to watch but it's a realistic one. It may not be a true story but it seems to depict a real marriage give many glimpses at how people deal with each other for several years, and in the end if they can resolve or destroy their marriage.

8.7/10

Thank God that Audrey Hepburn made this film before slipping off into an extended temporary retirement. Was she too old for this movie? Not for the segments that deal with the latter part of the married relationship. The movie spans eleven years and, yes, it is a bit of a visual stretch to see a 37 year old Audrey portraying a 22 year old college woman, but her performance throughout was nothing short of brilliant. This film was a tremendous departure for her. In Two for the Road she does not play the part of the doe-eyed delicate creature of her earlier movies. She even abandoned, reluctantly, her trademark Givenchy wardrobe to sink her teeth into a gritty, visceral part. Many critics of the time remarked on its art house appeal, due in large part to the back and forth sequence editing and the clever juxtaposition of similarities, parallels and contrasts in scenes spanning eleven years. The film must have been incredibly fresh and jarring in its day, abandoning a linear narrative approach to the history of a marriage. Even today it comes across as very "contemporary." Albert Finney delivers an equally strong performance. There is genuine chemistry between Finney and Hepburn. The viewer sees all that is wonderful and horrible about the dynamics of a couple that comes to realize that despite mutual infidelity they still love each other and belong to one another.

The two here are Audrey Hepburn and Albert Finney at their prime. The road is the bumpy road of relationships and marriage. As this couple travel this rocky road you, the viewer, observe how a charming, charismatic couple can change and evolve and hurt one another while still being in love. Stanley Donnen, director, does a masterful job in moving things along. The storyline is not linear. You get to see the couple a various times in their relationship revisiting them at crucial stages. The result is an engaging film that demands your attention. The European setting is romantic, the humor balancing the pathos of their life, and the viewer coming away with perhaps some universal truths of what it means to be connected. Audry Hepburn is class personified and Finney, in a word, a hunk!!!

I read in Danny Peary's "A Guide for the Film Fanatic" that some people have formed a strong emotional attachment to this 1967 film. I am one of them. From the opening notes of Henry Mancini's evocative score (personally I think it's his best work) to the end where the main characters drive off into Italy after some verbal sparring, this movie still provides the same pleasure it did when I first saw it on TV in the early seventies. "Two for the Road" is a time capsule of Carnaby Street fashion and French new wave scene juxtaposition, but it remains timeless in its emotionally piercing view of marriage and in the beguiling presence of Audrey Hepburn. There will unlikely be an actress with more style or grace on screen, and never has she seemed more sexy, playful or innately human. It's a shame she never played a role as rich in texture as Frederic Raphael's script provides here. His dialogue is sharp and insightful, as he has the main characters often repeat one another for the sake of getting a different meaning from the same line of dialogue.

As Joanna and Mark Wallace, Hepburn and Albert Finney get to live out more than a decade in their characters' lives from initial meeting to near-divorce. What makes the evolution more impressive is that the story is not a linear narrative but rather a series of five road trips that volley the viewer back and forth in the relationship. Finney provides a formidable match for Hepburn, and he plays with the right mix of roguish insouciance and insecure ambition that doesn't make his character always likable but certainly believable. Their chemistry is palpable, especially in the early days of their courtship as the movie makes hitchhiking the most romantic of adventures with the couple cutting through the entirety of France in various vehicles in record time. Only in the movies. The episode with the pretentious American tourist couple and their bratty daughter provides some biting and funny moments...ironically, the actress portraying the wife, Eleanor Bron, is British. Not surprising that this movie was not such a huge hit stateside since the four Americans in the movie are portrayed in such an unflattering light.

Regardless, credit needs to go to director Stanley Donen (himself an American), who somehow pulls all these disparate elements together and uses his extensive Hollywood experience to bring a nice glossy sheen to the whole film. His third collaboration with Hepburn (after "Funny Face" and "Charade") really turns into a tribute to her as she makes a remarkable transformation from naïve choirgirl to jaded jet-set housewife that goes well beyond the changing hairstyles and clothing. This is one to treasure.

This wondrous film has been lovingly restored for its much-delayed DVD release. The print quality has been significantly improved over the VHS tape I've had for over a decade. A nice bonus feature is a split-screen before-and-after short that shows the visual improvement. Best of all, there is finally an audio commentary track to accompany the film, and Donen provides illuminating insight on the elliptical narrative structure and the non-chronological juxtaposition of the scenes. He explains that the characters are reliving their memories by association with the feelings they are having in the present. His adoration of Hepburn is pervasive and understandable, as he claims rightfully that this was her best performance (they worked together three times). I just wish Finney was available to add his perspective. Moreover, if you ever wondered why the young Jacqueline Bisset's voice doesn't sound like her at all, he admits she was re-dubbed by another actress due to the blaring noise of generators during the location shooting. She apparently had already moved on to shoot her first Hollywood film. For those like me who adore this film, the DVD is a must-buy.

This film tells the story of a married couple, played by Albert Finney and Audrey Hepburn, who have been married for a decade and are experiencing a rough patch in their marriage. The events of their ten-year marriage unfold through a series of non-linear flashbacks and present day scenes. I felt that the non-linear storytelling format was perfect for this film. A longtime marriage is a relationship that evolves over the course of time. A couple who has been together forever will have experienced happy times, trying times, sad times, etc.

We see Finney and Hepburn meet in the 1950s when Hepburn was traveling with the choir. We see them fall in love. Later, we see the happy couple on their honeymoon. Then we see the couple bickering about children and infidelity. During the more blissful days of their relationship, Finney and Hepburn have modest means. The present day scenes show Finney as a successful architect and he and Hepburn are living the high life. However, Hepburn is very distant and cold to her husband. With money, the couple is unhappy. In one of the present day scenes, Hepburn and Finney are lounging on a beach and conversing very tersely with one another. This scene is juxtaposed with a flashback sequence showing the couple on the same beach but having fun--a very different experience than what they're having now. There are quite a few scenes that show Finney and Hepburn returning to old haunts only to have a completely different experience than they had prior. For some people, these old rendezvous spots may elicit some type of nostalgic feeling, albeit a happy or bittersweet feeling. In Two For the Road, I get the sense that the flashback sequences are all looking back on a relationship with a feeling of sadness.

In Two For the Road, I get the sense that both Finney and Hepburn are unhappy because they don't feel that passion that they used to have and their relationship has become very routine. No longer are they spending the night randomly in concrete construction pipes or frolicking on the French Riviera countryside. Now Finney has a career. Finney and Hepburn are parents to a little girl. From the present day scenes in the film, I get the sense that both parties are bored with one another and are looking for something to spice up the relationship.

As an aside, I loved Hepburn's costumes in this film. Her present day, 1967 wardrobe was especially fun and I loved her giant sunglasses. Hepburn wore a variety of hairstyles in this film, which aided in informing the viewer which era of Finney and Hepburn's relationship they are viewing. In the early days of the relationship (mid-1950s), Hepburn wears her hair in a very prim fashion, a bob with bangs and a headband. Later, before she and Finney have their daughter, she has her hair long and straight. When their daughter arrives, Hepburn's hair is a short bob. Later, in the present day, she sports a very chic, very hip, short hairstyle.

I really enjoyed Two For a Road for it's realistic look at a couple who have experienced many ups and downs in their ten year union.