The Audrey Hepburn Essential Playlist
Let's discuss what her REAL essential roles are.
In March of 2021, I cut my thumb open on a can of condensed milk while baking myself a cake for my birthday. The blood loss was quite bad to the point that I stuck myself in bed for the rest of the day, which is when I watched the documentary Audrey on Netflix because it was being promoted despite myself not personally having watched any of her filmography beforehand. I became entranced with her and since then, Audrey Hepburn has become quite possibly my favorite actress of all time.
She’s literally the face (profile picture) of this newsletter so dedicating an issue to her seemed inevitable, but what angle to take is where I got a little stuck. Audrey is an EGOT winner and has 5 competitive Oscar nominations, all of which I have seen. However, I have also seen so many other of her roles that I believe are just as iconic or deserving of appreciation which makes it seem as though the obvious solution would be to make this another binge-watch of an entire filmography and… I don’t have the time or mental stability to do another full filmography ranking. I have depression, you know.
I came to a decision that I just treat this as a playlist of her career of sorts where I sort of initiate newcomers into her filmography, very cult-like. I will cover what I consider to be her “essential” films, and how I would suggest delving into her filmography to someone who may have been like me before March 2021 and haven’t seen her work before. One could argue that I shouldn’t be doing this because I haven’t seen everything Audrey has done, and I argue that… she’s done a lot of things! I will get around to everything eventually and maybe we will talk further then, but as of right now, I am comfortable in giving some recommendations. Damn, hypothetical person, get off me?
This playlist is in a slight order, but I will be explaining the logic as I go. Watch whatever you want in whatever order you want, I won’t fight you.
1. ROMAN HOLIDAY (1953), Audrey Hepburn as Princess Ann
(Pictured Above : Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday, not to be confused with the Nicki Minaj song! Photo Cred : GoldDerby, Paramount)
I feel inclined to have listed this as the opening pick for the playlist. Not only was it the first film of Audrey’s that I watched, it also stands as her first leading film role, her first Oscar nomination and only competitive win. It’s also just a really great movie altogether. I believe most of my audience are fellow romcom enjoyers, and this is such a blueprint of the genre. Audrey lived her life to feed us decades before we were even born, and as such I must spread her gospel.
The movie is about a Princess tired of her responsibilities who escapes into a Roman adventure with a reporter and they fall in love. A concept you’ve heard, a concept done, but I truly don’t think it’s been done better than this. As I told you, a blueprint through and through and the major appeal being the ridiculously charming breakout turn from Audrey Hepburn. It deserves the classic title and it’s one of her definitive performances for a reason. At the time I wasn’t fond of the main relationship because Gregory Peck is and looks so ridiculously older than her, but now that I’ve seen the majority of her acting credits, I’ve come to realize that was just… a consistent thing in 1950s romance projects. Or at least the ones I’ve seen. That doesn’t make it any less horrifying of an image, but it does contextualize the issue. I’m only mentioning it here, but if you go into an Audrey Hepburn movie and it’s a romcom, just go in expecting an uncomfortable age gap present and if there isn’t one, you get to breathe the same sigh of relief I did! Think of it as a little game, but don’t think too hard about it or it’ll get kind of sad quickly.
2 SABRINA (1954), Audrey as Sabrina Fairchild
(Pictured Above : Audrey Hepburn in Sabrina. Photo Cred : Classiq Journal, Paramount Pictures)
This immediately became one of my favorite films of all time. Once again, mostly thanks to Audrey’s gorgeous work and presence on screen, and in this movie more than anything… THE COSTUME DESIGN. A ton of my followers wanted me to discuss my favorite costuming in film, and let me just tell you… this film sits comfortably in my top 3 favorite costuming in film of all time. The fact it’s likely my favorite Audrey performance and my favorite costume design does a lot in making this my favorite of (what I’ve seen of) her filmography.
All that’s to say, when I logged this on Letterboxd, I was quite blindsided by just how low a lot of people have it. It’s sitting at a 3.8 average which isn’t low whatsoever, and even out of my mutuals the lowest I’ve seen it rated is a 2.5, but I was IMMEDIATELY compelled to rate it a 4.5 or a 5 upon first viewing. The score alongside the visuals of Audrey just made it so spectacular to me and my senses. I couldn’t help but be entranced. Doesn't everybody feel that? I sure feel bad for the ones who don’t get it…
Anyways, the plot is a love triangle centered on local it girl Sabrina Fairchild who just returned home from two years in Paris. She immediately catches the eye of William Holden (old man #1) and a romance blossoms, but that romance is quickly complicated by his brother Humphrey Bogart (old man #2). It’s high drama and there’s a whole family business aspect to it, but we’re here for the romance, right? Right.
3 BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY’S (1961), Audrey as Holly
(Pictured Above : Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly in Breakfast At Tiffany’s, Photo Cred : movie-screencaps, Paramount)
This is one I knew, even if I wanted to keep it out, I could never justify it. It would be at the top of most people’s essentials list, actually. Most people could see the intro of this alone and immediately know what movie it is. It is iconic. The poster, the fashion, the soundtrack. It’s hard to deny what this did for her career. She was already massively successful, but this cemented her in pop culture history. Beyoncé literally just paid homage to this and covered ‘Moon River’ within the past year for a Tiffany & Co. video. Leighton Meester recreated it in Gossip Girl (original series)! You all don’t need me to explain to you how iconic this movie is, it is nearly impossible to oversell. When you hear the name Audrey Hepburn, more often than not people will picture this movie in their heads.
A light synopsis would be Audrey plays socialite Holly Golightly who starts to fall for a new neighbor (played by someone age appropriate!!!) and he becomes allured by her, but secrets from the past get in the way of their future. That undersells the points of interest this movie has, but let me say Holly Golightly is possibly Audrey’s best character if not easily top 3. She played her flawlessly. The male lead is probably one of her best love interests, and at its best this movie has grandeur and one of my favorite film endings of her career. And a cat!
It is hard for me to highly rate this movie due to the blatant racism of the character played by Mickey Rooney in yellowface. It was unnecessary and happens throughout the film to the point it brings down the entire experience for me. I don’t really want to hear any arguments about that, I won’t read any arguments about it. If you take that out it’s quite a magical experience with a peak Audrey Hepburn performance, but since you can’t take that out, it’s just a bizarrely tainted experience and a part of why I will never bring this movie up when people ask me what my favorite is.
4 CHARADE (1963), Audrey as Regina
(Pictured Above : Audrey Hepburn in Charade, Photo Cred : The New York Times, Universal)
If, perhaps, you aren’t particularly fond of traditional and, what would now be considered, more “generic” rom-coms, I would recommend this to be at the top of your watch-list, actually! It still falls into the romantic comedy genre, but it’s also quite the thriller often compared to the work of Hitchcock. Everything it does is sharp, well executed with plenty of twists and turns to keep anybody hooked as well as great leading performances from a top of her game Audrey Hepburn and fellow film icon Cary Grant.
Charade follows Regina who, after her husband dies, is caught up in the pursuit for the fortune her husband had stolen. This is the very basic plotting of it, as I think you should go in as blindly as I did. Also I do not like explaining plots.
5 FUNNY FACE (1957), Audrey as Jo
(Pictured Above : Audrey Hepburn in my favorite look from Funny Face, Photo Cred : Medium, Paramount)
I debated long and hard about whether to include this or not, which is why it is the main one ruining the otherwise chronological list. I am adding it over some of her Oscar nominations which most Real Film People would consider insane of me. I have no great love for Funny Face however I do think watching it is essential viewing in becoming an Audrey fan. Her charisma and endless charm is put onto the forefront of this film and anyone who knows me knows I love a musical. People get on her for her vocals, but I personally quite love her solo number ‘How Long Has This Been Going On?’ and it features one of my favorite dance sequences of all time, if you know you know. Once again, her styling in this was incredible but I also don’t think she was capable of not looking iconic in anything she wore ever.
Another reason to watch this movie, although he’s one of the worst love interest choices of her entire career, Fred Astaire is an undeniable talent and was made to be a musical legend. I also remember quite liking Kay Thompson’s part in this. I won’t get too in depth of the plot for it but Jo (Audrey) is a bookstore clerk who is suddenly chosen to be a model for a fashion magazine that takes her on a trip to Paris! A classic type of storyline.
6 MY FAIR LADY (1964), Audrey as Eliza Doolittle
(Pictured Above : Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle, Photo Creds : The Guardian, Warner Bros.)
If you keep close tabs on me, you probably know I am not the biggest My Fair Lady enthusiast. I actually have quite a few issues with it. But we have already established that this issue isn’t to rank her best films, it’s to give an essential “To Watch” list, and I’d be wrong to neglect such an iconic role, and as many issues as I may have with the film, this is classic cinema and her performance is one for the books. The History Books.
You’ve already heard of this musical and film, and if you don’t think you know the plot off-hand, you definitely know similar renditions of the same plot. Eliza Doolittle is a working-class Cockney flower girl, Henry Higgins is a High Class arrogant (sexist) professor. He takes it upon himself to make some type of game of making her out to be a passing member of High Society, transforming her into A Lady. And somehow it’s a romance. She’s All That is said to have been inspired by it, you definitely know the story. If you are more in touch with film and culture, you also probably know all of Audrey Hepburn’s singing was dubbed by Marni Nixon, allegedly much to Audrey Hepburn’s own dismay and allegedly (Source : IMDb allegedly) she’s said afterwards that she wouldn’t have accepted the part had she known. The casting itself was already not universally liked to begin with as many felt it would’ve been better for Julie Andrews who originated the part on Broadway and was quite acclaimed because obviously it’s Julie Andrews.
Even dubbed, I adored Audrey Hepburn’s performance here. It was probably the main reason I didn’t totally hate the movie altogether alongside the costuming. Although she didn’t sing it (outside of one line), the ‘I Could Have Danced All Night’ scene sparks such joy in me watching and it is amongst my favorite musical sequences of all time. Her line delivery in that one horse race scene was nothing short of iconic. She may have been the snub of the production at the time, but her impact on this film stood the test of time more than anything else.
7 THE CHILDREN’S HOUR (1961), Audrey as Karen
(Pictured Above : Shirley MacLaine and Audrey Hepburn in The Children’s Hour, Photo Cred : IMDb, United Artists)
This is something completely different from anything I’ve listed so far, I am sure if you know anything about her filmography you already know that. I have been adding a lot of either her romantic roles, her comedy roles, even her musicals, things of that nature. More light work, Charade being a more thriller exception but even that leaned into comedy expertly. This is Not That At All. If you are looking for high drama bordering on a tragedy, this would be a great pick for you. Audrey’s performance in The Nun’s Story was brilliant and well worthy of the Oscar nomination but I did not like that movie, this would actually be my top recommendation for her strictly dramatic films.
The Children’s Hour follows two women who are headmistresses at a private school who have been best and Very Close friends since college that get accused of lesbianism by a nasty little student (definitely bottom tier of the worst child in film list. Saoirse Ronan in Atonement has competition). This claim scandalizes them, putting their jobs and lives at stake because lesbians aren’t quite celebrated in that community and era! Anyways, this obviously released in 1961 with these themes, which makes for an interesting watch in a modern context as cultures are ever-shifting. Is it good for The Gays? I recommend you watch it and find out for yourself! Audrey gives one of her best performances, Shirley MacLaine is excellent as well (stream Only Murders In The Building season 2, on Hulu now!) and I’d say, aware of potential triggers, it’s a worthy watch.
8 HOW TO STEAL A MILLION (1966), Audrey as Nicole.
(Pictured Above : Audrey Hepburn in How To Steal A Millionaire, Photo Cred : Sweet Sunday Mornings, 20th Century Fox)
This is the one I have to rewatch the most. I didn’t rewatch these movies for this, by the way, I should’ve! But I didn’t and we all just have to accept that as a fact right now. But this was such a lovely time and she had the best fashion in this (one thing about an Audrey movie is that she will never have a miss in the wardrobe department). I also love the tone and genre of this one. It’s a heist comedy with Audrey Hepburn (wearing iconic Givenchy designs). Is that not enough for you? Are you not already on board? If not, I feel so bad for you, why do you hate good things?!
I will just recite this plot from IMDb for sake of briefness, Audrey plays the daughter of an art forger who teams up with a burglar to steal one of her father’s forgeries. It is such a fun time with romcom elements throughout as well. It has something for everybody I’d like to think, which makes it an essential watch in my opinion, despite being a more underrated title in her career.
9 TWO FOR THE ROAD (1967), Audrey as Joanna.
(Pictured Above : Audrey Hepburn in Two For The Road, Photo Cred : Minniemuse, 20th Century Studios)
Speaking of underrated titles in Audrey’s filmography…The film I need to rewatch the most is How To Steal A Million, the one I want to rewatch the most is this one. Just a lovely lovely film. This is genuinely one of my favorites of her career, both performance and film wise and even if nobody else in the entire world counts this as an essential of her career, I want everybody in my following to watch it regardless. This is an agenda, propaganda even. Am I overrating it? A lesser person would accuse me of that but they just don’t have taste, I don’t know what to tell you.
This film tells the story of a married couple whose relationship is reaching a rocky point, and through flashbacks they reflect on their relationship and where it went wrong. But it’s actually a lovely film to watch, trust me!!! You’re reading this, you must trust me? It’s sort of a rom-com mixed with drama. I’m sure the plot wouldn’t sell everybody because now everybody hates the Marriage Story genre but I feel as though this one has very strong benefits that could make for an enjoyable viewing experience for anybody, especially those who are fans of Audrey. This showcases different sides of her range while still playing into her charm and her co-star played well with her.
10 WAIT UNTIL DARK (1967), Audrey as Susy.
(Pictured Above : Audrey Hepburn being stressed out as hell in Wait Until Dark, Photo Cred : HaphazardStuff, Warner Bros.-Seven Arts)
This was Audrey Hepburn’s final competitive Oscar nomination and probably the marker of the end of this era of her career, taking an almost decade long break from acting after this and then only doing 5 more acting projects, one of which being a cameo. Anybody who knows of Audrey as a public figure knows she did way more than just acting but as for her acting career, this effectively works as an era closer. As such, I could never leave this out. It was one of the most mandatory career highlights to mention in this list. You can’t just… choose to neglect that. But, it’s also a powerhouse of a performance. It’s also the most traditional horror film I’ve seen out of Audrey’s filmography and she sold it with ease. You believed her! In her more human moments and in her most distressed moments. She was a force in this, I was stressed for her!
The film itself follows a recently blinded woman played by Audrey Hepburn… whose husband unknowingly takes a doll smuggling heroin and now associates of the person who handed over the heroin start terrorizing the blind woman in her home. It is a horror thriller type, so if you don’t love romantic movies or comedy movies or even drama movies, but you like the horror and thriller genres, this does some really cool things throughout that even elevates itself in the genre.
I know this wasn’t the most in depth look at a career, but I do have plans to eventually binge her entire filmography and do a traditional deeper dive into everything. Hopefully this helped give suggestions to people who may want to start becoming more invested in her catalog, but even then this did not scratch the surface of what Audrey has done in her career. Acting wise specifically, I did not even include all of her Oscar nominations! She also has a few other quite underrated titles such as Paris When It Sizzles which I found to be a quite fun time and she has some later titles in her career too that I didn’t mention. It’d be quite impossible for me to cover everything she’s done in her career, so really just take this as some recommendations for your starting point and then just do some light reading on her career from there. I am just one person. I am not the authority of Audrey Hepburn, though if you were to elect somebody I would take it.