Falling for Romance, Action, Suspense & Humor

 

I was eleven when I fell in love with romance. 

Audrey Hepburn wasn’t the first actress who helped that happen. Probably. Maybe. The order of movies and books is a bit confused in my memory. I already loved to read and had connected The Moonspinners movie with the book by Mary Stewart, but the movie was pretty meh compared to the book. 

When I saw How To Steal a Million—dubbed an “elegant caper movie”—starring Audrey Hepburn and Petter O’Toole, the mix of humor, suspense and romance struck my eleven-year-old heart and mind like lightning. I didn’t just fall in love with the story. I fell in love WITH the mix of romance, action, suspense and humor.  I fell in love with the way they used these elements to tell the story.

I think I saw the movie at the drive-in. I think we saw more movies in the summer because we were a small, unruly mob (six of us kids). 

My mom would pop a large, grocery bag’s worth of popcorn and sometimes she made home-made root beer.  Or she mixed up some Kool-aid. We were expensive to entertain, even during days of 10 cent hot dogs.

We had to wait for the sun to set so we could see the movie. And back then, the speakers hung on a slightly rolled down window—that let in the mosquitos. I think I spent my summers covered in bites and scabs (from biffing it on my bike). 

We’d get a bit restless waiting for the cartoon to start. The screen faced west and the sun set very late. Some years later, they finally turned the screen’s back to the sun, but back then we waited. And waited. 

And then we waited some more.

I don’t remember the cartoon. 

I remember the movie. 

I loved the movie. 

Loved it. 

I loved it so much that the cramped quarters with annoying brothers didn’t matter. Or the bugs. 

I don’t remember when the popcorn ran out. Or the root beer. 

I would have seen it again, if I could have. 

No VCRs or DVD or Blu-ray players or streaming back then. And a big family with a tight budget. 

Eventually I got my own copy. I can watch it when ever I want, but back then I had to carry it in my head. It’s only looking back that I realize how much I looked for those elements in my reading, and how I eventually wove it into my own storytelling. 

I also became a fan of Audrey Hepburn. While I haven’t loved every movie she made, I have a lot of respect for her. She was classy and kind and an advocate for children. And no, technically this isn’t an ode. 

ode ōd/ noun 1. a lyric poem in the form of an address to a particular subject, often elevated in style or manner and written in varied or irregular meter. historical. a poem meant to be sung.

So yeah, there won’t be singing and no lyrical stuff. But gratitude to a wonderful actress who brightened my life while I was growing up and—I believe—helped me find my writing heart and soul. 

So, what about you? Any movies and/or actors/actresses that brightened your life and/or nudged you into doing something wonderful? 

Perilously yours,

Pauline