"More isn't always better. Sometimes it's just more."

There's sometimes as much to be gained from watching a 'flop' as from studying a masterpiece, particularly if the hands behind it are skilled.

Sidney Pollack's 1995 unnecessary remake of "Sabrina" is a prime example.  There's no arguing with his talent.  At that time, Ford was trying what everyone in blockbusters does - not to get typecast. He seemed to enjoy trying his hand at comedy and though there's mixed results, he's rarely the problem.

But Kinnear is terribly miscast, despite his usual charms. they're never believable as brothers and I don't buy the chemistry with he & Julie Ormond at all. She is.....a bit stiff. Too old for the part, as is Ford, so her naiveté is a tough sell.  She fares better in the Paris bits and her dates with Ford's character.

I remember when it was released stating that the removal of the suicide attempt was what ruined it. And that's still a problem.  You remove the real jeopardy of her depression and Sabrina just comes off as a bit spoiled & just oblivious.  Despite it being overlong, they don't ever successfully establish Linus' care of her resulting from that moment.

But it's not an utter failure. These days, it's tough to find a romcom made in US with actual grownups involved. That supporting cast. It takes the likes of Nancy Marchand, Richard Crenna, Angie Dickinson, Dana Ivey and even extremely young Paul Giamatti to pull off dialog they didn't see the need to update. And the Paris cast including Fanny Ardant & Patrick Bruel.
The late great John Wood, as Sabrina's father, is on particularly fine form. His commitment to it being darker than a romcom is one of the saving graces.  It's always tough to sell a story if your cast don't believe in it. You never doubt his character's fears or love for her. It's really his film in a way.

At just over 2 hours, it's too long.  There are bits stretched out too long (the parties, Kinnear's poor wooing) and bits that are too sketchy. So much of Paris is just dialog free footage set to music. The 90s have a lot to answer for on that count - the need to insert basically a music video into a film.

I still think it's pointless. The original is charming. and if you're that averse to B&W film you don't deserve the likes of Humphrey Bogart. But I get why filmmakers chose to try.
It relies on you liking Ford quite a lot, as it's tough to get behind the other 2 leads but interesting to revisit.

Has it really been 21 years? I'm afraid so.