Overview
A romantic escapade unfolds in the City of Light, where love takes unexpected turns amidst intrigue.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Mild
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Mild
- witty
- sophisticated
- playful
- date night
- classic film evening
What critics said
Critics broadly admire the film's sophisticated Lubitsch-inspired romantic comedy, literate script, and charming performances, while finding the central pairing and sentiment occasionally implausible.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The film signals Frank Flannagan's hotel-room conquests through discreet visual and comic details, including musicians tiptoeing away from a room.
Ariane is surrounded by men who normalize philandering while her apparent innocence unsettles Frank's established identity as a womanizer.
Frank's reputation as a wealthy womanizer is directly challenged when Ariane intervenes in the threatened murder and becomes emotionally involved with him.
Billy Wilder's sophisticated romantic comedy was widely identified by critics as an explicit tribute to Ernst Lubitsch and his tradition of doorway-based sexual comedy.
Films like Love in the Afternoon, and why
Sabrina
sophisticated romantic comedy, Parisian setting, witty sexual intrigue, and an American womanizer paired with a younger romantic idealist
The Seven Year Itch
Billy Wilder's urbane romantic comedy style, playful gender dynamics, and polished mid-century glamour
Bluebeard's Eighth Wife
European romantic farce centered on an experienced playboy and a woman who disrupts his assumptions about love
How to Steal a Million
classic Hollywood romance with elegant banter, class contrast, and a charmingly idealized European atmosphere
Movie Details
- Director
- Billy Wilder
- Release Date
- 1957-05-29
- Runtime
- 130 min
- Rating
- 7.0 / 10 (349)
Cast
- Gary Cooper
- Audrey Hepburn
- Maurice Chevalier
- John McGiver
- Van Doude
- Lise Bourdin
- Olga Valéry
- Paul Bonifas
- Audrey Long
- Charles Lemontier
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Love in the Afternoon about?
- A private investigator’s daughter races to save a notorious Parisian playboy from murder, only to find herself drawn into his world of elegant romantic deception.
- What is Love in the Afternoon like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Love in the Afternoon as measured, its intensity as mild and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Love in the Afternoon violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Love in the Afternoon as mild.
- What did critics think of Love in the Afternoon?
- Critics broadly admire the film's sophisticated Lubitsch-inspired romantic comedy, literate script, and charming performances, while finding the central pairing and sentiment occasionally implausible.
- Which films are like Love in the Afternoon?
- Films with a similar feel include Sabrina, The Seven Year Itch, Bluebeard's Eighth Wife, and How to Steal a Million.
- How long is Love in the Afternoon?
- Love in the Afternoon runs 130 minutes.
- Where can I watch Love in the Afternoon?
- In United States, Love in the Afternoon is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
