Ingenues for an Old World

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Maybe its target audience was a trifle overspecialized and partial to a fault, but Waiting to Exhale emerged as the "women's picture" of choice in the new year. The popularity of this doting film version of author Terry McMillan's best-seller turned the remake of Sabrina into a dressy also-ran. Yet both movies suffer from a too-solemn approach to romance. And the current Sabrina lacks the element that made the original so winning: its leading lady.

Sabrina Fairchild is a Cinderella heroine. The original 1954 version, directed by Billy Wilder, was calculated to showcase the fresh, exquisite Audrey Hepburn, still new to Hollywood, despite having won the 1953 Academy Award for best actress in Roman Holiday. As the ingenuous Sabrina, she grew more endearing while outgrowing her …