to achieve." In a retrospective review for DVD Movie Guide, David Williams called the film "one of those gems that doesn't seem too great on the surface, but manages to lift your spirits in such a way that when it's over, it makes you glad you ignored your initial feelings and checked it out anyway." Williams applauded the performances as "engaging from top-to-bottom", singling out Olivier's portrayal of Julius, the mischievous escort and matchmaker. In his review on Movie Metropolis, John J. Puccio wrote, "It's a lovely tale of pure and innocent love and the lengths that people involved in such a love will go to in their desire to ensure it. The movie can hardly fail to please even the most jaded audiences." In his review in DVD Talk, David Langdon concluded, "A Little Romance fits into that category we might call the children's film for adults. It's smart, well written, acted and directed. If anything it will be remembered as Diane Lane's first movie and one of Laurence Olivier's last. The DVD is above average in all categories except audio but it is worth a look." On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 71% based on reviews from 28 critics. Accolades The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists: 2002: AFI's 100 Years...100 Passions – Nominated Related Media The Tamil film Panneer Pushpangal released in 1981 and directed by P. Vasu and Santhana Barathy was inspired by this movie. References External links 1979 films 1979 romantic comedy films American coming-of-age films American romantic comedy films American teen romance films Films scored by Georges Delerue Films based on French novels Films based on romance novels Films directed by George Roy Hill Films set in Paris Films set in Venice Films that won the Best Original Score Academy Award English-language French films French romantic comedy films 1970s French-language films Orion Pictures films Verona in fiction Warner Bros. films Films about puberty Films about adolescence 1970s American films 1970s French films