Charada

When I first saw "Charade", I was convinced for the longest time this was a Hitchcock movie. Small wonder; Hitchcock all but set the standard for quality mystery films. Still, I give director Donen my sincerest apologies. Anyway, where did this film go?? Its tasteful humor, colorful characters and intelligent plot make "Charade" one of the best mystery movies ever made, but it's not well known even among classic films.

"Look for it. Look as hard and as fast as you can." This film ranks with "Clue", "The Name of the Rose" and "The 39 Steps" as one of the most enjoyable mysteries of all time. Makes a great dating/party movie.

I was one of those people who was convinced this was a Hitchcock movie when I first saw "Charade". I think this is because the idea of the plot, some of the set pieces and the style of direction are remarkably similar. The director here is Stanley Donan(co-director with Gene Kelly of "Singin' In The Rain"), and I thought he did a great job directing.

The real stars of this classy, entertaining and I think underrated Hitchcockian-like comedy thriller are the clever plot(with an ingenious McGuffin) and the marvellous romantic score from Henry Mancini. The cinematography is skillful enough and the Parisian locations are ravishing. Not to mention some truly wonderful set pieces such as Grant taking a shower fully clothed, Grant and Hepburn falling in love on a river boat, a hair-raising cliffhanger on the roof, the priceless funeral scene and the sequence under the stage.

The acting is marvellous, with charming, brooding and urbane Cary Grant and lovely and equally charming Audrey Hepburn making a dream pairing and making the most of a crisp, funny and sophisticated script. James Coburn makes a star-making turn, Ned Glass is deliciously obnoxious and Walter Matthau, a wonderful comic actor in his time, in an understated performance here that I personally think is the strongest one of the film. In fact, while I have nothing against George Kennedy, I did feel as though he was slightly phoning in his performance here, but considering how good this film is that is a minor criticism.

Overall, this film is terrific, not the best movie ever made but a long way from the worst. It is such a shame people have to be so derogatory to not only this film in general, but also about Grant, Hepburn and other movie stars like James Stewart when they have a lot more talent than most of the actors working today and that is a fact. Not trying to sound opinionated, but I'd rather watch any Hitchcock or this than any of the Friedberg-Seltzer spoofs or Steven Seagal's most sloppily paced, lazily acted film. 9.5/10 for "Charade". Bethany Cox

CHARADE is the best Hitchcock movie Hitchcock never made! With romance, sophisticated comedy, and stylish suspense (including a smattering of graphic-for-its-era violence) balanced out deftly, CHARADE is the movie that made me a fan of both Peter Stone and Stanley Donen (yes, I actually saw this before I ever saw one of Donen's musicals!). Every other line is sparklingly quotable, and Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn are among my favorite screen couples; pity this was their only big screen teaming (I liked the wry way they kidded the age difference between them, too). James Coburn, George Kennedy, and Walter Matthau (all Oscar winners now!) are in top form in these early screen appearances of theirs. Both Hepburn and Paris look their sophisticated best, and the theme is my favorite by Henry Mancini next to the PINK PANTHER theme. Do try to get ahold of the marvelous Criterion Collection DVD of CHARADE; it's well worth seeking out, with nifty extras including an utterly delightful commentary track by Stanley Donen and the late Peter Stone. By the way, CHARADE is also piggybacked onto the DVD of Jonathan Demme's well-meaning but disappointing remake, THE TRUTH ABOUT CHARLIE. On a related note, Donen's second Hitchcock spoof/homage, ARABESQUE, was released as part of a Gregory Peck boxed DVD set. I'm glad ARABESQUE is available on DVD, but I wish they'd recorded a commentary track by Donen and Sophia Loren while they're both still alive and reasonably well. But I digress...watch CHARADE today! :-)

If you're in the mood for a clever mixture of suspense, romance, humor and some fantastic location shots, treat yourself to CHARADE. Audrey Hepburn was never more appealing than she is here--badly in need of help to discover the whereabouts of the hidden money her late husband's enemies want to find. With her life hanging in the balance, she enlists the aid of Cary Grant--but since all is not what it seems, you're in for some surprising plot twists along a very merry ride.

Just relax and let Cary and Audrey do all the work--with the help of a great supporting cast including Walter Matthau, superb in a surprising supporting role. Stanley Donen keeps it all moving at a brisk pace and Henry Mancini's music is a sheer delight.

Highly recommended as an expert, elegant mixture of humor and suspense, even if it does seem to imitate the Hitchcock way of filmmaking.

"Charade" seems to exist in a parallel universe, where it is not only humanly possible for a man to be as dapper, sexy and urbane as Cary Grant, and a woman to be as chic, adorable and beautiful as Audrey Hepburn, but for them to be a romantic couple, to boot (the mind reels at what the children would look and sound like). Long underrated and underappreciated (and only available in horrible-looking, grainy video prints), this fabulously entertaining comedy-thriller is the cinematic equivilant of a champagne cocktail. Often compared (perhaps unfavorably) to Hitchcock's films of the period, "Charade" contains little of the heavy psychological tension that marked Hitch's work. Instead, the film concentrates on witty banter, Audrey's wardrobe and a clever script--and we're the richer for it. Audrey is a sudden widow who is terrifyingly thrust into a web of deceit; her late husband, it seems, was being hunted by three ex-war buddies with whom he stole $250,000. Audrey, they think, has the money--and if she doesn't come up with it quickly, she'll be joining him. Cary Grant is the handsome, mysterious stranger who may be friend or foe. It had been done before, and it's been done since, but never with such panache. Henry Mancini's stylish score adds immeasurably to both the fun and the tension; and the ever-nimble Stanley Donen directs the suspense scenes just as deftly as the comic ones. My favorites: Audrey trailing Cary dressed "inconspicuously" in a white Givenchy trenchcoat and huge movie star sunglasses, while giving a poor German tourist the fits; Audrey finally cornering Cary in her hotel room and lightly kissing her way down his face--today's filmmakers might take a page from her book: this scene is intensely romantic without ever seeing a bit of exposed flesh or dueling tongues; and of course, the fabulous opening scene (I won't give away the surprise)--with Audrey wearing one of my favorite Movie Star get ups of all time: a hooded mink poncho over a catsuit. This is entertainment with a capital "E", made all the more enjoyable because it never panders to the lowest common denominator, never dips into "camp," and never breaks a sweat. Today's films continue to mine the same territory, and the results are ceaselessly boring, tawdry or both. You can FEEL the strain of the writers and actors as they attempt the kind of slick interplay that came naturally to those involved in "Charade." The beautiful, magnificently restored Criterion DVD edition now allows us to revel in this film like never before.