Review of Charade (1963) by Kay L — 16 Aug 2013

"I'm having a nervous breakdown. ".

After many recommendations from the RT community, I finally got to watch Charade, a famous suspense thriller starring Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn. It's been called "the best Hitchcock movie that Hitchcock never made". And with that statement, I think they may be right.

Wealthy Reggie Lampert (Audrey Hepburn) is about to divorce her husband, but soon finds out that he's been murdered. She is summoned by CIA official Bartholomew (Walter Matthau) that the husband was a crook who was involved in the theft of $250,000and has been hidden since the war. Reggie teams up with the mysterious Peter Joshua (Cary Grant) and go all out to find the missing money before the other crooks, Tex (James Coburn), Gideon (Ned Glass), and Scobie (George Kennedy), find the money first and kill her off as well.

Although Charade was not directed by Alfred Hitchcock, there's quite a few things that makes it feel like a Hitchcock movie. It's got an unlikely couple, many twists and turns along the way, a chilling score (in this case, Henry Mancini), Cary Grant, a very attractive leading lady, and loads of memorable comedic sequences along the way. The funny thing about Charade is that it was directed by Stanley Donen, who's best known for directing the acclaimed musical Singin' in the Rain. It sounds like an odd choice for the directing job, but Donen's direction actually works.

From the unforgettable opening sequence where the dead husband is thrown out of a train, there's no turning back. Charade is one crazy thrill after another, and it's just fantastic. Generally, when someone tries to imitate Hitchcock, they overdo it (look at The Postman Always Rings Twice if you want proof). In Charade, Donen didn't overdo it at all. It had about the usual number of twists in a Hitchcock film and it was very suspenseful to watch, especially the last 30 minutes.

The casting is, in one simple word, perfect. Audrey Hepburn was incredible as Reggie Lampert. Hepburn delights in her fears on being killed and also makes a good spy. Cary Grant delights as well. If you've seen Hitchcock's North by Northwest, then you know how complex Grant can be in these kinds of films, and Grant's role here is even crazier. Without giving much away, let's just say that either he's a good guy or a bad guy. Putting Hepburn and Grant together is like putting two peas in a pod. Their chemistry was excellent and they were also very funny, especially Grant. I really enjoyed a scene where grant takes a shower with his clothes on to lower Hepburn's sexual attraction for him. It was quite funny.

Walter Matthau is memorable as the CIA official, and the three villains, James Coburn, Ned Glass, and George Kennedy, are also great in their roles as well, especially Coburn, who plays a villainous cowboy.

There's also a score by the great Henry Mancini (who's best known for his jazzy Pink Panther score), and it's very chilling. The opening theme, during a super crazy Maurice Binder title sequence, is just stellar. The haunting sounds of Mancini's score stands out and you'd think that the score was done by Bernard Herrman. While I enjoy the Pink Panther score more, Charade comes close. And I mean super close.

Charade is a exciting Hitchcock thriller made by Singin' in the Rain director Stanley Donen. It's very thrilling, it has a chilling and awesome Henry Mancini score, wonderful performances from Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn, plenty of twists and turns, and a crazy title sequence from the same man who gave us those crazy James Bond title sequences. I highly recommend Charade, and if I loved it, then whoever loves watching Hitchcock will love it as well without feeling like it's a rip-off.

"Oh, I don't know who anyone is!".