Review of Charade (1963) by Alvin Y — 11 Jun 2012

Charade, Great Movies.

Stanley Donen, the director of *Charade*, was a man better known for his contribution to the musical genre. In a way, he was a natural for directing this marvelous movie of adventure and romance based in Paris, a city which is well known to Donen. In fact, it didn't come as a surprise that this is one of his best movies that he ever directed.

In fact, *Charade* has all the right elements to work as it does. First, it's a thriller adventure as the beautiful Reggie (Audrey Hepburn) is being menaced by some unsavory characters and she has no clue why are they doing that to her. Her dead husband ties her in to all the bad guys that want to get hold of a treasure she possesses, but has no idea about what could it be. When Peter (Cary Grant) enters the picture, Reggie feels protected, but then there is a doubt planted in her that makes her think twice about his intentions. In the meanwhile, Reggie has to put up with those bad guys shadowing her.

*Charade* is so appealing because of the immense talented Audrey Hepburn, who was perfect for the role of Reggie. This young woman who works as a translator is one of the best things Ms. Hepburn did on the screen. The actress was a good comedienne as well as an elegant figure that graced whatever she played. Hepburn is a beautiful excuse to look at. Cary Grant is seen as the man who ultimately conquers Reggie. In spite of the age difference, Grant was always a welcome addition to any film. The easy chemistry between the two stars is one of the strong points of the film. Grant is perfectly suave in the film. The supporting cast was excellent, Walter Matthau, James Coburn, George Kennedy, Ned Glass, among others, were perfect.

The movie also offers a melodious musical score and gives the film a dimension that adds to the action. The cinematography takes in the beauty of Paris at its best. This is one of those films in which Paris seems to add to the general enjoyment one feels in watching it, kinda like that film called *The Tourist* with Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie (I like this more than that crap).

This is truly an excellent and a great movie no matter how many times one watches it, thanks to the inspired direction of Stanley Donen and the gorgeous Audrey Hepburn who is irresistible in it.