A Stylish and Funny Whodunit!

 Charade (1963) – When her husband is murdered, a young American in Paris faces the mystery of a hidden treasure, and the gang of men willing to kill for it.

Directed by Stanley Donen                          

Starring – Cary Grant, Audrey Hepburn, Walter Matthau, James Coburn, George Kennedy

Why I Liked It – A sly movie that blends the whodunit with comedy and romance to perfection!

It’s great to watch a movie that knows exactly who it is and plays to its strengths.  “Charade” brings a strong script, cast, director and setting (Paris).  There’s just enough menace to the mystery, enough witty dialogue to keep a smile on your face, and a lovely touch of romance.  The movie isn’t trying to be “cinema” or serious or profound.  What it achieves is something breezy, funny, a little sophisticated with a moderately obvious answer to one of the three central mysteries.  That’s no small achievement.

Regina Lampert (Hepburn) has decided to end her marriage to the wealthy but distant husband, Charles.  When she returns to Paris to tell him, she discovers his murder, and that everything they owned was auctioned off.  Mystery Number One concerns a quarter of a million dollars that went missing during the war.  Charles betrayed his three accomplices and took it all for himself.  Now they want it back and they believe Regina has it.  Enter Mystery Number TWP, Peter Joshua (Grant) who wants to help her, but has secrets of his own.  Is he also after the money?  Finally, there is Mystery Number Three, who is behind all of this, and is killing anyone who gets in their way?  Regina strikes me as a typical Hepburn role.  She’s a little superficial, but when things get tough, she shows her inner strength.  Meanwhile, Grant gets to be charming, witty, dashingly good looking, and a little mysterious.  There’s great chemistry between the two stars.  

There was (and is) some discussion about the age difference between them (Grant was 55, Hepburn 33).  Even Grant wondered if he was “too old” to play a romance with a Hepburn’s age.  It’s a non-issue for me.  There are a few jokes about how “old” Joshua is, but the chemistry works on the screen.  Off screen, people shouldn’t have to answer to silly prejudices like this.  As long as the relationship is respectful and open, we have nothing to offer to the discussion.  While older actors routinely play romantic leads today, there is still a lot of discrimination against older actresses in those roles.  Maybe someday we can lay that to rest as well. Here ends the rant.

The supporting cast is great in rather minor roles.  There’s not a lot of depth to the “bad guys”, but when you have the kind of quality on exhibit, you’ll be fine.  Coburn, Kennedy and Matthau all eventually won Oscars in other roles.  Kennedy and Matthau are particularly nasty in this one, as one of the gang and a sleazy embassy official.

Finally, a quick nod to director Stanley Donen.  He has the perfect touch for this one, resulting in a left-handed bit of high praise.  “Charade” is sometimes called “The best Hitchcock movie Hitchcock never made”.  There is a strong feel of the iconic director here, and a range of nods to his work.  Donen directed movies like “Singing in the Rain”, plus movie adaptations of musicals like “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers”, “Funny Face” and “Pajama Game”.  He keeps the comedy light and the thriller on point.

A winner all around.

Rating  – **** Recommended