Themes: Woman In Jeopardy, Assumed Identities, Death of a Partner
Main Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Thandie Newton, Tim Robbins, Ted Levine, Park Joong-Hoon, Lisa Gay Hamilton
Release Year: 2002
Country: US
Run Time: 104 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG13
Plot
Director Jonathan Demme filters the classic Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant vehicle Charade through the influence of the French New Wave in this stylish romantic thriller. Regina Lambert (Thandie Newton) has been having second thoughts about her marriage to the often enigmatic art dealer Charlie (Stephen Dillane), and decides to take a vacation without him, where she meets Joshua Peters (Mark Wahlberg), a handsome and charming American who seems quite taken with her. When Regina returns home to Paris, she receives the startling news that her husband has been murdered; however, even more disturbing is her discovery that her husband had a secret life which involved several passports under different identities, and a missing six million dollars. Police official Commandant Dominique (Christine Boisson) seems to believe that Regina is somehow involved in the crime, while U.S. embassy representative Mr. Bartholomew (Tim Robbins) breaks the news to Regina that her late husband was actually a secret agent involved in some very shady operations. Three mysterious and dangerous figures who had ties to Charlie -- Emil Zadapec (Ted Levine), Lola Jansco (Lisa Gay Hamilton), and Il-Sang Lee (Joong-Hoon Park) -- also arrive in Paris, convinced that Regina knows where her husband stashed the money and determined to get their hands on it. Meanwhile, as Regina's life becomes increasingly chaotic and dangerous, Joshua arrives in Paris and a romance begins to blossom between them, but while he seems determined to do whatever he can to help her, Regina soon has reason to doubt that Joshua's motives are as pure as they seem. Shot on location in Paris, The Truth About Charlie also features cameo appearances from a number of legendary French actors and filmmakers, including Charles Aznavour, Anna Karina, and Agnès Varda. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Review
Jonathan Demme abandons his usual style for this remake of Charade populated with references and tributes to the films of Truffaut, Godard, and the rest of the French New Wave. Those unfamiliar with that movement may have a hard time connecting with the movie, but the strong presence, intelligence, and composure of Thandie Newton makes this film worthwhile for those less familiar with film history. The movie is as much a love letter to her as it is to French film, photographing her beautifully and allowing her to own the screen with her sophisticated beauty. Newton's work is certainly equal to, if not better than, Hepburn's star turn in Charade. Sadly, this is a film about film more than it is about people. Arguably the most humanist director since Jean Renoir, Demme's sympathetic eye for the quirky is of no use in this setting. He is left to do little more than play the cinematic version of "Name That Tune" with the loving allusions to his favorite films, and savor the superb performance from Newton. The work of a great director spinning his wheels, The Truth About Charlie is certainly entertaining for anyone who will appreciate the cameo appearances by Charles Aznavour and Anna Karina. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
Ted Levine - Emil Zadapec; Lisa Gay Hamilton - Lola Jansco; Christine Boisson - Commandant Dominique; Stephen Dillane - Charlie; Frederique Meininger - Madame du Lac; Simon Abkarian - Lt. Dessalines; Charles Aznavour - Himself; Anna Karina - Herself; Magali Noël - Mysterious Woman in Black; Sakina Jaffrey - Sylvia; Wilfred Benaiche - Toy Store Manager; Olga Sekulic - Junior Military Officer; Sotigui Kouyaté - Dealer Prophete; Pierre Carre - Bistro Singer; Agnès Varda - The Widow Hyppolite; Françoise Bertin - Woman on Train; Saian Supa Crew - Themselves; James Brooks - Jordan Castor
Credit
Ford Wheeler - Art Director, Bertrand Clercq-Roques - Art Director, Delphine Mabed - Art Director, Francoise Combadiere Stern - Casting, Mishka Cheyko - Co-producer, Neda Armian - Co-producer, Catherine Leterrier - Costume Designer, Mishka Cheyko - First Assistant Director, Jonathan Demme - Director, Ted Bafaloukos - Second Unit Director, Peter Kohn - Second Unit Director, Carol Littleton - Editor, Ilona Herzberg - Executive Producer, Rachel Portman - Composer (Music Score), Deva Anderson - Musical Direction/Supervision, Hugo Luczyc-Wyhowski - Production Designer, Tak Fujimoto - Cinematographer, Jonathan Demme - Producer, Edward Saxon - Producer, Peter Saraf - Producer, Aline Bonetto - Set Designer, Michel Kharat - Sound/Sound Designer, Jonathan Demme - Screenwriter, Peter Stone - Screenwriter, Steve Schmidt - Screenwriter, Jessica Bendinger - Screenwriter, Peter Joshua - Screenwriter, Ron Bochar - Supervising Sound Editor
The Truth About Charlie was produced, directed and co-written by Academy Award winner Jonathan Demme. It closely mirrors the plotline of the original film about a young woman (played by Thandie Newton) in Paris who plans to divorce her husband (the aforementioned Charlie) and soon after discovers that he has been murdered. She is later reunited with a mysterious stranger (played by Mark Wahlberg) whom she met on holiday. He helps her piece together the truth about her deceased husband and the three menacing people who are now following her.
Peter Stone, screenwriter of Charade, is credited as one of the writers of The Truth About Charlie under the pseudonym of "Peter Joshua," which was one of the identities Cary Grant's character used in Charade. Additionally, the name of Wahlberg's character in the remake is "Joshua Peters."
The film also features cameo appearances from a number of legendary French actors and filmmakers, including Charles Aznavour, Anna Karina, and Agnès Varda.
Because the original Charade is in the public domain, when The Truth About Charlie was released to DVD in North America, the studio was able to include the complete original film as a bonus feature.
