Truth About Charlie

Truth About Charlie

Jonathan Demme's THE TRUTH ABOUT CHARLIE is a swirling romantic suspense thriller, a remake of the 1963 Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn vehicle, CHARADE. Set in Paris, the film stars Thandie Newton as a British ex-pat whose art dealer husband is murdered while she's on vacation. Arriving home, she is met with an empty apartment, the French police, and an array of mysterious thugs who believe she knows where her husband stashed six million stolen dollars. Mark Wahlberg plays the handsome, beret-sporting stranger who comes to her rescue, but who may not be what he seems. Special mention goes to Tim Robbins as a shadowy American agent, and Christine Boisson as the cool-as-nails police commandant trying to get to the bottom of the matter.
Demme's direction pulls out all the stops here, with dizzying camerawork, experimental flash-forwards and insane editing. It's a return to the Oscar-winner's pre-SILENCE OF THE LAMBS days, when his specialty were cameo-studded, pop-infused romantic comedy thrillers like MARRIED TO THE MOB and SOMETHING WILD. This time the cameos celebrate the 1960's French New Wave cinema with appearances by crooner Charles Aznavour, director Agnes Varda, and--singing a mad tango--ex-Godard icon Anna Karina.