When I was asked, I said I hadn't seen Charade before. Once the film got going, I realized I had seen at least part of it. Maybe I didn't know the name of it when I saw it previously.
Audrey Hepburn plays a Regina Lampert, whose husband has been killed while she was away on holiday. His death leaves her with very little in the way of possessions, as well as the realization she knew nothing about him. That includes the fact he was part of the OSS during the war and made off with a quarter of a million dollars that was meant to be used on a mission. Now the CIA, represented by a Mr. Bartholemew (Walter Matthau), wants that money back. Unfortunately, so do the men who were on that mission with her late husband, all of whom are rather sore about being double-crossed. Then there's Peter Joshua, who she met on holiday. He seems such a helpful man. . .
Everyone is convinced she must know where the money is. She's equally convinced she doesn't know. And everyone is lying to everyone else, so there are lots of fights, threats, foot chases, and hiding in phone booths. It's a very tense movie, though the tension is frequently broken up by Hepburn and Grant bantering during quiet moments. Those work very well, because the banter gives the audience a chance to relax before the next startling reveal or dead body turns up. They're necessary breathers, and they remind us that we do care about the characters.
I really like how much Hepburn's outfits stand out in this film. Everyone else is dressed in drab colors, blacks, and greys, and browns. Grant tends towards blues, but they're dull blues. Hepburn spends most of the movie in these ridiculously bright yellow coats, or orange dresses. When she tries to covertly follow Joshua, she wears this all white ensemble with huge black sunglasses. It worked, though I can't quite figure out how. But it does serve to emphasize how out of place she is in all this. Regina spends most of the movie swinging between being terrified for her life and treating it like some fun adventure. The latter mostly comes in the quiet moments with Peter Joshua, but I believe she enjoyed the idea of dressing up in what she thought of as covert dress and trailing Joshua.
I was paying as close attention to the music as I ought to have, but when I did, it worked very well. Tense when it needed to be, quick during the chase sequences. I really enjoy the opening, too, with the cast and crew's names appearing against the backdrop of all these bright lines forming concentric circles, mazes, and other strange patterns. It's weird, but it really set the tone very well.
It's a frequently tense movie, with the tension broken up by the banter between Grant and Hepburn.
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2 comments:
I'd always thought the white get-up was a sly wink/parody of the trenchcoat look that by then must have been a cliché for the hardboiled Bogart-type detective.
B Smith: I hadn't considered that, but it's a good point. The movie isn't one that takes itself too seriously, with all the surprise reveals, and people dying in their pajamas, to the Inspector's annoyance.
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