They say things get better with age, and when it comes to good old-fashioned films, I could not agree more. In fact, one of the most exhilarating, thrilling and unexpected movies I have ever seen was made in the early 1960s. Even without all of the flashy special effects of modern cinematography, this action flick remains one of the best of its kind.
Hailing from an era of classic Hollywood glamour, “Charade” is an upbeat whodunit-slash-romantic-comedy – an interesting mix of intense gunfights and mysterious murders interspersed with flirty, witty banter between a chic heroine and a seductively sly male lead. Starring the fabulous Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant, “Charade” begins with a murder and ends with a love story.
The sinister plot is quickly introduced with a dead man being pushed from a train without any explanation; then, after a series of psychedelic opening credits, the scenery switches to the beautiful mountains of a French ski resort, where Regina “Reggie” Lampert (Hepburn) is vacationing with a friend. It is here that she first meets the ever-charming Peter Joshua (Grant), with whom she flirts for a bit before returning home.
Upon entering her apartment, Reggie is horrified to discover that her mysterious husband Charles and all of their belongings are gone without a trace. The police inform her that Charles had sold everything for a very costly sum, only to turn up dead by the train tracks the next day. We now know that the body thrown off the train at the beginning of the movie was in fact Reggie’s late husband. There is no sign of the money, but the police give Reggie what was left behind by the man she thought she knew: several passports, a ticket for a boat bound for South America, and a letter he had written for her.
Things only get stranger when three intimidating figures show up at Charles’ funeral, each taking a turn to walk up to the casket and verify that Charles is dead. From this point on, the plot thickens and then escalates out of control as the three men begin harassing Reggie about where the missing money might be. As you might have predicted, Peter Joshua comes to the rescue, protecting her from these wicked men and their greedy intentions. Like any common love story, there is a damsel in distress and a good man to save her. But is Peter Joshua really a good man? Or is he just another villain waiting for an opportunity to snag the cash and run?
Just as a precautionary disclaimer, “Charade” has so many plot twists you’re likely to feel the effects of whiplash. I, however, found this to be the most impressive part. I had a preconceived notion that all old films are predictable, with lame humor and lacking any legitimate action scenes. After watching this movie, I realized just how astronomically wrong I had been in assuming this.
“Charade” is anything but predictable; it’s sharp and witty to the extreme, and jam-packed with intensity that leads to sweaty armpits and nervous jitters. I found myself trying to gauge the characters’ intentions as good or evil and realized that it was impossible. By the end of the movie, I didn’t trust a single one of them. When it all fell into place at the end, I was shocked but satisfied, because there was no way anyone could have predicted the dramatic conclusion of such a cinematic masterpiece.
