''The Truth About Charlie'' is a 2002

mystery film A mystery film is a genre of film that revolves around the solution of a problem or a crime. It focuses on the efforts of the detective, private investigator or amateur sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of an issue by means of clues, i ...

. It is a remake of ''

Charade Charade or charades may refer to: Games * Charades, originally "acting charades", a parlor game Films/TV * ''Charade'' (1953 film), an American film featuring James Mason * ''Charade'' (1963 film), an American film starring Cary Grant and Au ...

'' (1963) and an homage to

François Truffaut François Roland Truffaut ( , ; ; 6 February 1932 – 21 October 1984) was a French film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film critic. He is widely regarded as one of the founders of the French New Wave. After a career of more th ...

's '' Shoot the Piano Player'' (1960) complete with the French film star

Charles Aznavour Charles Aznavour ( , ; born Shahnour Vaghinag Aznavourian, hy, Շահնուր Վաղինակ Ազնավուրեան, ; 22 May 1924 – 1 October 2018) was a French-Armenian singer, lyricist, actor and diplomat. Aznavour was known for his dist ...

, making two appearances singing his song "Quand tu m'aimes" (first in French, later in English). The film was produced, directed and co-written by

Jonathan Demme Robert Jonathan Demme ( ; February 22, 1944 – April 26, 2017) was an American filmmaker. Beginning his career under B-movie producer Roger Corman, Demme made his directorial debut with the 1974 women-in-prison film '' Caged Heat'', befo ...

, and stars

Mark Wahlberg Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg (born June 5, 1971), former stage name Marky Mark, is an American actor, businessman, and former rapper. He has received List of awards and nominations received by Mark Wahlberg, multiple accolades, including a B ...

and

Thandiwe Newton Melanie Thandiwe Newton ( ; born 6 November 1972), formerly credited as Thandie Newton, is a British actress. Newton has received various awards, including a Primetime Emmy Award and a British Academy Film Award, in addition to nominations for ...

in the roles played by

Cary Grant Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one of ...

and

Audrey Hepburn Audrey Hepburn (born Audrey Kathleen Ruston; 4 May 1929 – 20 January 1993) was a British actress and humanitarian. Recognised as both a film and fashion icon, she was ranked by the American Film Institute as the third-greatest female screen ...

in ''Charade''. This version closely mirrors the plotline of the original film. It is once again set in Paris and features several famous French actors. Director

Agnès Varda Agnès Varda (; born Arlette Varda; 30 May 1928 – 29 March 2019) was a Belgian-born French film director, screenwriter, photographer, and artist. Her pioneering work was central to the development of the widely influential French New Wave film ...

made a cameo appearance. Actress/chanteuse

Anna Karina Anna Karina (born Hanne Karin Blarke Bayer; September 22, 1940 – December 14, 2019)

sings a

Serge Gainsbourg Serge Gainsbourg (; born Lucien Ginsburg; 2 April 1928 – 2 March 1991) was a French musician, singer-songwriter, actor, author and filmmaker. Regarded as one of the most important figures in French pop, he was renowned for often provoc ...

song in one scene. Peter Stone, screenwriter of ''Charade'', receives a story credit as Peter Joshua, one of the aliases Grant's character uses in the first film. Stone disliked the remake and refused to be credited under his real name. The name of Wahlberg's character in the remake is Joshua Peters. The film was poorly received by critics and was a flop at the box office, earning only $7 million worldwide.

Plot

British newlywed Regina Lambert lives in Paris with her husband Charles. She returns home following a short vacation, determined to divorce Charles only to discover their apartment has been stripped bare and that her husband has been murdered. The French police are in her apartment. Charles had liquidated their possessions for $1.8M and the money is missing. Regina is soon reunited with a mysterious stranger Joshua (Mark Wahlberg) she met on her holiday. He helps her piece together the truth about the deceased Charlie and deal with three menacing people who are now following her.

Cast

as Lewis Bartholomew (alias Joshua Peters) *

Stephen Dillane Stephen John Dillane (; born 27 March 1957) is a British actor. He is best known for his roles as Leonard Woolf in the 2002 film '' The Hours'', Stannis Baratheon in ''Game of Thrones'', and Thomas Jefferson in the 2008 HBO miniseries ''John Ad ...

as Charlie *

as Regina Lambert (credited as Thandie Newton) *

Sakina Jaffrey Sakina Jaffrey (born February 14, 1962) is an American actress. Early life Jaffrey was born in New York City, the youngest daughter of Indian-born parents, actress and food and travel writer Madhur Jaffrey, and actor Saeed Jaffrey. Her parent ...

as Sylvia *

Christine Boisson Christine Boisson (born 8 April 1956) is a French actress. Biography After she registered in a model agency, Just Jaeckin liked her photo, and she got a part in the film ''Emmanuelle'' starring Sylvia Kristel, in which she played a lollipop-su ...

as Commandant Dominique *

Simon Abkarian Simon Abkarian (Armenian: Սիմոն Աբկարյան, born March 5, 1962) is a French-Armenian actor. Life and career Born in Gonesse, Val d'Oise, of Armenian descent, Abkarian spent his childhood in Lebanon. He moved to Los Angeles, wher ...

as Lieutenant Dessalines *

Park Joong-hoon Park Joong-hoon (born March 22, 1966) is a South Korean actor. Early life and family Park was born and raised in Seoul. He was classmates with retired basketball legend Hur Jae at Yongsan High School and attended Chung-Ang University toge ...

as Lee Il-sang *

Lisa Gay Hamilton LisaGay Hamilton (born March 25, 1964) is an American actress who has portrayed roles in films, television, and on stage. She is best known for her role as secretary/lawyer Rebecca Washington on the ABC legal drama ''The Practice'' (1997–2003). ...

as Lola Jansco *

Ted Levine Frank Theodore Levine (born May 29, 1957) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the roles of Buffalo Bill in the film '' The Silence of the Lambs'' (1991) and Leland Stottlemeyer in the television series ''Monk'' (2002–2009). Le ...

as Emil Zadapec *

Magali Noël Magali Noëlle Guiffray (27 June 1931 – 23 June 2015), better known as Magali Noël, was a French actress and singer. Biography Actress career Born in İzmir to French parents in the diplomatic service, she left Turkey for France in 1951, a ...

as Mysterious woman in black *

Tim Robbins Timothy Francis Robbins (born October 16, 1958) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for portraying Andy Dufresne in the film '' The Shawshank Redemption ''(1994), and has won an Academy Award and two Golden Globe Awards for his rol ...

as Carson J. Dyle *

as The widow Hyppolite *

as Charles Aznavour *

Olivier Broche Olivier Broche (born 18 December 1963) is a French actor and producer. He is best known for playing in the cult TV series '' Les Deschiens'' (1993–2002), in which he play alongside Yolande Moreau Yolande Moreau (born 27 February 1953) i ...

as Aznavour fan *

Manno Charlemagne Joseph Emmanuel "Manno" Charlemagne (April 14, 1948 – December 10, 2017) was a Haitian political folk singer, songwriter and acoustic guitarist, political activist and politician. He recorded his political chansons in both French and in Creole. ...

as 'Chez Josephine' Maitre D' *

Anna Karina Anna Karina (born Hanne Karin Blarke Bayer; September 22, 1940 – December 14, 2019)

as Karina *

Philippe Katerine Philippe Blanchard (; born 8 December 1968), known professionally as Philippe Katerine, is a French singer-songwriter, actor, director and writer who began his career in 1991. Some of his popular singles include "Mon cœur balance", "Je vous em ...

as Karina fan * Philippe Duquesne as Café cook *

Kenneth Utt Kenneth Utt (July 13, 1921 – January 19, 1994), was an American film producer and unit production manager. He received the Academy Award for Best Picture for producing '' The Silence of the Lambs'' (1991). Life and career Utt was born in W ...

as The Late Monsieur Hyppolite * Sotigui Kouyaté as Dealer Prophète * Paula Moore as Ms. Hoskins *

Françoise Bertin Françoise Bertin (23 September 1925 – 26 October 2014) was a French actress. She appeared in over 125 films since 1961. Among these were five films directed by Alain Resnais: ''Last Year at Marienbad'', '' Muriel'', '' The War Is Over'', '' ...

as Woman on Train * Jason Ainley as Smash Loser * David Barco as Smash Champion * Mike Diamente as Smash Referee *

Alban Lenoir Alban Lenoir (born 16 December 1980) is a French people, French actor, screenwriter and stuntman. He was nominated for a Lumières Award for his leading role in the film ''French Blood'' (2015). Career As a stuntman, he has worked on ''Les Brig ...

as Skinhead

Reception

''The Truth About Charlie'' received negative reviews from critics. The film holds a 33% approval rating on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

, based on 135 reviews. The website's consensus reads, "Newton has star quality, but this exercise in style can't hold a candle to the original."

References

External links

Official website
(archived) * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Truth About Charlie 2002 films 2000s crime thriller films 2000s comedy mystery films 2002 romantic comedy films American crime thriller films Remakes of American films American comedy mystery films American neo-noir films French neo-noir films 2000s comedy thriller films Films set in Paris Films directed by Jonathan Demme Films scored by Rachel Portman French remakes of American films Universal Pictures films English-language French films 2000s American films 2000s French films