Rating: 
Summary: IN A WORD? AWFUL!!!!!
Review: You're telling me that this drech is supposed to be a remake of the classic film Charade?
Gee, that sure was lost on me, since The Truth About Charlie bears about as much resemblance to that GOOD film as Audrey Hepburn does to Rosie O'Donnell.
Badly written, badly made, BADLY ACTED & a total waste of time & money.
Thandie Newton is cute as button, I'll give the other critics that & ONLY that, but even SHE can't save this tripe from itself.
Mark Wahlberg is supposed to be Cary Grant? Yeah, ok.
Maybe the casting director would also like to use Roseanne Barr to play Grace Kelly, if there is ever an onscreen bio.
And, hey, I like "Marky Mark", but ALL of the the actors in this film should have spent their time making something worthwhile & moreover, worth watching.
Oh and the gimmecky cinematography is nothing more than than an annoyance.
And amateurish to boot.
Rating: 
Summary: Another classic bites the dust!
Review: In the grand tradition of remakes, The Truth about Charlie is a butchered, poor imitation of the original. However, I have to give credit to director Jonathan Demme for butchering Charade with such gusto...I just wish he had gone even further. Let me explain.I applaud Demme for attempting to modernize both the movie and its location, Paris. He obviously made a concerted effort to show diversity by featuring an international cast and using less elite locations, thereby showing Parisians from different walks of life. I wholeheartedly commend his motivation to show a more realistic view of the world rather than the whitewashed version prevalent in most mainstream movies. However, I think Demme erred in that he couldn't decide whether he wanted to update Charade completely, in terms of story and style, or keep it faithful to the original. The result is a jumbled mish-mash of Charade minus the lightness and humor, plus frenetic camera work. The Truth about Charlie takes itself too seriously as a thriller, which, as anyone who's seen Charade knows, was hardly the intention of the original. The plot - dead husband, missing money, mysterious acquaintances - isn't thick enough to be a straight serious thriller and by doing so, Demme seriously weakens The Truth about Charlie. The audience also misses out on the playful cat-and-mouse that was evident between Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant; Thandie Newton and Mark Wahlberg don't really get a chance to showcase whatever chemistry they may have brought to the roles. However, since Charade is one of my favorite movies and I was incredibly biased going into Charlie, I made my roommate who had never seen Charade watch Charlie. (She had also never seen a Cary Grant movie - I know, what rock has she been hiding under - so there was no basis for comparison with Wahlberg.) She liked the movie but was confused at parts. Demme at times uses scenes from Charade but fails to set up the scene properly, which pokes holes in the plot. She rates the movie a 3-4 - for those viewers who want an unbiased view and happen to like Wahlberg. One thing we did agree on was that Marky Mark should not wear a beret or formal hat...ever. :) To sum up, Charade fans should probably stay away from Charlie as comparison and disappoint are inevitable. For those who haven't seen the original, Charlie will likely provide mild entertainment...until you turn the disc over and watch the original and realize why they had to entice people with 2 movies for the price of one. Good intentions though on Demme's part, just poor execution. Two stars.
Rating:
Summary: The Truth About The Truth About Charlie
Review: Before this film even started, it already had two strikes against it in my book. You see, "Charade" - the film of which "The Truth About Charlie" is a re-make of - is one of my all-time favorite films. Thus, when I first heard it was being re-made, I thought that idea was insane. Why mess with near-perfection? "Charade" still holds up very well after forty years and no present-day actor and actress pairing could ever re-create the magic Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn brought to the original. Director Jonathan Demme sure had guts to take on this project. If he desecrated the memory of "Charade" then its legions of fans would surely let him know about it. Well, after finally viewing the re-make with as much of an open mind as possible, I can say that the film is not the total disaster I feared it might be, but, despite good stabs by Mark Wahlberg and Thandie Newton, "The Truth About Charlie" is significantly inferior to "Charade." Newlywed Regina Lambert (Newton) returns to Paris to find her apartment abandoned and looted. Matters become worse when the police soon inform her that husband has been murdered. After Regina is shown one passport after another of her dead husband, each with a different identity, she immediately realizes Charlie was not exactly what he seemed. One crucial clue to unraveling the truth about her husband comes to her when a government official played by Tim Robbins tells her that mysterious strangers would soon be stalking her . . . . because her husband had stolen six million dollars. Thankfully, a knight in shining armor by the name of Joshua Peters (Wahlberg) shows up to help Reggie. Or is he only after the money too? "Charade" worked because of three reasons: (1) its clever story was a delight to unravel as one charade after another was exposed to reveal the true intentions of all its characters, (2) Grant and Hepburn were perfectly matched and fed off each other's screen charisma, and (3) director Stanley Donen delivered a crisp and breezy film that managed to never confuse its audience while still keeping all of its complex elements intact. "The Truth About Charlie" fails to deliver in all three respects. Demme tweaked his version of the story to prevent it from being a straight re-make of the original. However, these new twists - while interesting at times - do not improve matters. While "Charade" assembled all of the pieces of the puzzle in a neat manner at its conclusion, "The Truth About Charlie" concludes in a mess (and an unnecessary epilogue only works to complicate matters further). Wahlberg and Newton do the best they can but there's not much spark between them. Separately, Newton is very good in creating a character who is scared, angry, clever, and charming at the same time and Wahlberg makes some amends for his "Planet of the Apes" debacle, but sadly neither of them can elevate the film. Finally, Jonathan Demme is no Stanley Donen, plain and simple. If you are purchasing the DVD, then the good news is that the original "Charade" is included on the DVD and the print of it is of very good quality compared to the many public domain copies in circulation. If anything, the release of "The Truth About Charlie" can be considered a good thing for bringing "Charade" to the attention of a new generation of film watchers. There are times when new is not better than old and one need only look at both "Charade" and "The Truth About Charlie" to see such an example of this point.
Rating:
Summary: You know what's wrong with this film?EVERYTHING!
Review: You can tell the Hollywood is clearly losing ideas on what movies to make next.After the ... awful remakes of both Psycho and The Time Machine,they decided "Hey,howabout we remake another classic film."This time the remake is the old 1963 classic "Charade" staring Cary Grant and Aurdrey Hepburn,the remake is called The Truth About Charlie,staring Mark Wahlberg and Thandie Newton and the truth is this movie is one big mess from the start ... and the only thing good about this DVD is that you get Charade on the second side.Take my advice and watch the original instead.
Rating: 
Summary: Not as bad as all that...
Review: Jonathon Demme's blithe remake of "Charade" is realy a riff on the original in the style of the French New Wave, and as such can be seen as a witty delight. I adore the first version, so I came to this skeptical, and it's true the story is a mess. But who cares about the story when you have Thandie Newton and Paris to look at, and Tak Fujimoto's gorgeous cinematography, shot so freely you aren't aware of the technique that went into it? If you let the film work on you, you may find yourself laughing continuously at Demme's patented offbeat wit and lyrical invention. I think it complements the first version, without duplicating it's strengths. "The Truth About Charlie" has its own strengths. And keep in mind: when the original "Charade" was released it was not a critical success -- reviewers carped about the black humor, the muddled story and the offbeat direction. Sound familiar?
Rating:
Summary: Uneven Thriller. Good Rental.
Review: Recently married Regina Lambert (Thandie Newton) returns to her home in Paris to find that her husband Charlie has been murdered and their apartment emptied of its contents in "The Truth About Charlie", a remake of the 1963 film "Charade" with a distinctly more modern flavor. Regina soon learns that her husband was not entirely who she thought he was and that he was in possession of a great deal of money that a lot of people would like to claim...and they all believe that she must have it. Three thuggish former comrades of Charlie's harass her. A man claiming to work for the super-secret Office of Defense Cooperation (Tim Robbins) says that the money belongs to the US government. Commandant Dominique (Christine Boisson), the police detective assigned to Charlie's murder investigation, believes the money will lead to the killer. And a kind and mysterious stranger named Joshua Peters (Mark Wahlberg) seems to always turn up when Regina is in need. Regina is thrust into a maelstrom of secrets and deception from her husband's past. She must navigate this colorful and dangerous cast of characters while she tries to find that money and get everyone off of her back. "The Truth About Charlie" is a very uneven film. It's a mixture of great, bad, and mediocre filmmaking. I very much admire the performances of Thandie Newton and Christine Boisson. I think they make this film worth a look. Lisa Gay Hamilton is also good as one of Charlie's former comrades. The rest of the cast is adequate. One interesting aspect of this film is that it takes on a distinctly European style in certain scenes -but not throughout the film. There is a very contrived and funny tango scene in a dance hall that would never appear in an American film, but is quintessentially French, as is the movie's ending. French singer Charles Aznavour is dropped, singing, into a few scenes too, in very Southern European fashion. It looks like there was a conscious attempt on the part of director Jonathan Demme to make this movie in a sort of hybrid French-American style because it is set in Paris. This seems to lend a patent inconsistency to the film more than anything. Nevertheless, it's a generally entertaining thriller with some captivating ingredients and fine performances, and I recommend it on that basis.
Rating:
Summary: TERRIBLE REMAKE - CLASSIC THRILLER: YOU DECIDE ON DVD
Review: "The Truth About Charlie" is a remake of Stanley Donen's classic thriller, "Charade". Universal Studios gives us the rare opportunity to do a side-by-side comparison of these two films by giving us both on a flipper disc - a huge mistake, since "Charlie" can't hold a candle to "Charade". The remake's glaring shortcomings become immediately obvious in doing a comparison.
PLOT: Regina Lampert (Audrey Hepburn in "Charade/Thandie Newton in "Charlie) returns home from a vacation to discover that her husband is dead and that all of her assets have been liquidated. Enter mysterious stranger Joshua Peter/Peter Joshua in the original (Cary Grant/Mark Walberg)who vows to help Regina get to the bottom of things. But is he really on her side?
Aside: I vowed never to review a film in this column, only the transfer quality of the DVD, but here I must break with that self-imposed tradition and say that "The Truth About Charlie" is simply awful.
In his zeal to give us an update, director Jonathan Demme has deglamorized the original story, in short, giving us a a Paris that plays like New York and characters better suited for a Vin Diesel flick than this classic who-done-it spy thriller.
Mark Walberg is clearly out of his element, possessing none of the sophisitication of Cary Grant. Of course, there's the obligatory shirtless scene - brief but inserted to show off the actor's one salavagable asset (his muscular body). I should like to point out that Walberg has done some good work outside of this film but he shouldn't have been cast as the suave man-about-town. That, he knows absolutely nothing about!
Thandie Newton is equally an ill fit to Regina, so luminously filled out by Audrey Hepburn. Her take on the lead is childish, not child-like, and insulant instead of independent. Tim Robbins takes over the role of the CIA man from Walter Matthau in the original but doesn't bring anything fresh to his characterization.
Seeing this movie will make you pine for "Charade" and here, I would like to add something about Jonathan Demme's work - it's full of edgy cutting and awkward disolves that work against the material - in short, trying to create a "Silence of the Lambs" feel for a movie that should be more about romance and mystery than death and oddities. The Paris of Demme's creation is not a city I'd like to visit. "Charade"'s is!
NOW: ABOUT THE TRANSFER: "Charlie" is presented in its original 2:35:1 aspect ratio, enhanced for 16X9 televisions. Colors are well balanced though desaturated - as the film maker intended. Demme's use of color filters in certain sequences is unimpressive but well represented on this disc. However, there is some aliasing and shimmering of fine details and a considerable amount of edge enhancement present throughout. The 5.1 sound mix is well presented and for the most part, well balanced.
CHARADE: Presented in its original 1:85:1 aspect ratio and enhanced for 16X9 televisions (a first! - not even the Criterion edition did this). Here I shall draw back a moment to mention Criterion's previously issued DVD of "Charade". In that version, colors were rich, bold and vibrant. On this new incarnation color remains balanced though somewhat desaturated. Where the previous disc presented a razor sharp image throughout, this version is considerably softer, though still well within a presentable clarity level. But this version of "Charade" surpasses its predicessor in one major aspect of its visual presentation - in its virtually edge enhancement and shimmering/aliasing problems-FREE, smooth visual presentation. The Criterion version was notoriously marred by these digital anomolies that caused background detail to be very unstable in certain scenes such as during Regina's initial visit to her ransacked apartment and the funeral scene, where candle sticks shook as though they had been made of water instead of wax. Though, as I have said before, colors in this version of "Charade" are somewhat desaturated (comparing them directly with Criterion's edition)the resulting absence of such annoying digital glitches make this the preferred version of this classic film.
BOTTOM LINE: My recommendation is that you buy this disc for "Charade" and forget about the other movie included herein, because the real "Truth About Charlie" is that it should have never been made!
Rating:
Summary: It gets 2 stars for being shot in the right location !!
Review: And that is where the Stars end!! This movie was beyond AWFUL. Can anyone please tell me why Marky Mark continues to get movie roles???? I happen to be a HUGE Cary Grant fan and so it is possible that I was never going to like it in the first place. Thandie Newton tried her best to pull this movie through at least she was one of the performers I was convinced with. Mark Wahlberg, Tim Robbins and the Rasta character (just to name a few) were so vacant in this movie. I wish that they would not have even mentioned the movie name {Charade} it is a insulting comparison. The premise of this movie folllows the review below accept for you will find yourself asking a number of questions that weren't explained or never made sense in the first place. Do yourself a favor and rent Charade 1st so that you can understand what the plot was supposed to LOOK and FEEL like. Oh and another thing that kept me irrated Mark Wahlberg facial expressions and delivery of lines :^O they were painful to watch and I found myself laughing out loud at his efforts. I would not recommend purchasing this DVD I would recommend renting it first ...
Rating:
Summary: The truth is, it lacks the charm and wit of the original
Review: This DVD which features Jonathan Demme's "The Truth About Charlie" and its inspiration, Stanley Donen's 1963 film "Charade", will give you ample opportunity to compare and contrast the two films. Comparisons are inevitable, as is the case with remakes. As a fan of Donen's film, I was unable to seperate "The Truth About Charlie" in my mind from the original film. I kept thinking "Mark Wahlberg is no Cary Grant". That's probably a reaction that many will have. Fortunately, however, Thandie Newton is closer to Audrey Hepburn than Wahlberg is to Grant. Still quite a distance, though. Jonathan Demme, Oscar-winning director of The Silence of the Lambs, took Peter Stone's story and removed every bit of the humor and wit that make "Charade" such a charming film. What's left is a straight-forward thriller that rarely thrills. The movie focuses entirely on the plot, the identity of Charlie's killer and the location of the MacGuffin (the money). "Charade" was a special movie because it dabbled in Hitchcock's territory, but glided effortlessly between comedy and suspense. There was real chemistry between Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn, but here Wahlberg and Newton just seem to be going through the motions. Walter Matthau's Bartholomew was one of the most humorous characters in "Charade", but here Tim Robbins (in the Matthau role) plays it straight and rather dull. Someone who has never seen the original might find enjoyment in "The Truth About Charlie", if they can buy into the Wahlberg-Newton romance (which I did not) and look past the sometimes stale acting and gimmicky camera work. However, I think most people will find the original movie to be a far more enjoyable and rewarding experience. This DVD contains a director commentary by Jonathan Demme, so perhaps he explains his motivation to remake the film. Knowing that Demme has done such great things in the past, "The Truth About Charlie" is a bit bewildering. Those who buy this DVD will probably find the "Charade" side being viewed a lot more than the "Charlie" side.
Rating: 
Summary: discover thandie newton
Review: if you haven't heard of thandie newton before see this film and she will captivate you.when i first saw this remake of "charade" i was disappointed but one thing stayed with me, thandie newtons performance was captivating.she is quite beautiful and commands the screen and carries the film.a few weeks later i went to see the film again and liked it even more as i was glued to her performance,even my 12 yr. old son said to me "the movies o.k. but that ladies performance is great. now i cannot wait to purchase the video.it's a twisting plot of lying and deceit put upon a newlywed wife who discovers her new husband,found dead ,was not all he claimed to be and his cohorts in crime think she has the answers to their dilemma.beautifully filmed in france but the cities beauty pales in comparison to miss newton.so many hollywood actresses look like glamor girls or models . thandie newton has that rare fragile beauty that is rarely seen. the last actress i saw who had that type of beauty was janet margolin.when you see this movie you are not only seeing a great actress but a truly beautiful woman.the writer of this review is caucasian and i recognize true beauty when i see it and it is much deeper than glamor! other films to see of hers are "flirting" and "the journey of august king"
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