Rating: 
Summary: Not the original
Review: Wahlberg is hot. Newton is a cutie-pie, but this does not have the same charm as Grant and Hepburn's "Charade". But the movie is stylish and had a great soundtrack worth buying.
Rating: 
Summary: Why this remake?
Review: If a filmmaker is going to make a remake of a popular, well-loved movie ("Charade"), he should have a valid reason for doing so, such as to improve upon the original, if possible, since comparisons are inevitable. The truth about "The Truth About Charlie" is that it is a terrible movie. The original "Charade" was delightful because it successfully combined mystery and suspense with humor, was tight and well-paced, and featured a charismatic and talented cast, including Audrey Hepburn, Cary Grant, and Walter Matthau. "The Truth About Charlie" has a rambling script in the French New Wave tradition, a pointless overabundance of hand-held camera shots that could give anyone a royal headache, and overall less-than- inspiring performances, although I don't blame the actors one bit. The blame rests completely on the head of director Jonathan Demme, who seems to have lost both his mind and his taste. Tim Robbins probably gives the worst, most wooden performance of an otherwise illustrious career by doing a bizarre "Joe Friday" imitation of an alleged U.S. government official. The chemistry between stars Mark Wahlberg and Thandie Newton is non-existent. Ms. Newton has been quite good in other movies I've seen her in, particularly in Demme's own movie, "Beloved," as well as in "Jefferson in Paris." In "Charlie" she's not particularly interesting, possibly because the character she plays is rather tediously written. Wahlberg has proven that he can be a fine actor in the right vehicle, but he is bland and unconvincing in this part. The movie's humor is practically non-existent. Ditto the suspense. But then, when one cares so little about the major characters, one spends more time checking one's watch than trembling with anticipation. However, it was nice to see Charles Aznavour perform (although I would rather have seen him perform in someone else's film, for he had no logical reason for showing up in this one). Also nice is that the DVD's flipside offers an excellent copy of "Charade" and except for the expensive Criterion DVD, every other copy ranges from passable to mediocre. ("Charade" is one of those movies with an expired copyright that anyone with a faded, scratched old print can produce on DVD -- and they do! Thus, a studio version is probably worth the price, but as someone else rightly pointed out, the wrong movie is on the flipside.) I sincerely hope Mr. Demme regains his sanity and goes on to better things.
Rating:
Summary: The 1 Star is for The Truth About Charlie Not Charade!
Review: The Truth About Charlie, a lackluster remake of "Charade," about a Parisian widow menaced by a gang of crooks, is uneven and uninspired. Steer clear of this boring mess and watch the original film instead. I don't know what Jonathan Demme was thinking and we might never find out.
Rating:
Summary: TERRIBLE
Review: My husband and I just watched this movie yesterday and both agreed that it was terrible. I have seen (and loved) Charade previously, but he had not and we both did not like the movie for the following reasons:1. The Chemistry between Walberg and Newton was non-existent. You kept asking yourself during the movie, why do they like each other, and why do I care what happens to them. 2. The constant close-ups on people's faces was annoying. 3. Charlie's crazy mother was a bizarre addition that was not entertaining. 4. The plot dragged along and seemed to go nowhere. There was no suspense. Tim Robbins appeared to be suspicious and guilty the entire time. And when they all go out dancing together, you wonder why Newton is scared of any of them. I could go on, but those were the main reasons we didn't enjoy the movie. Watch Charade instead!
Rating: 
Summary: The Truth About Charlie
Review: Can't we give this movie a little credit? It has merit of it's own without being compared to Charade. Truthfully I'd give The Truth About Charlie 3 1/2 stars. It is a good movie with a good plot (taken from Charade), interesting characters, suspense, and romance. The filming was original with unique camera angles and some choppy editing but if you like Mulon Rouge's editing you won't mind this. The romance is more believable than the one weakly developed in Charade and the plot is more understandable than it was in the original. This movie will appeal to people the original will never reach because some people simply aren't into old movies. The main characters had great chemistry- Walburg is handsome (not gorgeous) and the woman is ravishingly beautiful and I enjoyed seeing her give a serious twist to an sillier Hepburn character. She has that grace that Audrey had as well. Charade I have to give at least 4 stars to because it's two of the greatest actors of all time (who as a bonus are both gorgeous) and is much funnier than the remake (though the remake did some things better).
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