neumu [ cinematronic ]




	The Truth About Charlie
	Jonathan Demme Mark Wahlberg, Thandie Newton, Tim Robbins, Joong-Hoon Park, Ted Levine, Lisa Gay Hamilton, Christine Boisson, Stephen Dillane, Charles Aznavour, Anna Karina 2002		Remake the witty 1963 romantic thriller "Charade," which starred paragons of sophistication Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn? Absurd! Times and notions of cool have changed too drastically. But Jonathan Demme, a director known for his intellectual approach and his sure hand with dramatic and comedic material ("Silence of the Lambs," "Married to the Mob," etc.), thought otherwise. The result is his hollow, wit-free update, "The Truth About Charlie." The plot is the same: Regina "Reggie" Lambert comes home to Paris, learns her husband is dead, and must fend off some dangerous strangers who are after a mysterious prize. Demme's idea to put lovely, waifish British actress Thandie Newton ("Beloved") in the Hepburn part of Reggie wasn't bad. The decision to give Grant's suave mystery-man role to Mark Wahlberg ("Planet of the Apes") wasn't good. Working-class Wahlberg is lots of things; suave isn't one of them. Worse, chemistry between the leads is nonexistent. The Parisian setting and a seductive Afro-French soundtrack are the only grace notes. With Tim Robbins.