The Truth About Charlie | |
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Original film poster
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Directed by | Jonathan Demme |
Produced by | Jonathan Demme Peter Saraf Edward Saxon Ilona Herzberg Neda Armian Mishka Cheyko |
Screenplay by | Jonathan Demme Steve Schmidt Peter Stone (credited as Peter Joshua) Jessica Bendinger |
Based on |
Charade by Peter Stone |
Starring |
Mark Wahlberg Thandie Newton Tim Robbins Joong-Hoon Park Ted Levine Lisa Gay Hamilton Christine Boisson Stephen Dillane Charles Aznavour Anna Karina Magali Noël |
Music by |
Rachel Portman Deva Anderson |
Cinematography | Tak Fujimoto |
Edited by | Carol Littleton |
Production
company |
Mediastrem Film
Clinica Estetico Productions |
Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release date
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25 October 2002 |
Running time
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104 minutes |
Country | United States France |
Language | English French |
Budget | $60 million |
Box office | $7.1 million |
The Truth About Charlie is a 2002 remake of the 1963 classic film Charade. It is also an homage to François Truffaut's 1960 film Shoot the Piano Player complete with that film's star, Charles Aznavour, making two surreal appearances singing his song "Quand tu m'aimes" (first in French, later in English).
The film was produced, directed and co-written by Academy Award winner Jonathan Demme, and stars Mark Wahlberg and Thandie Newton in the roles once played by Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn.
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 made a cameo appearance. Actress/Chanteuse Anna Karina sings a Serge Gainsbourg song in one scene. Peter Stone, screenwriter of Charade, receives a story credit as "Peter Joshua," which was one of the identities Grant's character used 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 received a poor reception from critics and was a flop at the box office, bringing only $7 million worldwide. The original Charade accidentally slipped into the public domain. Universal had never bothered to release it officially on DVD, until it was included as a bonus feature on the B-side of the Charlie DVD. They previously licensed it to The Criterion Collection, while numerous unofficial DVDs had been released worldwide.
British newlywed Regina Lambert lives in Paris with her husband, Charlie. She returns home following a short vacation, determined to divorce Charlie, only to discover their apartment has been stripped bare and that her husband has been murdered. Regina is soon reunited with a mysterious stranger 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.