EZTakes Movie Downloads Blog

Browsing the EZTakes Store, I felt I had no other choice but to watch 1963's Charade. I'm simply not a woman who can say no to Cary Grant, a man forever described as dapper, handsome, and witty. And when he stars opposite Audrey Hepburn, a woman with equally great adjectives to her name, like elegant, beautiful, and charming, really, where is the choice? The supporting cast is equally impressive with Walter Matthau and James Coburn. There really is a lot of testosterone in this film, but you don't need much estrogen when Audrey Hepburn is around. For such a slight frame she packs a whole lot of feminine punch.

Hormones aside, if I had to pick two words for Charade, I would choose surprising and fun. For the most part, you know what you're getting into when you sit down to a 1963 Grant-Hepburn film set in Paris. Sidewalk cafes, long walks by the Seine, French children with painfully adorable accents, et cetera, et cetera. You see one romantic comedy set in Paris and you've seen them all, right? Well, no, not in this case.

Sure, Charade references all that Gene Kelly American in Paris stuff, but it has a completely different feel. A feel that I'm still trying to figure out. Because Charade is not just a romantic comedy. It's a thriller, too. And a mystery. And a comedy. So all these genres come together and make something beautiful and strange! It has elements of the 1960s (the colorful opening credits), but it also feels like a throwback to that old school Hollywood romance that Grant inevitably brings. It's elegant, it's sexy, it's twist-and-turn filled, and it's long-winded. It kept me guessing until the end, but then again, I was paying more attention to all the kisses Hepburn lays on Grant than to the man with the hook for a hand.

And so it begins. Just in case you thought you were getting into a romance, the film sets you straight before the opening credits roll when a dead guy is thrown off a train. Romantic, huh? Just what's this all about? Where is Audrey in her little outfits with her long-stem cigarettes? Where is Cary in his perfectly tailored suits and his sly comments? Oh, they're coming, don't worry. This isn't a Hitchcock film, after all, it's a Stanley Donen film, a man known for his musicals! While there's no singing in Charade, there is great music from Henry Mancini who also composed music for The Pink Panther and Colombo! And the camera work is beautiful, too. If you like interesting transitions and angles, Charade will not disappoint.

Unlike many mystery/thriller films, Charade doesn't hit you over the head with its cleverness. If you hated how The Da Vinci Code sounded an alarm every time there was plot twist and a revelation, then you'll love the subtleness of Charade. And if you loved watching Tom Hanks chase Audrey Tautou around, then there is no way you will not enjoy watching Cary Grant chase Audrey Hepburn.

Hepburn's character, Regina, starts the film as a dejected woman clad all in black and ends it as a powerful, feisty force. The dead guy thrown from the train is her husband. Turns out she didn't know much about hubby. He was a secret agent, and now all of his old war buddies are after Regina for the stolen money they're sure he left her. She comes to the conclusion that women make the best spies, and I tend to agree.

The thing I really liked about Charade is how the film is a little of everything: thriller, mystery, romance, comedy. Grant and Hepburn are strangely composed considering that the threat of murder is all around them. They find time for comedy, romance, and dinner on a riverboat. The least you can do is find time for Charade.

Click here to download Charade.

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Tags: Comedy, Mystery, Romance, Thriller