Directed by Jonathan Demme
Screenplay by Peter Stone, Jonathan Demme and Jessica Bendinger
1963 screenplay Charade by Peter Joshua/Stone

Olga Sékulic .... Junior Military Officer
Stephen Dillane .... Charlie
Françoise Bertin .... Woman on Train
Thandie Newton .... Regina Lampert
Cassius Kumar Wilkinson .... Hercules
Sakina Jaffrey .... Sylvia
Mark Wahlberg .... Joshua Peters
Christine Boisson .... Commandant Dominique
Simon Abkarian .... Lieutenant Dessalines
Christophe Salengro .... Morgue Attendant
Philippe Fretun .... Evidence Handler
Loeiza Jacq .... Evidence Handler
Joong-Hoon Park .... Il-sang Lee
Lisa Gay Hamilton .... Lola Jansco
Ted Levine .... Emil Zarapec
Magali Noël .... Mysterious Woman in Black
Raphaelle Gallizzi .... Romantic Taxi Driver
Michel Crémadès .... Amiable Desk Clerk
Tim Robbins .... Mr. Bartholomew

Produced by
Neda Armian .... co-producer
Michel Cheyko .... co-producer
Jonathan Demme .... producer
Ilona Herzberg .... executive producer
Peter Saraf .... producer
Edward Saxon .... producer

Original Music by Rachel Portman
Cinematography by Tak Fujimoto
Film Editing by Carol Littleton

MPAA: Rated PG-13 for some violence and sexual content/nudity.
For rating reasons, go to FILMRATINGS.COM, and MPAA.ORG.
Parents, please refer to PARENTALGUIDE.ORG

Truth About Charlie
Various Artists - 2002

1. Jim The Jinn - De Phazz
2. Garab - Rachid Taha
3. La voix du vaurien - Jean Marc Miro
4. Les Enfants Perdus - AngiLique Kidjo
5. Mr. Kennedy - Soft Boys
6. This Is The Army Of Forgotten Souls - Transglobal Underground
7. Ragda - Khaled

An exhilarating combination of romance and suspense ignites sparks of all kinds against the backdrop of an edgy, modern Paris in The Truth About Charlie, Academy Award(R)-winning director Jonathan Demme's fresh take on the 1963 Stanley Donen film Charade.

Regina Lambert (Thandie Newton) meets the charming Joshua Peters (Mark Wahlberg) while vacationing in Martinique, as she contemplates ending her whirlwind marriage to the enigmatic Charlie (Stephen Dillane). But upon her return to Paris, she finds that both her apartment and her bank account have been emptied, and her husband has been mysteriously murdered. A trio of his old cohorts (Joong-Hoon Park, Ted Levine, Lisa Gay Hamilton) has begun shadowing her in hopes of answering their own questions about Charlie and recovering a bundle of missing cash. Joshua is in Paris now, too, and ready to offer any help he can.

The more Reggie learns, the more she must find out to fill in the missing pieces of this puzzle and to protect herself from ever-increasing danger. Joshua lays a growing claim on her affection, even as disturbing information about him surfaces and undermines her trust. Hard-edged Commandant Dominique (Christine Boisson) thinks Reggie herself is the most likely suspect. The attentions of a straight-laced embassy official (Tim Robbins) make Reggie's situation even more complicated. But all she can do is carry on with the knowledge that in life, as in love, nothing is ever as simple as it seems.

CAN THE COLD HARD FACTS SAVE REGINA?
Commandant Dominique thinks Regina herself is the most likely suspect. The commandant is cold and heartless, just like facts can often be.
The facts find Regina innocent, however.
Regina maybe innocent.
But, she is not free.
The law does not and can not set her free.

SINISTER PEOPLE STALK HER
Strangers come into her life.
They pose as friends.
But, we know they are not.
The film makes feel unsafe with dark and overcast scenes.
"The thief comes to rob, kill and destroy." -Jesus

A SAVIOR APPEARS
He is an unlikely savior.
His identity is a mystery.
His name is Joshua (The Hebrew word for Jesus)
Regina must decide between to accept him or reject him. Her life rests in her decision.
"I have come that you might have life." -Jesus

Interesting note: The original 1963 movie was written by Peter Stone, and this one is written by Peter Joshua. Actually it is the same person. Just a new adapted name. Those who understand Jesus's renaming of Peter to Stone (Rock) and the fact that Jesus is Joshua in Hebrew, may find the choice of names interesting. And, especially so since the lead male character's name is Joshua Peters.

NEW FILM TECHNIQUE
The films of the 1960's French New Wave proved a seminal force in the history of modern cinema, and have always exerted a special hold on director Demme.

"(The original film) Charade was made in 1963 and depicted Paris in appropriately charming, stylish, elegant terms," says Demme. "When approaching the remake, I was excited by the fact that at the same time as Stanley Donen was filming Charade in Paris, the New Wave directors were blasting out their shoot-from-the-hip pictures like A Woman Is a Woman (Godard), Shoot the Piano Player (Truffaut), Cleo from 5 to 7 (Varda), The Cousins (Chabrol), and Lola (Jacques Demy) right around the corner. So The Truth About Charlie provided a chance for us to play with the notion of a kind of latter-day New Wave spinoff on Donen's high style." (Stanley Donen was the director of Charade and his style was patterned after Alfred Hitchcock's long held and stable scenes)

The 1960s New Wave Cinema was part of the rebellion to the Modern Era (1850-1950), where camera had to be stable. In the Post Modern Era (1950-1999) life was not stable, nor were the New Wave cameras. New Wave Cinema changed how films are made. Its impact can be seen in the film style of NYPD Blue, to mention one current example of thousands that could be named.

THE LACK OF GROUNDING
Demme emulated the hand-held camera work of New Wave filmmakers while shooting. "We did every shot with an un-mounted camera. We never attached the camera to a tripod or a dolly, and where there's a shot that isn't moving, the camera is resting on top of a deflated soccer ball or something. No real grounding allowed - the camera is never locked down. That excited us. It became a challenging discipline, especially for Pierre Morel, our awesome young camera operator."

Demme captures the extraordinary new creativity that is taking place in today's world, wherein the new is combined with the old.

In the emerging new era, the old is not discarded, nor is it centered on, rather it is built upon in a creative manner. Authenticity is key. One gets the feeling that Demme went for such authenticity (three cheers), but sadly at the cost of human passion and connectedness. In attempting to find new ground, Demme loses real grounding.

Meaningful relationships are center stage in the Creative Era. Solid relationships provide grounding. But, unfortunately not in this film. There was absolutely no chemistry between Joshua and Regina!

WHAT THIS FILM PREPRESENTS
Emerging out of the Post Modern Era comes the Creative Era.
It is much like Regina's resurrection from the ashes of her old life.
The film recasts in a creative manner the Post Modern original.
I applaud Demme's risk taking and creative spirit.

Spiritually, "The Truth About Charlie" demonstrates that liberation must come through more than just the facts of life. Salvation comes through relationship.

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