THE TRUTH ABOUT CHARLIE

Year: 2002
USA: Universal Studios
UK: UIP (UK)
Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Thandie Newton, Tim Robbins, Stephen Dillane, Ted Levine, Christine Boisson, Olga Sekulic, Françoise Bertin, Cassius Kumar Wilkinson, Sakina Jaffrey, Simon Abkarian, Christophe Salengro, Philippe Fretun, Loeiza Jacq, Joong-Hoon Park, Lisa Gay Hamilton, Magali Noël, Raphaelle Gallizzi, Michel Cremades,
Director: Jonathan Demme
Country: USA
UK: 104 mins
UK: 89 mins
USA Rated: PG-13 for some violence and sexual content/nudity
UK Certificate: PG contains mild language and violence
USA Release Date: 25 October 2002
UK Release Date: 16 May 2003


Synopsis

Jonathan Demme, the Academy Award®-winning director of THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, as well as such films as MELVIN AND HOWARD, SOMETHING WILD, PHILADELPHIA and BELOVED, was ready for a change. After devoting himself to the discipline of classically structured films for more than a decade, he wanted to return to the more playful and escapist style of some of his earlier films like SOMETHING WILD, MARRIED TO THE MOB, and the first pictures he did with Roger Corman.

He had an idea: what if he could take one of his all-time favorite flicks, Stanley Donen's 1963 romantic thriller CHARADE, as a jumping-off point for a sometimes faithful, sometimes radically different new version - dramatically reshaping the relationships and personalities of the lead characters, de-emphasizing key elements of the original, amping up other aspects of the story and setting, and frequently taking the original storyline in entirely new directions. Demme's picture would still be set in Paris, but instead of focusing largely on Parisian charm and elegance, his characters would inhabit a different "City of Lights" with its own quirks, sprawl, diversity, sounds, and surprises. Stylistically, he would depart from the High Style of the original in favor of an approach that was just blossoming in the Paris of the early '60's - the fabled "French New Wave" that gave birth to the films of François Truffaut, Jean-Luc Godard, Claude Chabrol, Agnes Varda, Jacques Demy, Alain Resnais, and many others.

While paying homage to both Donen and the Nouvelle Vague, Demme invites moviegoers to sit back and take an unconventional, unpredictable and thoroughly cinematic ride with THE TRUTH ABOUT CHARLIE. Starring Thandie Newton as a young woman searching for answers about her husband's murder and a missing fortune, and Mark Wahlberg as the mysterious 'helping hand' all too ready to assist her at every turn.

Her name is Regina Lambert (Newton). She meets Joshua Peters (Wahlberg) while vacationing in Martinique with plans to return home and terminate her recent marriage to the enigmatic Charles Lambert (Stephen Dillane). Life with the charming Charles started out with tremendous excitement and promise, but things have gone quickly and dismayingly downhill.

But upon her return to Paris, they get much worse...

Reggie no longer needs the divorce. Charles has been murdered. Their apartment and bank account have been completely emptied. She is totally freaked. A trio of Charles' former (and very ominous) cohorts, Il-Sang Lee (Joong-Hoon Park), Emil Zadapec (Ted Levine), and Lola Jansco (Lisa Gay Hamilton), are menacing her in hopes of recovering a bundle of missing cash. As chance would have it, Joshua is in Paris now, too, anxious to help.

Regina could use the assistance, because the more she learns, the more she needs to discover to fill in the missing pieces of this puzzle and to protect herself from the escalating danger. In the midst of all the chaos, Joshua reveals a growing affection for Reggie, even as disturbing allegations about him surface and undermine her trust.

Hard-edged Paris Police Commandant Dominique (Christine Boisson) considers Regina herself a likely suspect in Charlie's death. The attentions of a by-the-book American embassy official (Tim Robbins) make her situation even more complicated. But as the pressure on her increases, Reggie's struggle to extricate herself from the web of deceit and intrigue surrounding Charlie's murder transforms into a belief that, in fact, she must learn the truth about Charlie - and herself - in order to move forward with her life (if she survives the search!). As the truth about Charlie finally emerges, the truth about the smitten Joshua likewise comes into startling focus.