About:

Title: Charade
Released: 1963

Fix: Vicarious Vacation/Suspenseful Thriller/Lusting After Audrey Hepburn’s Givenchy Wardrobe
Platform: Netflix

Bonjour, ladies and Brian! So, fun story: I had this post all ready telling you why you should watch Cold Comfort Farm, but you know what? I’M IN PARIS RIGHT NOW. Paris is my favorite! I mean, look at what I ate for lunch yesterday:

And then there was this:

But then I got kind of sad that all of you can’t be here with me, so I decided to shelve that other post and bring you the next best thing to macarons and Parisian sunsets: Charade.

Netflix Summary: 

Cary Grant stars as Peter, who may or may not be a flimflam man who aids the recently widowed Regina in her mission to recover a fortune hidden by her late husband. But three sinister crooks — who’ll stop at nothing — also covet the loot.

FYA Summary: 

Audrey Hepburn is fabulous in Paris. Cary Grant is charming (but alarmingly orange) in Paris. There’s some crime and mystery and suspense and stuff, but mostly those first two things.

Familiar Faces:

Cary Grant as Peter

Cary Grant is tied with Jimmie Stewart for my second-favorite leading-man of all time. (Related: marry me, Gregory Peck. I will invent a time machine if I have to, but someday, we will be together.) He is always so very winsome and debonair, and I will watch any movie featuring him, ever. Even when he is suffering from tanorexia in Technicolor. 

Audrey Hepburn as Reggie

And Audrey Hepburn. Audrey Hepburn! She is just so lovely. And her coats in this movie! I’m pretty sure Audrey Hepburn + Givenchy + This Movie = the source of my serious coat-purchasing problem. I am no longer allowed to even TRY ON coats because of this film.

Couch-Sharing Capability: Maximum

Despite the fact that I have yet to persuade any of my travel companions to watch this with me, I am convinced that this movie is perfect for watching with friends. It’s just scary enough that you’ll want to squeeze your neighbor’s arm during the final confrontation in La Comédie Française, and you will definitely need someone handy with the smelling salts. Cary Grant! Swoon!

Recommended Level of Inebriation: Pop the bubbly!

It’s not that you need to be drunk to enjoy this movie, because it would be good at any level of sobriety. But if you are not watching this with a glass of champagne in your hand, YOU’RE DOING IT WRONG. (Also, remember that it is a sin to re-cork champagne).

Use of Your Streaming Subscription: Excellent

For realzies, this is one of my all-time favorite films. The scenery is so pretty, the music is so great, and you CANNOT GO WRONG with Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn. So even though we have yet to schedule an FYA field trip, let’s all go to Paris vicariously through this film.

Alix is a writer and illustrator who spends way too much time reading Jane Austen retellings of varying quality.