[B]IT'S ABOUT DEATH[/B]
Charlie is dead. Murdered!
His apartment is cleaned out. Why?
His marriage is dead.
Everything his widow, Regina, believed about him has died. [B]FINDING NEW LIFE FROM THE ASHES OF DEATH[/B]
How then shall she live again?
Regina has suffered a personal death.
Her former life is gone.
How does she resurrect herself from death?
[B]CAN THE COLD HARD FACTS SAVE REGINA?[/B]
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.
[B]SINISTER PEOPLE STALK HER[/B]
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
[B]A SAVIOR APPEARS[/B]
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.
[B]NEW FILM TECHNIQUE[/B]
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.
[B]THE LACK OF GROUNDING[/B]
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!
[B]WHAT THIS FILM PREPRESENTS[/B]
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.
[I]Copyright Hollywood Jesus. All rights reserved[/I]
Reviewed by: David Bruce
Date Posted: November 15th, 2002
Article supplied by:
Hollywood Jesus
