Truth About Charlie, The MPAA Rating: PG-13 Entertainment: +1 1/2 Content: -1 1/2

Thandie Newton and Mark Wahlburg star in this remake of 1963 romantic thriller CHARADE in the roles originally played by Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant. After a vacation in the Caribbean, Regina Lambert (Newton) discovers her luxurious Parisian apartment empty and vandalized and her missing husband Charlie (Stephen Dillane) in the morgue. Suddenly Joshua Peters (Wahlburg), a handsome stranger she had flirted with in the Caribbean, appears, anxious to help a beautiful damsel in distress. Soon, Regina finds herself in the middle of a convoluted espionage plot and unsure of whos good or bad, including the helpful Mr. Bartholomew (Tim Robbins in the Walter Matthau role). This remake has none of the traditional charm of Paris, but instead presents a scary city with sinister darkness and lurking stalkers. And its understatement to say the stars lack the style and charm of Hepburn and Grant. The underlying truth about this film is Hollywood has tried and failed to fix a classic, which by definition means leave it alone, it isnt broken.

Some of the grotesque killings feature bloody gunshot wounds, a woman with blood streaming from her eyes, nose and mouth and battered corpses. Hits to groin, an attack in an elevator and a fight on a stairwell produce painful injuries and flashbacks of war scenes produce disturbing images. There are no sex scenes but some sexually suggestive comments and an opening scene with brief breast nudity serves no purpose except to titillate the viewer. Most surprising, however, is the absence of foul language with only one s-word and a few exclamatory profanities. THE TRUTH ABOUT CHARLIE sends confusing messages about justifiable killing and deceit, but mostly it just tries to entertain. While its too dark a story for youngsters, THE TRUTH ABOUT CHARLIE misses our mark of acceptability with depictions of graphic violence.

Preview Reviewer: Mary Draughon
Distributor: Universal Pictures, 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, CA 91608