To Catch a Thief

This film, "disappointing"? Who is that reviewer kidding? No female would ever say that. This film is escapism at its finest, and what, pray tell, is wrong with escapism in this ever-more-dreary and stressful world? I don't CARE that this isn't a serious acting effort on Cary Grant's behalf; I don't CARE that the plot is telescoped. What I DO care about is the fantasy of it all: the beauty of the two stars, their clothing, the surroundings, the sets, and the way this movie just takes a (female) viewer away to a place and time that she will never have experienced but would love to experience: the South of France in the '50s; healthy, witty people with unlimited funds; sunshine, flowers, villas; amusing intrigue involving stolen jewels; the sparkle of the Mediterranean. And that gaspingly gorgeous costume ball! Wow! Please. This is a frothy and fabulous dreamscape like no other. After a very stressful day, to lie down with a glass of chilled champagne and watch Cary Grant and Grace Kelly cavort on the French Riviera is the most sublime thing one could do. I know more than a few females who honestly could not have withstood their lives without the escape this film provides. Thank you Mr. Hitchcock! You have performed a great, great service!

There is much to like about Hitchcock's TO CATCH A THIEF: Cary Grant and Grace Kelly at the height of their appeal, a witty script that offers Jessie Royce Landis one of the funniest roles ever seen in any Hitchcock film, and excellent cinematography designed to show off the beauties of Monte Carlo--all packaged in a lightweight tale that is two parts romance, two parts travelogue, one part comedy, and just enough classic Hitchcock suspense to keep this lighter-than-air confection from flying apart.

The well known story concerns a string of jewel robberies along the Riviera which lead local officials to suspect that a famous and long retired cat burglar (Grant) is once more on the prowl--but rather than hope the authorities will find the real culprit Grant elects to protect himself by unmasking the thief for himself. In the process he encounters an icy beauty (Kelly) who takes considerable pleasure in tantalizing him with her charms, her jewels, and her knowledge of his criminal past, and her mother (Landis), who is perhaps the best of the "clever matrons" to appear in any Hitchcock film. As the police close in, the three of them devise a plot to expose the thief and clear Grant, with whom Kelly has now fallen in love.

Unlike most Hitchcock's most famous films, TO CATCH A THIEF offers nothing dark to trouble our thoughts, and it is perhaps best regarded as a romantic fantasia, the director's vacation from his more typical material. While it will never compete with the more famous VERTIGO and REAR WINDOW of the same period, it is extremely well done and quite a bit of fun to watch. Viewers seeking a pleasant film with a romantic touch will enjoy it a great deal.

Gary F. Taylor, aka GFT, Amazon Reviewer

This Hitchcock movie is not about suspense. It is about Grace Kelly, Cary Grant and the French Riviera. If you don't worry about the plot and just watch THEM, you will enjoy it immensely. Hitchcock went through what I call his "travelogue phase" which consisted of Dial M for Murder (London), Vertigo (San Francisco), North by Northwest (Mount Rushmore), and, here, The French Riviera. I consider this phase the time of his masterworks (before he became fixated on the macabre) and although this particular movie is the most insipid of the lot, it is his finest travelogue. For Americans of this period, the mention of Europe must have invoked black and white images of war. Not here!! One really wishes he could take a time machine back to this gloriously beautiful time and place. A movie that can enjoyably be watched time and again. However, I do agree with others that Grant was somewhat miscast as a thief -- even a high-class one.

Alfred Hitchcock is really having fun here, and so are Cary Grant and Grace Kelly. The Mediterranean coast is a stunning backdrop for their gorgeous outdoor scenes, and the great director leads us around the mystery at the heart of this story by alternating between tense chases, high-toned sexual innuendo, and moments of levity. Not to be missed.

In between his suspense masterpieces,Alfred Hitchcock sometimes liked to work on less intense projects,and this is one of them.There isn't much opportunities for palm-sweating tension or balletically-composed thrills as you'd expect from old Hitch,but in TO CATCH A THIEF this seems quite deliberate.The intention from the very start is partaking in a light comedy-thriller,and on this level it is very enjoyable.And accomplished performers such as Cary Grant,Grace Kelly,Jessie Royce Landis and John Williams further help to give it further resonance and quality.The one disappointment in the film is it's slow pace.There are some parts in the film that drag and produce lethargy,but the beautiful locations,photography and cast save it,including a witty and sometimes surprisingly risqué script which caused some concern from censors at the time.Grant and Kelly rank as one of the best romantic couples ever on screen,and rub genuine sparks off each other.Even at 50 years old,Grant is as handsome,if not more handsome,than he ever was previously,and also looks amazingly lithe,agile and fit,as befits a retired cat burglar,and despite being almost double Grace Kelly's age,is wholly convincing as her suitor.Grace herself never looked more alluring and ravishing,and Jessie Royce Landis and John Williams provide fine support.Williams himself is barely a year older than Grant,yet you wouldn't suspect that at all when they're together on screen,and how ludicrous it is compared to Grant when towards the film's end Kelly puts a relieved head on his shoulder(even Williams himself seems embarrassed!).Such is Grant's eternal youthfulness that Miss Landis played his mother in the superior NORTH BY NORTHWEST(1959);the fact is she's a few months younger than Cary!

There's a well-known tragic coda to the film;the later titled Princess Grace of Monaco lost her life in a car accident on the very same stretches of road that Hitchcock filmed a chase sequence,but barring this sad fact TO CATCH A THIEF is still very decent Hitchcock,not great Hitchcock.But very decent Hitchcock is still far better than 95% of other directors,so there's no problem in watching and enjoying this film.