01/27/2006 3:38 PM
Posted by VeggieSteph

Alfred Hitchcock’s To Catch a Thief

Starring Grace Kelly, Cary Grant

“Are you sure you were talking about water skis? From where I sat it looked as though you were conjugating some irregular verbs.”

To Catch a Thief is now one of my favorite Alfred Hitchcock movies. It has a great story, snappy dialogue, and sizzling lead actors. The whole movie sparkles like the diamonds and champagne that Grace Kelly wears and drinks.

On the French Riviera, someone is stealing the very fancy jewelry from very rich vacationing up and ups. Of course, everyone suspects John Robie (Cary Grant), who was an expert thief called “The Cat” in his former life. Robie knows he is innocent, so he gets an insurance agent to help him go undercover and lure the thief into making a mistake. Along the way, he meets an American heiress named Frances Stevens (Grace Kelly) and her very loud mother. Frances isn’t entirely sure that Robbie isn’t just after her jewelry, but naturally, during the intrigue, they fall for each other. When the thief is caught, all is solved – but will they live happily ever after?


So why do I like this movie? There are a number of reasons. For one, Hitchcock directs Grace Kelly and Cary Grant with ease. These are roles they seem infinitely comfortable in playing. Grace Kelly plays the beautifully icy blonde, who is desperately afraid to fall in love but naturally does with the most inappropriate man. Cary Grant seems to slide easily into the snappy ex-jewel thief, whose charm and wit help him ease out of sticky situations and attract women like James Bond. They have great tension and chemistry. (Of course, I could watch Grace Kelly and Cary Grant all day and be happy.) The dialogue is played and written so snappily well. You can imagine Grant and Kelly are speaking the words naturally, instead of speaking lines. The costumes are simply wonderful, especially later in the film during the climatic dress ball.

The only element I thought that wasn’t up to perfection was the solution to the mystery. I had a really good idea who the thief was, from about the middle of the movie. I am sure it was a great surprise in 1955, but it was fairly obvious otherwise. Of course, I don’t think that pulls any value from the movie at all. The surprise ending isn’t necessary to make the movie perfect.

To Catch a Thief is pretty well up there to a perfect film. It is romantic, mysterious, and funny. Hitchcock has just enough of himself in it to make it his movie, but really the stars here are the two leads. I could watch this film over and over again.