“To Catch A Thief” may not be my favorite Hitchcock, but it remains the most glamorous movie of Sir Alfred.
Its chatoyancy is perhaps due to the presence of Grace Kelly or to the surrounding Riviera, I do not know, but the memory of a few scenes remains in mind for a long time.
This film, released in 1955, brings together Cary Grant, who plays a retired burglar on the French Riviera, and Grace Kelly, who lends her delicate features to the endearingly irritating woman with whom he falls in love.
John Robie, nicknamed “The Cat” must indeed save his reputation by unmasking the usurper who robs the French Riviera’s wealthy tourists. He leads the investigation with Frances Stevens, a young heiress who is bored to death during her vacation and who has decided to play amateur detective while making this charming burglar fall in her nets.
“To Catch A Thief” is lively, light and brilliant. The protagonists seem somewhat overwhelmed by this Southern sun, which warms every mind, every heart and every body.
However, Frances Stevens’ elegance and grace are imperial – Edith Head took care of it by creating Grace Kelly’s costumes – but we feel in this young ice queen an underlying burning sensuality. Never before has Grace Kelly embodied fire under ice so much.
Some scenes are anthological: Frances Stevens kissing a John Robie that she has just met, the fireworks in unison with an un-filmed sex scene or Grace Kelly driving very dangerously on the winding road on which she will finally die decades after.
For the record, this movie is the last collaboration of Grace Kelly and Alfred Hitchcock – since Grace Kelly met a year after the making of this film in 1954 her prince charming, Prince Rainer.
August 6, 2021
Badgley Mischka dress – Dior belt – Prada heels – Chloé purse – Chanel sunglasses
