Dashing and Debonair - Cary Grant and Grace Kelly

5/24/13 To Catch a Thief, Best Cinematography - Color, 1955

To Catch a Thief is set in the south of France and Monte Carlo. John Robie (Cary Grant) is a reformed/retired jewel thief living in France and Francie Stevens (Grace Kelly) is a wealthy American woman traveling in Europe with her mother; Francie is looking for a husband. There have been a string of jewel robberies and Robie is the prime suspect. As he sets out to prove his innocence, he meets the Stevens women under the guise of being a lumberman from Portland, Oregon. Kelly and Grant are wonderful; I had never seen a movie with either one of them before (I don't think the Flintstones episode where a Cary Grant-like character appears counts). They were both great, the dialog seemed to roll right off their tongues, very natural and they were fun to watch. Grace Kelly was just captivating; she goes on the offensive with Grant in their little flirtation, an example of a strong Hitchcock female character (Doris Day in The Man Who Knew Too Much to name one). Oh, did I mention this is an Alfred Hitchcock movie? Before I started this project, I always associated Hitchcock with really scary movies (I blame that on The Birds), but now in my later years, I see they are more about the suspense factor. I didn't think there was a lot of suspense in this, not like edge of your seat suspense, like Rebecca, but there is a little mystery. It's much more about the interplay between Grant and Kelly, and the setting of the south of France, which is beautiful. Francie's mother provides some comedic moments, and I am surprised that Jessie Royce Landie did not get a nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Both Grant and Kelly appeared in other Hitchcock movies and I am looking forward to watching. The movie did win the Oscar for Best Cinematography - Color, and I thought it was fine, but nothing that really blew me away with mood-setting techniques or anything. I totally recommend this if for nothing else than to watch Grace Kelly. She only made two more films after this and then retired to be the Princess of Monaco. The DVD had special features, including commentary about the cast from Hitchcock's daughter and granddaughter and it was interesting to learn about the affection he had for the actors (he worked several times with the main cast members).