How to Steal a Million
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Movie Reviews of How to Steal a Million
Movie Review: delicious romantic comedy
Summary: 4 Stars
HOW TO STEAL A MILLION is a fun caper comedy, with the fascinating star combination of Hepburn and O'Toole; and expertly directed by William Wyler ("Jezebel", "The Heiress"), his third-last major movie.
Dressed to the nines in some gorgeous Givenchy ensembles, Audrey Hepburn is Nicole Bonnet, the daughter of a professional art forger (Hugh Griffith) who has made millions auctioning off "long-lost" pieces from the great masters. The trouble starts when a Paris musuem wishes to exhibit Bonnet's rare Venus statue - another forgery! Realising that the statue will be routinely examined by leading art specialists while on loan, Nicole teams with handsome art thief Simon Dermott (Peter O'Toole) to stage a daring robbery and "steal" the fake statue before anyone uncovers her father's illegal practices. But is Simon all that he seems?...
This delicious romantic comedy, filmed on location in Paris, zips along at a fast pace despite it's quite hefty two hour running-time. Audrey Hepburn dazzles with one of her most adorable performances, looking every inch the fashionable Parisian in her choice wardrobe of Givenchy clothes. Peter O'Toole also has a fun role; though Eli Wallach is wasted as Nicole's would-be fiancee with his own designs on the Bonnet art treasures. The musical score by John Williams is memorable, too.
HOW TO STEAL A MILLION is a must-own for Audrey fans and lovers of classic romantic comedies. (Single-sided, dual-layer disc).
Movie Review: Light, classic entertainment
Summary: 4 Stars
How to Steal a Million is a very fun film that marks the pairing of screen legends Audrey Hepburn and Peter O'Toole. Hepburn plays the daughter of an art collector who is really a master forger that has painted everything in his private collection. When he loans one of his statuettes to the museum, Hepburn must find a way to steal it back before it is discovered to be a fake. She enlists O'Toole, a burgular she caught in her house, but who is in actuality an investigator out to unmask her father.
It's a very fun caper flick from the director that introduced Audrey Hepburn to the world in "Roman Holiday," but it's biggest strength lies in the interaction between its leads. If you like either Hepburn or O'Toole or both, you'll love seeing their verbal sparring and interaction. They definitely don't make films like this anymore, and the character moments are quite enjoyable. Otherwise, there really isn't much of a "caper" here. If you're expecting something like the remake of Ocean's 11, you'll be very disappointed by how silly the actual heist goes down. Marks for creativity, but not for believability. If robbing museums was as easy as buying a boomerang and bucket, I'd be set for life.
The disc also includes an A&E biography of Hepburn, which is a nice capsule of her life and a good extra. How to Steal a Million is pure fluff, but its very fun and finely crafted fluff, and is worth checking out.
Movie Review: Charming Caper Movie
Summary: 4 Stars
How to Steal A Million was one of several elaborate heist comedies that formed sort of a subgenre in the 60's (Topkapi and Gambit to name a few others) This was Hepburn's first film after My Fair Lady and marked her last collaboration with William Wyler (who directed her in her Oscar winning role in Roman Holiday and The Children's Hour). Set in Paris, the tale involves a daughter (Hepburn) who hires who she thinks is an art thief (O'Toole) to steal back a statue sculpted by her art forger father (Hugh Griffith) before museum authorities test it for authenticity. The film is light and breezy, if a bit slow paced in the beginning. Neither Hepburn or O'Toole is required to do much acting, but they have star quality in spades and that elusive cinematic term called CHEMISTRY that is all this movie requires. Lots of eye catching Parisian locations, fashions and production values make this entertaining piece of fluff very easy to enjoy. The closet scene is a classic and Hepburn wearing washerwoman's clothes is a wonderful cinematic joke! (She even manages to look chic in that get up!) John Williams, pre-Jaws, provides a catchy score. They dont make movies like this anymore.........NOW IF ONLY FOX WOULD RELEASE TWO FOR THE ROAD ON DVD! This was one of Hepburn's finest performances and films and its shameful of Fox to keep it in their vaults!Movie Review: Don't burn bridges with burglars
Summary: 4 Stars
Mr. Bonnet (Hugh Griffith) has an eye for fine art of the masters. You might say he also has a hand for it -- from counterfeiting. A burglary is interrupted by his daughter, Nicole Bonnet (Audrey Hepburn). Realizing that the police may bring the less than genuine art under scrutiny she lets him off easy.
Mr. Bonnet is generous enough to allow one of his (forged) art pieces to be temporarily displayed in a local museum. With an estimated value of one million dollars, naturally they want to insure it until it is returned so an authenticator is scheduled to arrive the next day. By now the film title makes sense. Parts of the movie are a bit silly but enjoyable nonetheless -- after all HOW TO STEAL A MILLION is a romantic comedy highlighting Hepburn's superb acting talent. Equally appreciated on the DVD is the well documented 45-minute biography chronicling Hepburn's rise to stardom -- which in itself is worth the price paid.
Movie quote: "You don't think I'd steal something that didn't belong to me."
Movie Review: Charming fluff
Summary: 4 Stars
William Wyler would make three movies with Audrey Hepburn: ROMAN HOLIDAY, which "introduced" her to international audiences; THE CHILDREN'S HOUR; and this film, which would prove to be one of his last films. (After this, it was off to "introducing" Barbra Streisand to movie audiences in FUNNY GIRL.) HOW TO STEAL A MILLION is attenuated, it is slight and often feels elegantly elongated (almost as much as its two gorgeously emaciated stars) but Hepburn is at her most stylishly refined (though there are jokes when she dresses as a charwoman and still maintains her sangfroid and her style) and Peter O'Toole displays his comedy style (though if he underplays his nonchalance any more, he'd be asleep). As a counterpoint, Eli Wallach and Hugh Griffith mug outrageously, it's filmed on some lovely locations, and it's certainly a pleasant film (though that might seem to damn with faint praise).
This is an example of what used to be called a "star vehicle" and it's certainly well-driven by the stars.