I saw Charade in 1963 and several times thereafter and there is still one thing that I have never understood. Maybe I just keep missing it but why do the team of crooks accept Cary Grant as one of them? Since he worked for the government how did he get in with Tex, Herman and Leopold?
shareI guess that the viewer can make up the back story of this movie as he wishes...
As this isn't clear perhaps it could be one of these explanations (or not)... even though he had an office in a government building, he managed to go sort of "undercover" and infiltrate the group... or he may have even passed as a corrupt government agent or something along those lines...
...or actually as Dyle's brother?
--
No, Schmuck! You are only entitled to your INFORMED opinion!!
-- Harlan Ellison
Well my guess was that he told them he was Dyle's younger brother Alexander and offered to help them get the money back from Charles, then later, Regina.
shareHe was assigned to this case and he was told to go undercover. He was to win the trust of those crooks...and he already knew a lot about them because he had studied the details of the case well in advance.
He would have known about Mrs. Lampert as well. He had to, because she could have been in on the whole thing (as he pointed out to her in the film). My guess is that this is why he was so eager to talk to her at the very start of the film. He seemed to know a bit too much about her at the very start. And then suddenly he knew exactly where she lived and he came right over, shortly after she arrived at her home. Why would a total stranger do this for her? The only explanation I can think of is that his job was to do this.
Getting in with the crooks probably wasn't too difficult for him. They didn't strike me as being very bright. All he had to do was to tell them that he could get the money for them, and he was in.
~~~~~
Jim Hutton (1934-79) & Ellery Queen 🎇