Grace Kelly tries to expose Cary Grant in Alfred Hitchcock’s “To Catch a Thief”

To Catch a Thief (1955) is a romantic thriller directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Cary Grant and Grace Kelly. John Michael Hayes wrote the screenplay and the cinematography was by long-time Hitchcock associate, Robert Burks.

Cary Grant and Grace Kelly

On the French Riviera, there is a rash of jewel robberies that have all the earmarks of former jewel thief John “The Cat” Robie (Grant). Robie has remained straight since his parole following his work in the French Resistance during World War II. Parole was contingent on Robie staying clean, but these new robberies have put his freedom in jeopardy.

Enter Jessie and Frances (Francie) Stevens, a nouveau riche widow (Jesse Royce Landis) traveling with her daughter (Kelly). Robie believes that he can clear himself if he can find the real thief, pretending to be a businessman. Francie sees through Robie’s cover. When her mother’s jewels are stolen, Francie is determined to expose Robie as “The Cat.”

Alfred Hitchcock (1899 – 1980) was an English film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is one of the most influential filmmakers of the 20th century. Hitchcock directed over 50 feature films, many are classics that have been honored and studied for years. Some of Hitchcock’s classic films include The 39 Steps (1935), Sabotage )1936), Rebecca (1940), Suspicion (1941), Shadow of a Doubt (1943), Rear Window (1954), Vertigo (1958), North by Northwest (1959), and Psycho (1960).

John Michael Hayes (1919 – 2008) was an American screenwriter who wrote four screenplays for Hitchcock: Rear Window (1954), To Catch a Thief (1955), The Trouble with Harry (1955), and The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956). Hayes was born in Worcester, Massachusetts. As a boy, he missed a lot of school because of ear infections. During his time at home, he acquired a love of reading and writing. As a young adult, he got jobs writing for local periodicals. He eventually got a job with the Associated Press and attended Massachusetts State College. After serving in the US Army during World War II, Hayes moved to California and began writing scripts for the radio. Hayes parlayed his radio scripting into a job writing screenplays in Hollywood. He worked on the scripts for big-budget films like Peyton Place (1957), BUtterfield 8 (1960), The Carpetbaggers (1964), and Nevada Smith (1966).

Robert Burks (1909 – 1968) was an American cinematographer. He was adept at both color and black and white photography. In 1928, Burks got his start in film at Warner Bros. He eventually worked his way up to Director of Photography in 1944. The first feature that he worked as a cinematographer was The Fountainhead (1949) starring Gary Cooper and Patricia Neal. Burks is closely associated with Hitchock. He was the cinematographer on some of the directors most famous works from the 1950s and 1960s including Strangers on a Train (1951), I Confess (1952), Dial M for Murder (1954), Rear Window (1954), To Catch a Thief (1955), The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956), The Wrong Man (1956), Vertigo (1958) and North by Northwest (1959).

Cary Grant (1904 – 1986) was an English-born American actor who became one of the most popular leading men in film history. Grant started his career in vaudeville before heading to Hollywood. He became a superstar in the late 1930s in a series of screwball comedies including The Awful Truth (1937) with Irene Dunne. He was a memorable C. K. Dexter Haven in The Philadelphia Story (1940) opposite Katharine Hepburn and James Stewart. He received two Best Actor nominations: Penny Serenade (1941) and None but the Lonely Hearts (1944). Other classic Grant films include Gunga Din (1939), Only Angels Have Wings (1939), and Arsenic and Old Lace (1944). He made for popular films with Alfred Hitchcock: Suspicion (1941), Notorious (1946), To Catch a Thief (1955), and North by Northwest (1959). He was presented with an Honorary Oscar at the 42nd Academy Awards in 1970.

Grace Kelly (1929 – 1982) was an American film actress who after a fairly brief Hollywood career became the Princess of Monaco by marrying Prince Rainier III in 1956. Kelly appeared in theater productions in New York City and on live television during the early 1950s. For her role in Mogambo (1953), Kelly was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar. She lost the Oscar but became a major star with lead roles in five films released in 1954: Dial M for Murder, Rear Window, The Country Girl, Green Fire, and The Bridges of Toko-Ri. She would make only three more movies—To Catch a Thief, The Swan (1955), and High Society (1956)—before retiring from films.

To Catch a Thief Trivia:

• Cary Grant announced his retirement in 1953 but was lured by Hitchcock to take the role of John Robie which resulted in Grant working in Hollywood for another 11 years.
• Grace Kelly was killed in an automobile accident on the same road as her famous chase scene. She was 52 years old.
• Jesse Royce Landis played Kelly’s mother in two films: To Catch a Thief and The Swan. She also is famous for playing Grant’s mother in North by Northwest, even though she was just barely eight years older than he.
• Actress Brigitte Auber is considered “the teenage” when compared to Kelly’s character in the film when in fact Auber was 4 ½ years older than Kelly.
• The film’s landmark cinematography won an Academy Award for Robert Burks.

To watch the film, click on the YouTube link below. Be sure to use this link because it is the best print on the channel.

After you’ve watched the movie, join us for a discussion on Zoom, September 21, 2020, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time.

Stephen Reginald is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Discussion of "To Catch a Thief"

Time: Sep 22, 2020, 06:30 PM Central Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us04web.zoom.us/j/74456059761?pwd=Vlh3SzJlaGxpRzZla3oxcTRWVGEzZz09

Meeting ID: 744 5605 9761

Passcode: qVR5zh

Discussion Questions:

1. What did you make of the relationship between Grant and Kelly’s characters? Was it a believable relationship?
2. The movie is visually stunning. Would the film be as entertaining if it was set in another location?
3. The dialogue is filled with double-entendres. Do you have any favorites?
4. How is this like other Hitchcock films? How is it different?

Alfred Hitchcock's "To Catch a Thief" screens at Daystar Center August 11, 2015

When: Tuesday, August 11, 2015 6:30 p.m.
Where: The Venue 1550 at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State Street

Filmed on location on the French Riviera, To Catch a Thief (1955) is a picture-postcard treat of a movie. The Alfred Hitchcock classic pairs Cary Grant as a reformed jewel thief, John “The Cat” Robie and Grace Kelly as Francie Stevens, a vacationing American heiress. When a series of jewel robberies occur, all similar in style to the methods of the so-called reformed Mr. Robie, the Riviera is abuzz with detectives, insurance investigators, and the international press. All of this intrigue and excitement is fascinating to Francie who thinks Robie is up to his old tricks again. Rather than finding his behavior repulsive, Francie instead is attracted to the enigmatic and sophisticated Mr. Robie.

Have some Joe and Enjoy the Show!

Before the movie, grab a cup of coffee from Overflow Coffee Bar, located within the Daystar Center. You can bring food and beverages into the auditorium; we even have small tables set up next to some of the seats. General Admission: $5 Students and Senior Citizens: $3.

Cary Grant and Grace Kelly along the French Riviera

Join the Chicago Film club; join the discussion

Once a month we screen a classic film and have a brief discussion afterward. For more information, including how to join (it’s free), click here. The Venue 1550 is easily accessible by the CTA. Please visit Transit Chicago for more information on transportation options.

Daystar Center located at 1550 S. State St. works through a grassroots network of collaborations and partnerships with individuals and other nonprofit organizations. Through this web, they’re able to provide educational, cultural, and civic activities that enrich and empower their clients, guests, and community members. To learn more about classes and events offered at the Daystar Center, please visit their Web site.

“Hitchcock in the 50s” film series to launch March 10 with screening of “Stage Fright”

Alfred Hitchcock directing Marlene Dietrich and Jane Wyman
on the set of Stage Fright

The 2015 Film Club is back at The Venue 1550 at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State St., Chicago. Hosted by Stephen Reginald, the film club will feature “Hitchcock in the 50s.” Alfred Hitchcock films to be screened, include Rear Window, Vertigo, and North By Northwest. Movies will be screened at 6:30 p.m. on the second Tuesdays of the month, starting March 11, 2015. Reginald will introduce each film giving background information before screenings, with discussion afterward. Reginald is a freelance writer/editor and popular instructor at Facets Film School in Chicago.


Alfred Hitchcock is one of the most successful directors in the history of film. During the 1950s, Hitchcock, no longer under contract to producer David O. Selznick, was  able to produce and direct properties that he truly believed in. During the 50s, Hitchcock produced some of his most famous and commercially successful movies, including Rear Window and Vertigo. Few directors’ work has be dissected and analyzed the way Hitchcock’s work has. Always focused on entertaining the audience first, “The Master’s” work remains fresh and contemporary and ripe for discussion.

Join us for “Hitchcock in the 50s!”

Stage Fright, one of Hitchcock’s most underrated thrillers features great performances from recent Oscar winner Jane Wyman, Marlene Dietrich, Michael Wilding, Richard Todd, and Alastair Sim. Wyman plays Eve Gill, a drama student who becomes a maid to stage star Charlotte Inwood (Dietrich) in an attempt to clear the name of her friend Jonathan Cooper (Todd) who she believes is being framed for murder by Inwood. None of the characters in Stage Fright are what they seem to be, which makes for a very entertaining movie. Filmed in England with a wonderful ensemble cast that also includes Sybil Thorndike, Kay Walsh, and Patricia Hitchcock. Be careful because you may find yourself suffering from stage fright!

Have some Joe and Enjoy the Show!
Before the movie, grab a cup of coffee from Overflow Coffee Bar, located within the Daystar Center. You can bring food and beverages into the auditorium; we even have small tables set up next to some of the seats. General Admission: $5 Students and Senior Citizens: $3.

Join the Chicago Film club; join the discussion
Once a month we screen a classic film and have a brief discussion afterward. For more information, including how to join (it’s free), click here. To purchase your ticket in advance, click here. The Venue 1550 is easily accessible by the CTA. Please visit Transit Chicago for more information on transportation options.


Other dates and films screened

April 14, 2015                Strangers on a Train
May 12, 2015                 I Confess
June 9, 2015                  Dial M for Murder
July 14.2015                  Rear Window
August 11, 2015            To Catch A Thief
September 15, 2015      The Wrong Man
October 13, 2015           Vertigo
November 10, 2015       North By Northwest

The legacy of screenwriter John Michael Hayes

Best work with Hitchcock

Screenwriter John Michael Hayes did some of his best work while under the employ of director Alfred Hitchcock. Their four-film collaboration was short, but it produced three classic movies, including Rear Window  (1954) and To Catch a Thief (1955). The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956) was one of the biggest box office hits of the year.

Hayes’s screenplays for Hitchcock, bright and sophisticated when first produced, have remained fresh and contemporary, even in the been-there-done-that era in which we live today.

Rear window ethics

Sample this piece of dialogue between Jeff (James Stewart) and Stella (Thelma Ritter) from Rear Window.

Stella :You heard of that market crash in '29? I predicted that.
Jeff: Oh, just how did you do that, Stella?
Stella: Oh, simple. I was nursing a director of General Motors. Kidney ailment, they said. Nerves, I said. And I asked myself, "What's General Motors got to be nervous about?" Overproduction, I says; collapse. When General Motors has to go to the bathroom ten times a day, the whole country's ready to let go.

Few people before or since, have been able to match Hayes’s ear for authentic-sounding dialogue. Granted, having Stewart and Ritter mouth what you’ve written helps, but they had great material to work with to build their characterizations.

Three out of four isn't bad

The one picture that didn’t catch on with the public was The Trouble With Harry. It was too British in its black humor, according to Hitchcock (although apparently the British didn't like it much either). To Hitchcock fans, it's a fun film for a number of reasons. It features the film debut of Shirley MacLaine for one and a pre-Leave it to Beaver Jerry Mathers for another. It also has some beautiful cinematography and a pounding score by composer Bernard Herrmann. This was the beginning of a long professional relationship between Hitchcock and Herrmann, that lasted until Marnie (1964).

After Hayes moved on and worked more independently, his services were in great demand. He wrote the screenplays for some of the biggest blockbusters of the 1950s and 1960s, including Peyton Place (1957), The Carpetbaggers (1964), and Nevada Smith (1966). Still, his most enduring work remains the films he wrote for the master of suspense.

Hayes’s last screenplay was for the film Iron Will (1994) starring Kevin Spacey. Hayes died in November 2008 at the age of 89. 

Alfred Hitchcock's “To Catch a Thief”

Alfred Hitchcock, Cary Grant, and Grace Kelly too!
To Catch a Thief  filmed on location on the French Riviera, is a picture-postcard treat of a movie. The Alfred Hitchcock classic pairs Cary Grant as a reformed jewel thief, John “The Cat” Robie and Grace Kelly as Francie Stevens, a vacationing American heiress.

When a series of jewel robberies occur, all similar in style to the methods of the so-called reformed Mr. Robie, the Riviera is abuzz with detectives, insurance investigators, and the international press. All of this intrigue and excitement is fascinating to Francie who thinks Robie is up to his old tricks again. Rather than finding his behavior repulsive, Francie instead is attracted to the enigmatic and sophisticated Mr. Robie.

Academy Award Winner

Filled with all the things you've come to expect from Hitchcock--elegant surroundings, witty, sophisticated dialogue, and glamorous costumes--To Catch a Thief doesn't disappoint. Nominated for three Academy Awards (winning for Best Color Cinematography), this 1955 suspense classic is one fun ride.

A reluctant leading man
After completing the film Dream Wife, costarring Deborah Kerr, in 1953, Grant announced his retirement from films. The story goes that Grant thought that he was getting too old to play romantic leads. Additionally, he found himself competing with method actors like Marlon Brando and Montgomery Clift; Grant thought his style of acting was on its way out. Fortunately, Hitchcock convinced Grant that To Catch a Thief was the perfect role for a "comeback," plus there was the added bonus of costarring with Grace Kelly, a young actress Grant liked and admired.

Woman chases man
Even though Grant continued starring in films until 1966, his screen persona changed slightly. Instead of being the aggressive leading man, pursuing beautiful women, beginning with To Catch a Thief, it was younger women who were constantly chasing the older Grant, a plot device he found much more believable.