Movie Screening & Discussion at Scarsdale Library- How to Steal a Million (1966)
Join Marcus Renna in the Scott Room for a screening and discussion of the 1966 heist comedy How to Steal a Million, directed by William Wyler and starring Audrey Hepburn and Peter O'Toole, was based off of the short story "Venus Rising" by George Bradshaw.
Prominent Paris art collector Charles Bonnet is secretly an art forger, much to the disapproval of his daughter Nicole (Hepburn). Late one night, Nicole encounters Simon Dermott (O'Toole) apparently in the process of stealing one of Charles's forged Van Gogh paintings. Holding the would-be burglar at gunpoint with an antique, Nicole accidentally injures Simon. Rather than inform the police and trigger an investigation that might reveal the fake paintings, Nicole decides to drive the charming Simon back to his hotel, to her consternation and his amusement.
The next day, Charles is flush with pride that his collection will form the centerpiece of a new exhibit at a prominent museum and carelessly signs off the museum's insurance policy for loaned artwork, not realizing that it requires a forensic examination of the pieces - which will reveal them as fakes. Desperate to protect her father, Nicole enlists Simon to plan a heist to steal the forged Venus statuette before it can be examined. Naturally, hijinks ensue.
How to Steal a Million is notable both for its twist ending and the elegant costuming, exclusively designed by Givenchy.
A delightful romp of a comedy, much parodied and homaged in later films.
Friday, January 16, 2:00 - 5:00 PM at Scarsdale Library
