How to Steal a Million

How to Steal a Million (1966) is one of those movies that shouldn't work, mostly due to the script. The plot is just ludicrous*: a young woman's father is an art forger. He just lent a statue to a local museum, but the museum wants to insure so they must inspect it closer. But it's a fake, so to protect her father, the young woman enlists the help of a man she caught burgling a painting from her home to help burgle the statue from the museum. But the burglar isn't really a burglar at all**! Hilarity and romance in a utility closet ensues.

It's terribly contrived but ends up being a lot of fun only because of the charm of Audrey Hepburn and Peter O'Toole. To be honest, I adore this movie mostly because of Mr. O'Toole. Most of his films that I've seen are quite serious, but in this he's just incorrigible, clever, charismatic--not to mention those big blue eyes! Really, he's mastered the "are you serious" look, and he uses it well in this film whenever Hepburn's character does something ridiculous that no one would ever actually do (which is pretty much every scene). In fact, I usually just ignore what's going on in the plot entirely and bask in the fabulousness of Hepburn and O'Toole.

This YouTube video, while using the overused "Suddenly I See" by KT Tunstall, has several O'Toole reaction shots which should be all you need to convince you to watch How to Steal a Million:



And for added bonus...

Pete posing like the fake Cellini Venus.

Audrey dressing the wounds of criminal in her house that she accidentally shot...of course.
Although he is charmingly dressed in a tuxedo.

Have I mentioned how much I want Audrey's lacy mask thing?
And maybe a Peter O'Toole arm around my shoulders as well?

*My gut instinct is to spell this word "ludacris"...
**How many forms of burgle can I use in one post?