Confidence

Rating:
Summary: Been There, Done That
Review: It seems that con movies are a hit nowadays, at least after the sucess of the overrated "Oceans Eleven". "Confidence" is just another one, a competent, mildly entertaining flick with some style and a lot of hipness to make for the lack of an original and enticing plot. As far as entertainment value goes, there`s much worse, given that the acting is actually decent (even if the characters are cardboard), the soundtrack is alright and director James Foley manages to deliver some flashy camera angles. But frankly, that`s about it. The story is another one about a group of clever grifters and it even has a surprise twist at the end. Unexpected, heh? Well, this should do to kill a couple of hours, nonetheless...

Rating:
Summary: Slick 'Con' Thriller, But You May Say 'I Have Seen It'
Review: [In fact, my rating is 3.5 stars.]

"Confidence" by Lions Gate studio (king of indie films) has one great thing--the cast. Edward Burns, Rachel Wiesz, Andy Garcia, Luis Guzman, Paul Giamatti, Brain Van Holt, Robert Forster, Morris Chestnut, and Dustin Hoffman. Even the major studios in Hollywood can gather these names easily.

And the story? Sorry, as it's about "Con"fidence, so not much can be revealed, except that A) the con-men team (and one mysterious lady) led by Ed Burns have to do one last big heist while so many obstacles are in their way; B) and if you have seen old classic films of the sub-genre about grifters (yes, including "The Grifters" or "Sting"), you have already seen the story itself in "Confidence." Which means, you also have a chance to see two corrupt cops, and a strangely dressed FBI guy.

The story is not important, probably. The characters are, it is certain, more interesting to see, and the standout is Dustin Hoffman's 'King' (or "THE King"), a mobster who runs a lap-club. And you should know the rule of the genre; he, being a mobster, has to have some quirky habits. Hoffman playfully does it with cleverly hidden menace, which is certainly amusing to see.

There are some other well-acted characters, especially by Paul Giamatti (one of the most underrated talents), whose 'Gordo' is perfect example of small-time crook who speaks too much without thinking about what he is talking about. And my favorite Rachel Weisz shows up as a pickpocket (with American accent), who gracefully changes her outer look with ease.

But not everything is perfect. As I said, newcomer Doug Jung's script looks like a copied (but well-copied) one from the past classics, and director James Foley does his job decently, but not with great originality. The plot unfolds smoothly and pleasantly, but nothing in it really surprises, or more to the point, makes you care the character(s). Edward Burns speaks too much (with too many voiceovers), and if you use Robert Forster in this way, like three minutes with no substantial role, it means you are willingly inviting the fans' bitter criticism.

Not bad, not good (just like the same director's "The Corruptor") "Confidence" will entertain you for about 100 minutes. And nothing more. Actually, the best 'con' movie still remains "Sting" which you should have seen before this one.

Rating:
Summary: Another movie about Scam and cons
Review: It's like movies about scam and cons are good sellers these days.CONFIDENCE is one of them and even if it's not the best movie you will see, it's still a good entertainment.The actors are pretty good and the twist is finally well plaid.The plot is not very exciting and loses a bit of its importance.It's more as if you want to see what's next than what is all about.The story is quite flat and it could be really more exciting. Fact is I had the feeling the screenwriter was writing his script without knowing what he's writing about and improvising pages to pages.
Not a great movie but Okay.

Rating:
Summary: Great Heist movie
Review: Simply stunning in presentation and story. Now granted this is not the first heist movie by far, but this is one of the greatest. Regardless of what others say this movie is beautiful, the acting is spot on and from beginning to end you are entranced in this heist that is going on in front of you. At some points you want to scream at the screen cursing certain characters or shouting warnings to others. With one of the greatest opening lines ever (so, I'm dead) you find yourself sitting on the edge of your seat from beginning until the end, which you will surely talk about to whoever is near you when the movie is over. It wraps up everything so nicely that you can't help but smile in a good mood as the story unfolds. Now without spoiling much or anything for that matter i hope you check this movie out. Whether you rent it or buy it, this movie needs to be seen to be believed. What are you waiting for?

Rating:
Summary: Watered down and unconvincing story of L.A. Grifters
Review: This watered-down "thriller" is the spawn of an unholy union: _Reservoir Dogs_ and _Usual Suspects_. Possessing neither the chilling terror of Dogs nor the mind-twisting plot of Suspects, _Confidence_ follows a formulaic approach in describing the aftermath of a grift gone bad.

Edward Burns is the leader of a motley group of con-men who have made their way to LA, having perfected a team approach to grifting. Their con takes place in a low-brow bar and when the "mark" witnesses a murder in the establishment - and the cops head in - the money is left behind in the confusion. Of course, the murder never really took place and the witnesses in the bar are in on the scam - as are the pair of crooked cops who show up. Problem is, this mark had money that belonged to the "King" - and when one of Burns' gang gets viciously slain, Burns is forced to have a sit-down with the King to try to make amends.

The King, head of a nonsensical, "independent" criminal enterprise, is played unconvincingly by Dustin Hoffman. Hoffman - as a Dennis Hopper-type prone to violence - simply doesn't fit the bill, given that any 16-year-old high-school football player could wipe the floor with him. Disappointingly, Burns never changes his persona during the entire movie - whether making time with a female pickpocket (Rachel Weisz) that conveniently shows up in his life - being threatened by a large firearm pointed at his nose - or in his day-to-day planning of the scam that will pay back the King and give the group their final, retirement score.

I could go on, but why bother? You can probably guess how it all turns out. The sad truth about this flick is that the talented actors are abused by a story that is simplistic, silly and completely unbelievable. If you've got nothing better to do on a rainy evening, certainly give it a watch. But expect to be underwhelmed, given the ability of a cast that has a lot more to offer than what you'll see here.

Rating:
Summary: Not bad at all...
Review: I really enjoyed this movie. It's a good popcorn movie. My only complaint is there's too much cursing. My friends and I don't go around saying "F" this and "F" that. But I suppose the director thought it would make it more realistic to have all the curse words in it. To me, it shows ignorance for a group of characters that are supposed to be very smart.
Overall...good movie, great story to kill a little time by.

Rating:
Summary: Decent movie, but nothing orginal.
Review: I hate when movies start off by pretty much giving away the ending. If you are have a real good eye for movies you can alreayd pick out then ending by the actions in the first 5 minutes of the movie. Once that happened, I wasn't really interested. Edward Burnz just is so wooden to me and uninteresting. I just couldn't get behind his character. Rachel Weiz looked beautiful as always, but they really gave her nothing to do. Watching her seduce the VP of the Bank was a fun.

This movie is real predictable. I watched it with a friend who never really into movies like I am, and she figured everything out from the first five minutes. Now that is bad.

Dustin Hoffman was great in his role and he seemed to be having fun playing the big and bad. Should have been more scenes with him.

Rating:
Summary: Confidence LOST
Review: Filled with clichés, and characters that are supposed to seem cool, this movie left me wishing I had my time and my money back. Dustin Hoffman as a gum smacking boss man was annoying. There is a reason why people don't chew gum on screen -- It ruins a scene b/c all you can think about is taking the gum out of his mouth and shoving it up his nose.

Rating:
Summary: Not James Foley's Best Film
Review: I had to respond to a fan who said this film is director James Foley's best. Although it is breezily entertaining, there is no way 'Confidence' can be compared with the director's earlier films 'At Close Range', 'Glengarry Glen Ross', and 'After Dark, My Sweet'. In my opinion Foley does his best work with his actors. But the biggest difference between 'Confidence' and 'At Close Range' is the quality of the screenplay. Academy Award nominated writer Nicholas Kazan scripted 'At Close Range'. Hand James Foley a good screenplay and he'll make a great film.

Rating:
Summary: Confident with Confidence
Review: I thought that this movie was very good. It was clever without being corny. I'm a big fan of Ed Burns and I think that he was believable in this character. There were a couple of slow spots but all in all it was definitely an entertaining movie.