Confidence

Rating:
Summary: Too cool for school, but entertaining none the less
Review: James Foley's Confidence is arguably too cool for even itself. A low-budget con/heist flick, it brings little to the genre other than its sense style and some sharp dialogue. The story itself is nothing new, and when compared to Steven Soderbergh's recent remake of Ocean's 11, the stakes seem rather low and bland. Still, I had a blast with this little flick.

Doug Jung provides the screenplay, which while loaded with cliches, crosses every "t" and dots ever "i." The heist itself is actually not the main focus of the film, unlike most movies in this genre. Instead, the build-up, the characters and the dialogue are the focus here. This proves to be a double-edged sword, as while the dialogue and imagination/conceptual scenes are great, the characters for the most part lack depth and don't resonate well. To be blunt, they simply don't click with us, and as a result it's hard to sympathize with them much of the time.

But the cast is a blast. Edward Burns takes the lead role of Jake, and while he may not be the most ranged actor, oozes just enough of the necessary young upstart cockiness and calm, collected cool that he's enjoyable to watch. Dustin Hoffman is wonderfully over the top as the sleazy "King." Rachel Weisz threatens to turn herself into a sex icon with her performance here, which just radiates charisma and, well, sexuality, while Andy Garcia chomps on a cigar and has plenty of fun. The supporting cast is very strong also, with Brian Van Holt, Donal Logue, Luis Guzman, and particularly Paul Giametti turning in great acts. And as I said before, the dialogue every so often hits the spot that the cast gets just enough to work with to have a good time.

Confidence may not be the most original con movie in terms of writing or directing, but it makes up for it in terms of sheer fun. A great cast, some witty lines, a slick soundtrack, all these fit into a nice little recipe for a great rental. Check it out.

Rating:
Summary: I don't understand
Review: I don't understand sometimes why a movie as good as this gets swept under the rug and declared a bad movie because it did horribly at the box office. Ignore the naysayers and purchase this movie. You will not be dissapointed in this fast-paced narrative that not only is entertaining but makes you feel cool watching it.

Rating:
Summary: Wow, I didn't see that coming.
Review: The bribe with Andy Garcia really did take. They were partnered with him. They set up the Dustin Hoffman character to be busted for drugs so they could take all the money. When the female character shoots Edward Burns, it is another fake shooting then they all get together and split the cash.