Rating: 
Summary: Too much praise for a movie that isn't overly well-known?
Review: "Nine Queens", or "Nueve Reinas" in its original Spanish title, is one of the more entertaining Argentinian movies I've watched so far. The dialogue is witty, the action doesn't stop, and the acting is flawless. Too much praise for a movie that isn't overly well-known?. Well, even good things are not widely recognized to be so sometimes, and this is one of those occasions.
The theme of the movie is not overly original: two conmen trying to pull off a scam that involves a set of stamps (the "Nine Queens"), and a lot of money. But what makes this movie interesting is how that idea is developed, managing to surprise the spectator until the very end. The director (Fabián Bielinsky) also wrote the script, that won a National Prize in Argentina.
Scam after scam, you will feel you are taking part of the many "adventures" of a very seasoned Marcos (Ricardo Darín) and an endearingly young and idealistic Juan (Gastón Pauls) in their quest to become rich, albeit for very different reasons. The question is, who is conning whom?.
All in all, I think you will thoroughly like this movie. The story and the acting are great, and so is the beautiful setting, the city of Buenos Aires. Watch it, and enjoy :)
Belen Alcat
Rating:
Summary: Quite simply...
Review: ... the best film of this genre (crime, sub-genre: con/swindle) since THE STING. Dare I say in some ways this picture even surpasses that classic. Both films deliver a helluva satisfying ending, but with The Sting, we're led along all the way, anticipating if not knowing that some payoff awaits us. Our point of view is that of the protagonist(s), and we're with them (almost) every step of the way. With NINE QUEENS, we're led along just the same, but we're also being duped the whole time. Our 'audience superior' pov is not what we think. As in real life, a good con works best when the mark doesn't know he's been conned -- even after the fact. The final pay off is doubly rewarding in this deft choreography. Check it out.
Rating: 
Summary: This one will keep you guessing
Review: A pair of conmen spend a day together while contemplating a more permanent partnership. An incredible opportunity seems to fall into their laps out of nowhere. I don't want to write anymore about the plot-the less you know about it in advance, the better. Marcos (Ricardo Darin), jaded and experienced, and Juan (Gaston Pauls), with his open, friendly manner, are fascinating characters, constantly jockeying for advantage and looking for an angle. Nothing is as it seems and the viewer is soon placed in the same frame of mind as the protagonists, suspecting everyone and everything and wondering just who is running a game on whom. The final revelation will have you thinking back over the movie and reevaluating everything that came before.
Rating:
Summary: Who's conning who?
Review: An outstanding movie about a couple of Argentinean cons who are out to swindle everyone they encounter. The lead actors portray Juan and Marcos as a couple of loveable bad guys that will amaze you with the tricks they pull to get money. It seems everyone they encounter is going to get ripped off as they pull off some incredible and hilarious scams. They meet per chance while Juan is pulling a con and Marcos witnesses the game pulled on a gullible store clerk. Juan gets caught and Marcos acts like he is a cop/detective and hauls him away only to reveal himself as a fellow con. A friendship develops and soon they are showing each other their best tricks and plan a major scam involving a forged copy of a valuable stamp set, the nine queens. The film is brilliant, extremely well written and moves at a fast pace that keeps you guessing throughout the movie. Part of the beauty of this film is the bright script(it was a winner in a national script writting contest) that keeps you wondering what the heck is going on. To thoroughly enjoy the movie you may have to succumb to just watching rather than trying to figure it out because everything is not as it seems. There are a lot of twists and turns , cons scaming each other, new characters introduced to complicate things, eventually leading up to the finale where the quest for unloading the fake stamps reveals exactly who is conning who. If you like movies where you play mind games with the movie trying to figure it out than you will love this movie. It is a delightful , witty caper movie that is fresh and totally entertaining. Highly recommended cinema from Argentina that is equal or better than the best from Hollywood.
Rating:
Summary: Conning the Con
Review: Conning the con. It's a concept almost as old as conning itself. But the story in "Nine Queens", written and directed by Fabian Bielinsky as the winner of a Project Greenlight-style contest, takes a different spin. Who is the real conman? And what is the real con? "Nine Queens" is the story of two conmen. One is a seasoned pro, the other a small-time hack. Each has his own family responsibilities (or lack thereof). And each is very talented at getting what he wants. The older, more experienced con decides to take the young guy on as his partner for the day. Think of it as a sort of "Training Day" for crooks. Oops, I'm sorry, they're
not crooks. Crooks carry guns and use means other than their wit and mental agility to score. These boys are keepin' it real in Buenos Aires. And so the plot thickens. The obligitory Big Con of the movie happens to involve nine rare stamps, known as the Nine Queens. Forgeries have been made, and our heroes are on a mission to sell the fakes to a collector who is short on time and cannot guarantee their authenticity. What twists and turns await our beleaguered duo? There are plenty, and much of the fun of this movie is watching it unfold. The movie even works on a level if you don't care about the mystery what is really going on. Toward the beginning, each sequence exposes you to a series of one-upsmanship. One rips off a convenience store, the other rips off a coffee shop. Then one gets money free-will from a stranger in her house, the other gets a purse free-will from a woman in an elevator. And on it goes. By the time things get hot and heavy, we hardly notice that it continues, but the stakes get higher and paranoia reigns. The final enjoyable aspect of this film is the acting performances. Strong performances by the three leads, as they're able to glide through this movie with slick moves and even slicker tongues. While it's tried in most Hollywood films, it works in this one due to the strong script. The words match the characters. Unfortunately, the supporting cast isn't as talented. The younger brother and the creator of the forgeries felt like they walked in off the street. However, it doesn't distract from the overall feel of the movie as much as you might think. All in all, this is a comedy about trust. Trust in your partner. Trust in yourself. Trust in your family. Even trust in complete strangers. But most of all, for the director, it's about trust in your audience. Just after you feel that you're supposed to get a twist, the film will let you revel in it for a beat, then expose it to all its glory. In no movie I've seen has this worked so satisfyingly well. And the audience is richly rewarded.
Rating:
Summary: Yet another great film from Latin America
Review: Despite its title, this Argentinean drama is not about a gay softball team, not that there's anything wrong with that but if that is what you are looking for then you'd be better served watching "The Broken Hearts Club". The title here refers to a series of very valuable items (I won't reveal what even though it's not a big revelation, but I've gotten so tired of reviewers telling just a little too much) and the film is about (among other things) two con men's attempt to sell fake versions of them to a high-profile collector. Though writer/director Fabián Bielinsky (who beat approx. 350 other applicants in a screenwriting contest in his native Argentina a la HBO's "Project Greenlight", but with much better results as evidenced by this film) borrows (or pays homage depending on your perspective) heavily from David Mamet's "House of Games" (which is one of my favorite titles in this genre) "Nine Queens" earns its place on the table by bringing it's own a very low key flavor and an incredible eye for supporting characters. This release is unlike the recent onslaught of wonderful films coming from Latin America (especially Mexico and Argentina) and Spain in that it is made by a first time director and is not as visually stunning as say "Amores Perros", "Burnt Money", or the spectacular "Sex and Lucia", but that should not be a deterrent to watching this film as it's low key direction and nondescript setting make it stand out in it's own way. At times the stakes don't seem as high as they should, or there is no fun camera work, but that makes the process all the more subtle, and, without giving anything away, I was totally surprised (in the best of ways) by the last ten minutes of this movie. The performances are top notch, with special emphasis on the supporting characters as they all make their presence felt and add deft comedy to spark the only aspect of this movie that could have used some finetuning. I am referring to the script's choice to focus almost exclusively on the two main characters. I think that the film who would have benefitted from expanding the scope to include 2 or 3 other central characters to shake things up and bring an even great sense of urgency to the mix. The above is only a minor quibble and it is compensated by a story that is well grounded and a script that makes almost 100% of the characters' respective actions seem plausible. Not many movies manage to make you feel the fly by the seat of your pants decision that one of the led characters has to make in trying to get a second chance to do something that was botched up the first time around. You truly feel for what the guy winds up doing as it could be one step forward, 100 steps back as far as why he's doing what he's doing. Or is he?.... I understand that a US production company has bought the rights to this movie and it will be remade. I hope that, unlike many efforts ("Vanilla Sky" or "Vanished") that attempt to translate and/or rework the original material, whomever winds up being associated with a remake can take what works and improve upon it. While I am not a believer that all independent movies are good or that all Hollywood blockbusters are necessarily bad, the trend to grab succesful foreign films and to Americanize them requires a great talent no matter what the budget turns out to be. One thing that the Hollywood studios need to look at is the great talent coming from all parts of the world. The critical successs of recently released US debut by the director of "Amores Perros" may be a sign that there is hope for better movies in an era of sequels with increasing explosions ("Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle) on one end, and the bad navel-gazing small films (the over-rated "The Good Girl"), which left me equally underwhelmed. Although unrelated to my enjoyment of this movie, the DVD translation of the movie needs an overhaul as key names as spelled wrong and a few important/funny/observational lines get lost in the translation. This should not deter anyone from enjoying the many delights to be found in this movie, but I do mention it so that "Sony International Classics" takes note.
Rating:
Summary: Fascinate unpredectible and original!!
Review: Early one morning, Marcos observes Juan successfully pulling off a bill-changing scam on a cashier, and then getting caught as he attempts to pull the same trick on the next shift. Marcos steps in, claiming to be a policeman, and drags Juan out of the store. Once they are back on the street, Marcos reveals himself to be a fellow swindler with a game of much higher stakes in mind, and he invites Juan to be his partner in crime. A once-in-a-lifetime scheme seemingly falls into their laps - an old-time con man enlists them to sell a forged set of extremely valuable rare stamps, The Nine Queens. The tricky negotiations that ensue bring into the picture a cast of suspicious characters, including Marcos' sister Valeria, their younger brother Federico and a slew of thieves, conmen and pickpockets. As the deceptions mount, it becomes more and more difficult to figure out who is conning whom.
This movie make you see that thieves are around you all the time in every place, at every moment. This excelent movie catch you in a fascinate story that you won't imaginate what the end is.
Don't miss it.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant, snarky, hilarious & humane, too!
Review: Easily as clever and challenging as any David Mamet piece (including "The Spanish Prisoner," to which this movie offers some discreet homage), "Nueva Reinas" or "Nine Queens" is the most delightful, intricate, warm-hearted con movie I've ever seen. Two con artists team up and pursue a rich patsy who may or may not be interested in some fake "rare" stamps which may or may not be authentic (or "authentic," depending on your definition.) So who should trust who? Watch the movie, and get involved -- only to crack up laughing and LOVING the ending, which you could not possibly have anticipated! This movie is so delicious, so evil and clever and deceitful, you'll enjoy every moment -- but next day, you'll find yourself checking your wallet every other minute on the commuter train.
Rating:
Summary: Move over Mamet
Review: Fabian Bielinsky's "Nine Queens" is what David Mamet wanted "The Heist" to be: jazzy, non-linear, coherent, empathetic, intelligent and tremendously interesting.
"Nine Queens" stars Ricardo Darin fresh off the success of "Son of the Bride" and Gaston Pauls as two petty crooks after the big score who stumble upon a scheme to make many thousands of dollars involving a rare print of a Weimar Republic stamp called the "9 Queens."
As is necessary in this type of film, there are many plot twists and turns that make sense here but in "The Heist" seem arbitrary and tiresome.
Ricardo Darin stars as Marco, a Butch Cassidy to Gaston Paul's Juan or Sundance Kid. Marco hooks up with Juan while Juan is in the process of a low-life money switching grift in a convenience store and Marco saves Juan from serving time by way of some fast thinking and manipulation of the police. At this point Marco takes Juan under his wing and into his confidence for a day to see if the the chemistry is right between the two so as continue as partners.
Through some far-fetched but somehow natural coincidences, the duo comes upon a scheme to sell the set of stamps to a rich financier out of which both can make 1000's of American dollars much sought after in Argentina. Both Marco and Juan must come up with some of their own hard (but suspect) cash of their own to close the deal.
Ricardo Darin's role as Marco is diametrically opposed to the role he played as the son in "Son of the Bride": here is is sneaky, perverse, self-indulgent and amoral yet he is able to make Marco appealing and positive. He is a true beacon of the South American Cinema along with Norma Aleandro. Gaston Pauls matches Darin's feverish, naked portrayal with his own style of boyish intelligence and chutzpah.
"9 Queens"is another example of the South American Cinema's resurgence as a major force in World Cinema. It's a taut, expertly directed (by Fabian Bielinsky), intelligent caper movie that ranks up there with the best of Mamet and Frankenheimer: a must see for all those concerned with World Cinema and the emrerging third world.
Rating:
Summary: Clever and Entertaining / Hay Que Verla
Review: Great flick! There exists a certain magic between the two main characters, everything from their facial expressions, conversations, their ideas.
If you are into con movies, then this is the best I've seen in a long time, you will not be let down. La película fue extraordinaria; los actores, la dialoga, los cáracter, todo salió superbien. Se trata de 2 ladrones (o "Chorros" como les dicen en Argentina)que hacen su dinero por medio de engañar cajeros y cosas así. Se hacen pareja, y intentan hacer un escándolo con unas estampillas. Lo que sucede despúes es una cadena de líos que hay que ver por tí mismo. You will not be let down. No te va a desilusionar.
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