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When con
artist Roy Dillon (Cusack) is visited by his Mother, Lilly (Huston), who is
also a con artist, she sends Roy off to the hospital because of a blow to the
gut he suffered while working the grift. Roy's girlfriend, Myra (Bening), the
third con artist, comes to visit Roy, and we discover that Lilly and Myra don't
get along. After he is released from the hospital, Roy and Myra go on a little
trip, where he is propositioned to be partners in crime with Myra. Everything
soon falls apart for the three con artists, which leads to a bloody climax.
This is an icy cold adaptation of Jim Thompson's novel about con
artists, with steely ``working-woman'' Huston coming back into the life of her
grown son after many years of estrangement... and finding that he's taken up
with a woman much like herself. Bleak and fascinating, with three first-rate
performances. |
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| "Grifter's got an
irresistible urge to beat a guy that's wise," an old-timer tells Roy (John
Cusack). And yet the three characters here--played by Angelica Huston, Cusack,
and Bening--only beat the innocent: Lilly (Huston) gigs at the track for a
mobster named Bobo, putting wads of cash on long-shot horses to even out the
odds. Roy, her son, swindles citizens by dimes and degrees, flashing twenties
at bars then paying for his beer with tens. His girlfriend, Myra (Bening), is
hustling herself, her salad days as a long-con roper behind her. Theirs is a
world of gut punches and smart lines. |
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| The something that
is wrong with this film is what was basically wrong with the story. None of
these people are likable. It is however a nice stroll through some of the cons
perpertrated by people much less attractive than these. Put together well,
acted well, short on story. |
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| Director |
Stephen
Frears |
John
Cusack |
Roy
Dillon |
| Writing |
Jim
Thompson (I) |
Anjelica Huston |
Lilly
Dillon |
| Cinematography |
Oliver
Stapleton |
Annette Bening |
Myra
Langtry |
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