Ed Burns gives arguably the best performance of his career in James Foley's fast-moving CONFIDENCE. Foley, who directed David Mamet's GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS, has learned much from his mentor, making a who's-conning-whom film worthy of the master of the genre. Burns plays Jake Vig, the leader of a small group of con artists who .. Read more
| Starring | Edward Burns, Rachel Weisz, Andy Garcia, Dustin Hoffman |
|---|---|
| Director | James Foley |
| Genres | Thriller |
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Ed Burns gives arguably the best performance of his career in James Foley's fast-moving CONFIDENCE. Foley, who directed David Mamet's GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS, has learned much from his mentor, making a who's-conning-whom film worthy of the master of the genre. Burns plays Jake Vig, the leader of a small group of con artists who unknowingly steals money from a sleazy but powerful underworld lord known as King. In order to get his dough back, King forces Vig and his gang to pull off a nearly impossible con that could get nearly everyone involved killed. Meanwhile, Vig is being watched closely by a stubbly federal agent who is following the money.
Foley has put together a terrific cast, including Paul Giamatti and Rachel Weisz as part of Vig's crew, Andy Garcia as the fed, Dustin Hoffman as King, and Luis Guzman and Donal Logue as two cops on the take. As in Mamet's films, the audience will have to keep guessing whose side the characters are on right up until the final shot, never quite knowing who is conning whom.
| Starring | Edward Burns, Rachel Weisz, Andy Garcia, Dustin Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Robert Forster, Morris Chestnut, Luis Guzman, Donal Logue, Leland Orser, Brian Van Holt |
|---|---|
| Director | James Foley |
| Studio | MOMENTUM PICTURES |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 33 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Thriller |
| Language | English |
| Released | DVD: 01 Mar 2004 Production year: 2003 |
| Format | DVD |
Straying decidedly into David Mamet House of Games territory, James Foley's twisty-turny thriller is enjoyable without ever being completely compelling. Grifter Jake Vig (Edward Burns) is co-opted by eccentric crime boss King (Dustin Hoffman) into scamming a banker through a complex scheme involving corporate loans, wire transfers and offshore accounts. There's loads to like: Burns gives his most appealing turn to date and the whole thing is packaged as a stylish film noir. But what makes this merely good rather than great is its inability to make the characters come off as real human beings rather than ciphers designed to ignite plot fireworks. Pity, as the cast is a fine one.
Slick thriller with a twisting narrative of double-cross and betrayal that is less interesting than it should be; Hoffman's eccentricities as a gangster add a little spark to the proceedings.
With a cast this good, how can you ignore it??? One of the more under rated films of last year. This, The Sting -esque, film is extremely entertaining.
A fast paced, cleverly written and well acted con thriller which takes the essence of 'The Sting' and updates it for the new millenium.
Burns plays Jake Vig the head of a group of confidence tricksters who accidently con 'The King' (gleefully hammed up by the ever brilliant Hoffman).
Cue an even bigger to job to recoup their losses and keep their lives.
Throw in Weiz as a sultry newcomer to the team and an excellent performance from Garcia as an FBI man who is more than he seems and you get an excellent film which grips you for the full 90 min and then throws you a couple of obligatory twists at the end.
Grab a beer, put your feet up and enjoy.
Katherine Heigl rom-com 27 Dresses has held on to the number one position at the UK box office, according to new figures from the number-crunchers at Nielsen. The film, which also stars James Marsden (X-Men, Enchanted) and Edward Burns (Saving Private Ryan, Confidence), saw off the challenge of newly-released British comedy Son Of Rambow to stay on top. Dance drama Step Up 2: The Streets became the top-grossing film on the chart at number three, having taken £7.52 million at the box office Read more