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Confidence
2003
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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Confidence
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 |
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Critics' reviews (4)
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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.
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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.
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Most helpful member's review
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21 out of 27 people found this review helpful
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.
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Most recent members' review
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5 out of 6 people found this review helpful
Forget the 'Fidence'
A movie about cons - great! A movie starring not only Dustin Hoffman, but also Paul Giamatti 'and' Andy Garcia - great! Nice bit of female interest in Rachel Weisz - great! Overall verdict - a load of rubbish!
This movie really does have everything going for it from the outside - good cast, great premise and solid director in James 'Glengarry Glenross' Foley. So why does it singularly fail to deliver?
For a start, Ed Burns has to be one of the most unengaging, annoying leading men in Hollywood. No charisma and an irritating rasp of a voice. Then there's the casting of Hoffman and Garcia - I can imagine them sitting in a room, reading it thinking, 'wow, this role is against type. Fantastic!' Sadly, there is a reason why actors are often cast in type - because that's where they work best. Garcia, especially seems bereft.
And then there's the plot - the 'twists' couldn't have been more obvious if they had a big sign, saying 'Look at this bit carefully'. The world-weary Giamatti saves this from being truly awful.
If you want a con film, rent Matchstick Men - it's 200 times better! -
News and features
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27 Dresses holds on to number one
- 09 Apr 2008
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
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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 ... -