bryanjacobs-01667
Matchstick men is a return to form for master filmmaker Ridley Scott. Although much lower key than his other films Matchstick men is witty, finely paced and well-acted. Nicholas Cage plays a con artist whose plans to pull off a heist are interrupted when his daughter comes to stay with him. Ably supported by Sam Rockwell this is one of those great comedies that defy expectation. Go see it asap.
betty dalton
Nicholas Cage plays truly one of his best performances of his carreer. One of his last best too, because since the man has gotten several divorces behind him, he nowadays only acts in mediocre movies to pay alimony to his ex wives. But fortunately we can admire Cage in one of his last superb acting roles in "Matchstick Men".Nicholas Cage plays a con man who deprives naive, and vulnerable people of their money with smart con tricks. Besides stealing people's money Cage's character has an obsessive compulsive disorder, which can be described as a mentally disturbing need to obsessively clean his house from dusk till dawn. He lives his life secluded until he finds out he has got a daughter from a previous marriage. Will he quit his criminal con men work to take care of his daughter or will he continue to live a secluded con man life?Ridley Scott is mostly known for his blockbuster action movies. This movie is none of that, on the contrary it is a real clever con men story. And the acting in it is superb. I must confess that I was stunned to read that Ridley Scott directed this movie, because this director only minimally directs his actors, which makes the acting in "Matchstick Men" even more impressive. Smooth, enticing, endearing, funny and suspenseful. But most of all this is truly a very smart story. Often those smart plots are only fun to watch for just one time, but "Matchstick Men" has become a classic con men movie that has stood the test of time. I have watched it over 5 times, know exactly who gets conned by who and I still love it so much. The true to life endearing characters are to thank for that. Great acting. Great story. Con men classic.
FilmBuff1994
Matchstick Men is a good movie with a relatively well developed plot and a terrific cast. The highlight of the film is without a doubt Nicolas Cage and Sam Rockwell, who make the whole thing worthwhile. They have a terrific chemistry with one another that is a pleasure to watch, and their unconventional styles of acting mesh together really well. I did find the story to be immensely bland, it never pulled me in, feeling as if the screenwriters were really just going through the motions and writing everything for the sake of getting a paycheck afterwards. I was also never given a reason to care for these characters when they were in danger, they were not good people, but they also were not anti-hero's that we love to hate, they were just simply characters that we could not root for. Enjoyable, but forgettable. Fun while it lasts, Matchstick Men certainly has its flaws, but its worth the watch if you are a fan of Cage or Rockwell.A neurotic con man and his partner are about to pull off a big job, until one of their daughters turns up. Best Performance: Sam Rockwell
gothicus-33216
it's a contrived piece of garbage forced down your throat. whoever wrote this crap didn't bother a bit to think it through. it's virtually impossible for any of this to make sense or the so-called twist in the end. this is a movie you keep asking yourself why? why doesn't this genius speak to his wife for once? were these guys psychics too? how could they even predict all of this? need for a new shrink...? a daughter...? so therefore access to his safety box? and of course the happy ending; marriage and a new life with a woman he was barely exchanging words at grocery store give me a break
AD
