The Grifters (1991)

Ample parts mystery and intrigue make this noir a must see film...

The first time I saw `The Grifters' I was a little underwhelmed. I didn't quite understand what all the fuss was about. At that point I had yet to really understand the concept behind a crime-noir and so the acting and the dialog just didn't sit right with me. Years later I saw this film yet again, and my reaction was very different. `The Grifters' brilliantly captures the spirit of the noir and delivers a very solid film that stays true to its roots with style and flare and, when taken for what it is, serves as a very exciting and entertaining ride.

`The Grifters' tells the story of three con-artists (or `grifters') and their relationship to one another. Roy Dillon makes his money playing small cons on unsuspecting innocents like bartenders and sailors. His mother Lilly plays a different kind of con, working for big time bookie Bobo by hedging for him at the race track. Roy's girlfriend Myra uses her body and magnetism to con her way out of anything she can. The three of them grift in their own way yet soon they will find that their choice of lifestyle and means of living is going to catch up with them.

The script is expertly written, adding layers of mystery and intrigue to these characters and their predicament. The script is actually the one facet of the film that I disliked the first time I saw it yet adored the second time. My taste has obviously matured (when I first saw this film I was roughly twelve or so) within the eleven year time gap between sittings and so I am able to appreciate the art that went into this film. Director Steven Frears masterfully crafted this picture, allowing the style of the film to permeate each scene and drawing out of his entire cast performances that only elevate the material and compliment the films overall presence.

There are three main actors at play here, all of which do a stand up job with the material. John Cusack delivers one of his finest performances as Roy Dillon. His performance never really garnered much attention (his two lady co-stars do steal his thunder here) but he does deserve to be recognized. He really understood the concept behind the film and you could feel a connection between him and his character. He's not as polished an actor as Anjelica Huston, so she dominated him with ease when they shared the screen, but there is no denying that he grasped the style of the film he was in and delivered a commendable performance. Anjelica Huston is one of those actresses that acts from her fingertips down to her toes. There is one scene in particular, when Lilly is in her hotel room on the phone with Roy and she sits on her bed with on leg bent and cocked up on the mattress and just her position breathed through the screen and confirmed that Huston was fully amerced in this character. She became Lilly Dillon inside and out. As wonderful as Huston is, Bening is better. I have complained about Annette before to friends, calling her out on her tendency to overact, as if she feels that is the only way to act. This performance used her tendency to create a character that felt so real and so effortless I just couldn't help but find myself glued to her every movement. I just love the way that Myra is lighthearted and carefree one minute, her voice at a shrill and her head bopping from side to side, and then she shifts her countenance and her voice deepens a tad and her eyes sharpen and you know that she is conning you but you can't help but fall for it every time.

As far as supporting actors go, the list begins and ends with Pat Hingle. Hingle plays Lilly's boss Bobo Justus and his performance, while limited, is enormously captivating. His confrontation with Lilly is flawlessly acted with a realistic mixture of ruthless bravado and genuine interest.

`The Grifters' takes three very interested characters and fleshes them out for us, and while it leaves questions unanswered we feel completed when the film ends. Those unanswered questions may seem like a big deal at first (one of the reasons I disliked the film the first time) but you realize when you take a step back that those questions we're left with only help us appreciate the finished product all the more. This film is oozing with mystery and that helps us remember it well and desire to revisit it, if only to have a chance at answering some of those questions. June 20, 2008

Still Great in '08

Some movies lose their appeal over time, but not this one! Angelica Huston specifically showed her strength as an actress as Cusack's scam artist mom. Annette Bening is gorgeous and believable as Cusack's girlfriend. And of course Cusack himself was terrific as a sort of straight man between the two rival con-artist women. I never will forget the scene where Huston tries to run down Bening in a parking lot.

Do not hesitate with this entertaining movie! March 3, 2008

SUSPENSION OF DISBELIEF

I've always loved this film, but something about it has always bothered me. Angelica Huston looks plenty old enough to be Roy's mother. January 6, 2008

Great Writing, Acting Make This A Superior 'Noir'

Here is a modern-day "film noir," if I ever saw one. You get sleazy characters with no morals, brutal attitudes, some interesting photography and a story that is not exactly a happy one - all the ingredients of a good noir. Since the film is a 1990 one and not the '40s and '50s (in which purists think that's the only period for noirs), you also get nudity and profanity.

The best part of the film, to me, is the fact that the three leading characters are so interesting. You never know what these intriguing characters are going to do next. John Cusack, Angelica Huston and Annette Bening are all fascinating. Three supporting guys in here are fantastic, too: Pat Hingle, J.T. Walsh and Charles Napier. Overall, this is a wonderful cast that does full justice to this unusual crime story.

The story has a mean edge to it most of the way, but that's the style of writer Jim Thompson, who is a very good crime author who wrote the novel on which this movie is based. He has written several fascinating books. Donald Westlake, who wrote the screenplay, is a prolific crime story writer.

There is not a lot of action in this film but when it occurs, it is shocking and brutal. This movie always entertains me every time I view it. September 9, 2007

More Grift for DeMille

This Hollywood look at con artists is well done. The casting is near perfection. Classy Annette Benning in her youth has a smoking-hot body as well as an excellent grasp of her part, and she shows it all several times. This is almost a film noir in its dialogue, character depictions, and stylized presentation, but it has too much "light" to win that prize. John Cusack and Anjelica Houston are at the top of their form for portraying "brooding" and "steel hardness", respectively. The story is good if a little forced. Supporting cast is also top notch. June 2, 2007

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