Why does it feel that there’s going to be a twist when it comes to the end of this movie? Seirously, just watching it seems to cause the muscles in my shoulders to tighten a bit as the tension mounts. Such films almost never end well for at least one or two people, if not more. But if Helen Mirren and Sir Ian McKellen weren’t enough of a reason to watch the movie, the anticipation of what’s going to happen would be a nice follow-up. The way Ryan Scott of MovieWeb talks about this movie it seems as though it’s something we’ve seen before, a life-long con man finds a woman that he starts to care about even though she’s supposed to be just another job for him. And of course there are those in the woman’s life, people that care for her, that are leery of him and don’t think that he’s nearly as trustworthy as she does. Oh, and she has money, that’s always the biggest draw after all since a con man can’t really take warm feelings and genuine love to the bank when all is said and done. But still, it feels as though there’s a twist coming that we’re not likely to be made privy to until the movie finally comes to theaters, which is this coming November it sounds like.
There’s no doubt that it’s going to be a good movie since the lead actors are both proven and well known throughout the business. But somehow it seems as though we’re going to have to see more during the movie to be really impressed. No offense to anyone that had anything to do with it, but the bar has been raised pretty high for movies featuring those that are running a con, and whether or not the movie hits that bar isn’t important, it’s whether or not it even comes within sight of it. There’s no doubt about the acting talent, and there’s no doubt about the movie. In fact doubt doesn’t even factor into the discussion at the moment as there’s only trepidation leaning into this one, a sense that so much of the same thing has been done in the past that it’s best to reserve judgment or praise until the credits start to roll.
One reason why it could be a good movie is that movies about a long con are usually pretty well-detailed and carry a great deal intrigue that leaves people guessing at what’s going to be happening next. While McKellen and Mirren are both getting kind of old to do anything too intense it’s still worth noting that they’re both quite skilled at building tension without having to get physical or do much more than ride out the moment and make it seem as uncomfortable as possible. This is the skill of the older actors, as a lot of them have learned how to say more with their eyes and actions than some younger actors can with their actions. If I’m skeptical at all it’s because too many directors seem to take the idea of creating their own images with the type of subtlety that some people can’t help but claim is the same thing being dished out over and over. It’s almost like comparing shades of dark black to one another when it comes to these types of movies. Sometimes there’s a stark contrast between them, and sometimes you have to wonder who’s trying to fool who.
It is kind of amusing to watch older people using the online dating services to find each other, but not in the manner that some might think. Older folks aren’t so foolish as to not understand how to use such a system, but considering that they were around before online dating was even the faintest thought in some tech nerd’s mind one would think that they might utilize the old methods that were so tried and true back in the day. Of course given that those methods don’t always work as well as one might like and, considering how careful one has to be in this day and age, it makes sense to utilize technology when and wherever it’s useful. It’s still an amusing image to me, though obviously it does work on more than one level.
The idea of an aging con man is an interesting one as well since this doesn’t seem like a profession that would favor a person the older they get. Granted, if one avoids prison this long while still running the con game it would seem as though they’re wise enough to know when to cut and run and when to really dig in. But it still seems like a huge risk that wouldn’t seem as realistic. All in all though, this seems like a fun time at the theater and something worth watching.
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