James Foley’s (
”
Glengarry Glenross
”
) new film
”
Confidence
”
is a minor story of con artists trying to make a go of it in our
world, where success is usually defined by how much money you
have.
James Foley’s (“Glengarry Glenross”) new film “Confidence” is a minor story of con artists trying to make a go of it in our world, where success is usually defined by how much money you have.
Unfortunately, in a con film, the characters have to be well-developed and likeable in order for the audience to give themselves over to it. This doesn’t happen in “Confidence,” a loud, souped-up version of the con game that’s hyped up with MTV-style fast cuts and pop music that plays through the film at deafening levels.
The film leaves a bad taste in the mouth and makes one long for the classic con films of the film noir era, as well as the two best recent ones, David Mamet’s “House of Games” and Stephen Frears’ “The Grifters.”
In the film’s opening moment, which plays as an uneasy mix of pseudo-violence and dark comedy, we meet the lead character, Jake Vig (a miscast Edward Burns), who cons $150,000 from a loser who of course doesn’t see the grift coming.
Celebratory in their effort, Jake and his trusted cohorts Gordo (Paul Giamatti), Miles (Brian Van Holt) and Lily (Rachel Weisz) think they’ve pulled off the perfect crime.
Of course, they’re wrong. Their new reality is that they find out through the grapevine that the money they stole actually belonged to an aging con artist named The King (Dustin Hoffman), who gets word to Jake that he would like to discuss some things with him.
Jake, confident, sarcastic and cocky, figures his charming demeanor is the reason his schemes are so successful, so he goes into the meeting with The King figuring he’ll pay the money back by doing another con which involves a $5 million bank heist, a grift Jake promises will go off without a problem.
After the money is secure, Jake vows to The King to pay him back, plus give him a big portion of the money from the score.
The initial scenes with Burns and Hoffman, as well as their following scenes, show why this film is a major bust.
Hoffman appears to be intimidating Burns by taking his performance into the stratosphere, being at once funny and morbidly scary. Burns’ character is supposed to be dominating The King, but Hoffman’s bravura wipes him off the screen; it’s actually easy to forget Burns’ character is even on the screen when he’s sharing it with the two-time Oscar winner and Hollywood icon.
Burns, trying to keep up, seems very aware of who he’s sharing the scene with, and can’t do anything to make us believe in his character. This problem also infuses the rest of the film, because Jake, who’s supposed to be the new grifter taking over the city, doesn’t give the impression that he has what it takes to do it, so his overbearing attitude toward his friends seems like an exaggeration.
“Confidence” is best in the between-the-scenes parts, with Juan Ruiz-Anchia’s cinematography registering high marks, getting us around Los Angeles with relative ease, as he gives the film its thematic darkness by using rich tones and shadows that are high art. The look of the film is terrific, but the story and script lack believability and coherence.
CONFIDENCE. Directed by James Foley. Written by Doug Jung. With Edward Burns, Dustin Hoffman, Rachel Weisz, Andy Garcia, Paul Giamatti, Robert Forster and Donal Logue. Rated R (violence, language, nudity), 98 minutes. Now playing at Bay Area theaters.
