Matchstick Men
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A phobic con artist and his protege are on the verge of pulling off a lucrative swindle when the con artist's teenage daughter arrives unexpectedly.
What critics thought
Matchstick Men earns strong marks from most critics for Nicolas Cage's performance and its character-driven take on the con-artist genre, but the gap between its enthusiastic press reception and its more measured audience and critical-consensus scores suggests the film is more charming than it is airtight. The twist ending is the main fault line: some find it emotionally satisfying, while others feel it strains credibility enough to undercut everything before it.
“so absorbing that whenever it cuts away from the plot, there is another, better plot to cut to”
Roger Ebert·Rogerebert.suntimes.com
“sly, biting sense of humor”
Reelviews.net
“a twist deserving of Chubby Checker”
Carrie Rickey·The Philadelphia Inquirer
“you don't fight it and try not to put too much thought into certain anomalies that crop up along the way. Let it swindle you; it's part of the fun”
Stephen Hunter·The Washington Post
Genres
Comedy, Drama, Crime, Thriller
Cast & Crew
Ridley ScottDirector
Nicolas CageRoy Waller
Sam RockwellFrank Mercer
Alison LohmanAngela
Bruce AltmanDr. Klein
Bruce McGillChuck Frechette
Jenny O'HaraMrs. Schaffer
Steve EastinMr. Schaffer
Beth GrantLaundry Lady
Sheila KelleyKathy
Fran KranzSlacker Boyfriend
Tim KelleherBishop
Nigel GibbsHolt
Hans ZimmerComposer
Ted GriffinWriter
John MathiesonCinematographyMatchstick Men
A phobic con artist and his protege are on the verge of pulling off a lucrative swindle when the con artist's teenage daughter arrives unexpectedly.
What critics thought
Matchstick Men earns strong marks from most critics for Nicolas Cage's performance and its character-driven take on the con-artist genre, but the gap between its enthusiastic press reception and its more measured audience and critical-consensus scores suggests the film is more charming than it is airtight. The twist ending is the main fault line: some find it emotionally satisfying, while others feel it strains credibility enough to undercut everything before it.
“so absorbing that whenever it cuts away from the plot, there is another, better plot to cut to”
Roger Ebert·Rogerebert.suntimes.com
“sly, biting sense of humor”
Reelviews.net
“a twist deserving of Chubby Checker”
Carrie Rickey·The Philadelphia Inquirer
“you don't fight it and try not to put too much thought into certain anomalies that crop up along the way. Let it swindle you; it's part of the fun”
Stephen Hunter·The Washington Post
Genres
Comedy, Drama, Crime, Thriller
Cast & Crew
Ridley ScottDirectorNicolas CageRoy WallerSam RockwellFrank MercerAlison LohmanAngelaBruce AltmanDr. KleinBruce McGillChuck FrechetteJenny O'HaraMrs. SchafferSteve EastinMr. SchafferBeth GrantLaundry LadySheila KelleyKathyFran KranzSlacker BoyfriendTim KelleherBishopNigel GibbsHoltHans ZimmerComposerTed GriffinWriterJohn MathiesonCinematographyStream
Rent & Buy