nan | 楠木

Matchstick Menis a con comedy by director Ridley Scott, and this fact itself is instantly suggestive, as he usually does serious thrillers or drama.
The film stars Nicolas Cage, and he is well up to the role of being a quirky con artist with a quite a serious neurosis among his load of problems. And he suddenly finds himself a long lost daughter, which puts a totally different perspective to his whole life.
The movie goes from there on to a big con twist, and we all know there’s a big “smart” twist. That’s how con films work. The objective is to outsmart the audience, and let the audience enjoy this process. However for Matchstick Men, the big twist could be seen miles away, and I more or less instantly questioned the authenticity of a few to-be-twist factors the moment they appeared. I don’t think this is because I’m too smart. Honestly, the film does not succeed on hiding its cards until the last moment.
But viewed as a comedy about relationships, this film works. The drama developed between Cage and his daughter takes the main spot for a large portion of the film, and it is entertaining. Cage’s oddball performance (when his character is in one of his fits) offers nothing truly original but it is hilarious nonetheless. And the flow of the film is seamless, as is the cinematography. The film looks great and feels great, and Cage at the center of it all just makes it fabulous. This is great two hour entertainment, and what’s beautiful is that you have lessons to think about too.
8 out of 10.