Matchstick Men (2003)

Director:

Ridley Scott

Writers (WGA):

Eric Garcia (book)
Nicholas Griffin (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

12 September 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Crime | Thriller

Tagline:

lie cheat steal rinse repeat

Plot:

A phobic con artist and his protégé are on the verge of pulling off a lucrative swindle when the former's teenage daughter arrives unexpectedly.

Plot Keywords:

Con Artist | Daughter | Carpet Store | Obscene Finger Gesture | Strip Club

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Nicolas Cage	...	Roy Waller
Sam Rockwell	...	Frank Mercer
Alison Lohman	...	Angela
Bruce Altman	...	Dr. Klein
Bruce McGill	...	Chuck Frechette
Jenny O'Hara	...	Mrs. Schaffer
Steve Eastin	...	Mr. Schaffer
Beth Grant	...	Laundry Lady
Sheila Kelley	...	Kathy
Fran Kranz	...	Slacker Boyfriend
Tim Kelleher	...	Bishop
Nigel Gibbs	...	Holt
Bill Saito	...	Pharmacist #1
Tim Maculan	...	Pharmacist #2
Stoney Westmoreland	...	Man in Line

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, violence, some sexual content and language.

Runtime:

116 min | Canada:120 min (Toronto International Film Festival)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor) | Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Malaysia:U | Canada:PG (Ontario) | South Korea:15 | New Zealand:M | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Brazil:14 | Canada:14A | Chile:14 | Finland:K-11 | Germany:12 (w) | Ireland:12 | Japan:PG-12 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Philippines:PG-13 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of the Grisons) | UK:12A (original rating) | UK:12 (video rating) (2004) | USA:PG-13 (certificate #39979)

Filming Locations:

Anaheim Convention Center - 800 W. Katella Avenue, Anaheim, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

The airport scenes, set at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), were actually filmed in the main entrance of the Anaheim Convention Center, a mile south of Disneyland. Due to recent security measures in the nation's airports, filming rights have been severely restricted on airport property.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Roy and Frank return to the house and find that Angela is missing, Roy is caught by Frank walking on his own carpet with his shoes on. The sound of him turning on the carpet is the sound of a wood floor not carpet.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Roy: Uno, due, tre.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Guardian (2006/I)

Soundtrack:

The Good Life

Start and end very good

The little problem that 'Matchstick Men' has is that there is not a real highpoint in the movie if the ending wasn't there. I think the movie starts as a very good movie. Roy Waller (Nicolas Cage) and Frank Mercer (Sam Rockwell) are con artists and the movie opens with showing how they collect some money. It is not as great as how George Clooney does it in 'Out of Sight' but it's a lot of fun. After this the movie shows who Roy is, a guy with all kind of weird things. Spasms, panic attacks, compulsive behavior. He wants things clean, he wants things a certain way, or he becomes a little crazy. He has pills for these things but he loses them and this is how he meets Dr. Klein (Bruce Altman), a psychiatrist.

Because of him Roy learns he has a 14-year old daughter Angela (Alison Lohman, who was actually 24). He wants to care for her, spend time with her, and even reveals what he really is. In a great scene she shows her father and us how she would be if she had the same job as Roy. Roy and Frank have a big job planned where they would collect 80,000 dollars from a guy named Frechette (Bruce McGill). In a way they are taking money but Roy looks at it differently. He thinks, and he is actually right, that they just give it to him. Because it is all illegal they can't complain after they are cheated.

Hoe these three big stories fit in one you have to see for yourself. The middle part is a little slow, but the ending makes up for that. All characters are played very well and Nicolas Cage is great. Ridley Scott has made another fine movie.