Con men movies are a hard sell with me, because I find it difficult to view crooks as the heroes of a film. That doesn't mean I can't be won over, just that the actors, writer and director have to make an effort.
In the case of Matchstick Men, they won me over in a big way. Its modest box office take is no reflection of the quality, because this is a very good movie with a big jolt at the end.
Imagine The Odd Couple's Oscar and Felix living a life of swindle. That's what you get with massively neurotic and obsessive neat freak Roy Waller (Nicholas Cage), who's really more like the title character from Monk than Felix Unger, and his sloppy, casual, easy-going partner Frank Mercer (Sam Rockwell). The contrasts in the two are reflected in their desks and their lives.
Roy is hooked on some mysterious red pills that, unfortunately, do not leave him living in bliss in the Matrix. But they do help him survive and manage his agoraphobia even if he has no idea what they are. One day he has an accident, sending his whole stash down the drain. The con man is shocked to discover he's been conned and his doctor wasn't legit.
He finds a new doctor, Dr. Klein (Bruce Altman) and faster than you can say "Tony Soprano" he spills his guts. One thing that comes out: an unknown child. His wife left him 15 years earlier with a black eye ("that I gave her") and a bun in the oven ("that may or may not have been mine.") and he wonders about the kid he never met.
Well, turns out that child is a daughter, Angela (Alison Lohman), who is older than her fourteen years in more ways than one. To Lohman's great credit, she pulls off the tween act perfectly despite being 23 years old. The arrival of a daughter turns Roy upside down as long-dormant paternal feelings come to the surface.
Either wisely or foolishly, he tells his little girl what he does for a living and introduces her to the family business, which is when things get sticky.
Rockwell doesn't get enough screen time, which is something of a shame as his swagger and bravado are quite entertaining. He's proven good at that. The film belongs to Cage and Lohman, who are downright convincing as a father and daughter.
At first I thought it was strange that a neat freak would be a chain smoker, but apparently that soft of activity fits right into the whole mental state. I also found it curious that a con artist like Roy would be so settled. He has a beautiful home, immaculately maintained and well-stocked. I would think someone like him would live a lot looser, ready to split at a moment's notice if things go bad.
But these are minor nitpicks. To discuss the film further would give it away. The ending is a major jolt from left field that I never saw coming, probably because I'm not a crook. The pacing is quite slow throughout much of the movie until the final 30 minutes, which can make it a bit of a test to sit through it. However, you should. Cage really is in top form and Lohman is a real treat.
Score: 9 out of 10
Presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen video, Matchstick Men sports a fine transfer, plagued more by some of the natural lighting elements than anything else. Some of the scenes where light streams in through the windows hurt a few of the shots, but that's not a transfer fault.
Color levels are all solid, with accurate color representation in clothing, solid objects, nature and skin tones. Black levels are rock solid, whites and light colors are free of moire and there is no grain other than some minor film grain in a few scenes. I didn't see any compression errors nor were there any signs of ghosting or halos. All told, an exemplary job.
Score: 9 out of 10
Languages and Audio
Matchstick Men is available in English and Quebec-French Dolby Digital 5.1, with subtitles in English, French and Spanish.
As you can expect in a character-driven film like this, it's mostly a talker, which means almost all center channel activity. That means pretty much everything comes from the center, including a good chunk of the funky soundtrack. There were one or two instances of positional audio, like Frank kicking off his shoes and the thud coming from the right speaker, but by and large most everything comes from the center.
The audio in general is rather soft, requiring some cranking of the amplifier. However, everything is well mixed, so voices, sound effects and the soundtrack don't overpower each other, or compete for prominence.
Score: 7 out of 10
Packaging and Extras
It's a Warner release, so you know what that means. Snap snap.
First up is the commentary track by director Ridley Scott and co-writers Nicholas and Ted Griffin (also a co-producer). I don't think they were recorded together because you can hear the cuts in the conversations and there's no interaction between Ridley and the Griffins.
The two Griffins talk more about adapting the Eric Garcia novel and characterization, whereas Ridley talks bigger picture and theory. He's always good with these commentaries and is just as good here, and they lend a lot of insight on their adaptation process. Of course, they spoil the whole movie right off the bat so be forewarned.
After that, there's one monster extra feature and that's it. Tricks of the Trade: Making Matchstick Men is a 71-minute documentary very similar to the one New Line had on the Willard DVD. This is a documentary DVD where you watch the pre-production, production and post-production of the film.
Filmed in anamorphic widescreen but with two-channel audio, it documents everything from casting to costuming to filming and editing and assembly. There are some interviews cut into the footage, but by and large it's fly-on-the-wall video where we're looking in on the work.
I'm a bit bothered that deleted scenes weren't included, since they talked about deleted scenes in the commentary track. But with a 71 minute documentary and a 116 minute movie, there isn't liable to be a lot of room left.
Score: 7 out of 10