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— by Ben Cosgrove
Everyone loves a good con game — except when they're the ones getting taken in and robbed blind. And no one, it seems, loves con games more than Hollywood. Over the years, some of the greatest actors and actresses and smartest directors in the game have taken a stroll down that seedy, sordid lane, where crooks prey on the hopes and dreams of average, everyday suckers. With this week's long-awaited release of Orson Welles' hugely entertaining "F for Fake" on DVD, con artists are back in the spotlight. Here, then, are some of the genre's shining moments. Let the conning begin.
 "Criminal" (2004)
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John C. Reilly, Diego Luna and Maggie Gyllenhaal are just about perfect in this stylish, sharp film about a longtime con man, his new (seemingly clueless) younger partner and his mysterious, lethal sister trying to separate a mega-wealthy collector from a whole bunch of his money. The L.A. sun has never looked so warm — or deadly.
"Matchstick Men" (2001)
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Again, it's an older guy, a younger guy and a girl — only this time the older hustler (Roy) is played by Nicolas Cage, the younger dude (Frank) is played by Sam Rockwell and the girl (Angela) is played by Alison Lohman. The twist is that Angela is Roy's estranged 14-year-old daughter, and once she finds out what daddy does for a living (i.e., ripping off naive suckers), she wants to learn the trade.
"Confidence" (2003)
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Familiar theme, take three: older guy (Dustin Hoffman, playing an eccentric crime king) and younger guy (Ed Burns, as a hotshot grifter) have a beef. Enter a young woman (Rachel Weisz) and a cast of oddball henchmen, hateful cops and a hapless fed played by Andy Garcia. Toss in a convoluted plot about revenge, loan-sharking and what it sometimes takes to get out from under a heavy, heavy obligation, and you've got an engaging, appropriately sleazy crime story.
"Catch Me If You Can" (2001)
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This is a notable flick in at least one respect: it's the movie in which Leonardo DiCaprio finally proved he could fulfill the promise he showed as a much younger actor in movies like "This Boy's Life" and "What's Eating Gilbert Grape?" Directed with breezy assuredness by Spielberg and co-starring a subdued Tom Hanks and the always brilliant Christopher Walken, this based-on-the-true-story depiction of Frank Abagnale's life of impossibly bold cons is pure A-list popcorn eye candy. And that ain't bad.
"The Score" (2001)
Brando and De Niro have their hands full with Edward Norton in Frank Oz's leisurely look at a master thief hoping for one last big score and having to rely on a too-clever-for-his-own-good whippersnapper to make it happen. Despite some problems with the pacing, and criminally underutilizing the wonderful Angela Bassett (who is stuck in a thankless minor role), Oz has created a satisfying cinematic take on the old adage "Be careful what you wish for ... you just might get it."
"Boiler Room" (2000)
Giovanni Ribisi is tremendous as Seth, a college dropout seeking quick riches and daddy's approval in this unflinching look at a group of despicable 20-something greedheads. Working in a shady Long Island brokerage firm, Seth and his newfound pals (Vin Diesel and a surprisingly effective Ben Affleck among them) make their money by cold-calling strangers and promising them huge returns on bogus investments. You might want to shower after watching it, but few con movies are as effective at showing how easy it can be to rip off people who want to believe in the quick, easy windfall.
"The Spanish Prisoner" (1997)
As convoluted and riveting as anything writer/director David Mamet has ever brought to the screen, "The Spanish Prisoner" is about what might be the ultimate con: screwing someone out of everything while using nothing. Campbell Scott, Steve Martin, real-life con wizard Ricky Jay and a cast of other Mamet regulars keep the tension and mystery high as they all either attempt to buy, steal or hide something called "The Process" — a formula of some sort allegedly devised by Scott to "control the global market."
"The Grifters" (1991)
John Cusack, Anjelica Huston and Annette Bening star as Roy, Lily and Myra in this razor-sharp depiction of greed, betrayal and lust. Good times! Produced by Martin Scorsese and directed by Stephen Frears, the film moves like an express train, with snappy noir dialogue and scenes of menace and violence that feel utterly real. Add a little incestuous spark between the mother/son pair of Lily and Roy and a scene where a bag of oranges is more terrifying than a loaded machine gun, and you've got yourself a classic.
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Photos: The Criterion Collection
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