Thanks to a brilliant performance by Nicholas Cage, complexly understated cinematography and an exceedingly sharp script, “Matchstick Men” moves with a certain suave elegance that is all too rare in movies of late.
Roy Waller (Nicholas Cage, “The Rock”) is a con artist suffering from extreme symptoms of excessive-compulsive disorder, tripping in and out of neurotic episodes on par with those of Raoul Duke from Hunter Thompson’s “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.”
A bizarre set of events leads to Roy’s much overdue appointment with a psychiatrist. The conman’s therapy takes a fateful turn when it is discovered that he has a 14-year-old daughter, Angela (Alison Lohman, “White Oleander”), who wants to meet her father.
“Matchstick Men” delicately interweaves the poignant tale of Roy getting to know his long-lost daughter and the oft-troubling story of Roy coming to terms with his own guilty conscience. There are shades of “Kramer vs. Kramer” as he attempts to pick up parenthood in midstream and hints of “What About Bob” as he uses a newfound family to help battle a delicate mental state.
Cage, culminating a decade of major silver screen work, is Oscar-worthy as Roy. The actor draws on his performances in “Con Air,” “Adaptation” and “Gone in 60 Seconds,” as well as his Academy Award-winning role in “Leaving Las Vegas,” to help mold Roy’s tender neurosis in a masterfully convincing manner. From chillingly realistic facial ticks to an astoundingly aerobic voice that coats every line with delicate emotion, Cage proves that he has come of age as a member of Hollywood’s dramatic A-list.
Director of Photography John Mathieson frames every shot with a smooth mystique complimentary to the storyline’s attention to the slick nature of Roy’s cons. Understated scenery and near-naked sets help keep the attention on Roy and the intricacies of his cons, while shadowy lighting serves as a constant reminder of the protagonist’s life just under society’s radar. Mathieson’s work is perhaps most reminiscent of the camerawork of Matthew Libatique, Daren Aronofsky’s cinematographer from “Pi” and “Requiem for a Dream.”
But Mathieson would have little to work with were it not for the delightfully sharp script co-written by Ted Griffen, who seems to have mastered the art of penning swank cons after his work on the 2001 remake of “Ocean’s 11.” “Matchstick Men” not only contains all the emotion of a solid family-relationship film, but also smoothly dry humor, a trait not seen as often in modern films as in old classics like “Casablanca.” Indeed, Griffen seems deft enough to follow up the words of Danny Ocean and Roy Waller with those of a new Rick Blaine (still “shocked” to see gambling in his own casino).
Griffen, joined by his brother Nicholas in adapting Eric Garcia’s book of the same title, molds an ending with more twists than the concession stand’s licorice. The turns should come as a surprise to even the most seasoned, cynical and jaded of filmgoers, although a certain pattern of misdirection seems to be emerging in con films like “Ocean’s 11” and “The Heist.” Still, the end result of “Matchstick Men” is startling enough to leave you thinking for days and, possibly, even lead you back for a second viewing to check for logic holes (a few minor ones do exist).
The picture’s production notes claim that both Cage and director Ridley Scott had Frank Sinatra on their minds as they brought Roy to life. And it shows: “Matchstick Men” has so much sheer style and class that it more closely resembles an old Rat Pack project than a modern-day popcorn dud.
Grade: A
