Nine Queens
Con man flicks are often quite fun. In fact, being such a specific genre, I would say that they are either quite fun or not at all. That is, they either pull it off, or they don’t (like a con I suppose). “Nine Queens,” 2000’s Argentinean con-man flick, pulls it off (accordingly it was re-made in America as “Criminal” with John C. Reilly).
It pulls it off because the plot is first rate, the acting is not much behind it, and the characters and situations feel real and spontaneous, even though, knowing that we are watching a con man flick we also know that we can trust nothing until the credits have rolled. A little plot then without giving too much away: Juan (Gaston Pauls) is running a con at a gas station convenience store. He gets greedy and, at shift change, tries to immediately run the same con twice. He is about to get caught when he is rescued by Marcos (Ricardo Darin) a con man who runs a con to help out another con man. They get to talking. Marcos mentions he needs a partner. They strike up a deal, just to run together for a day and then figure it out from there. We are treated to wonderful and fun cons showcasing the two cons styles, strengths and weaknesses. Juan has a sweet face and perhaps a soft spot, a self admitted amateur; he is not into high exposure cons and has a twinge of morality that could be deadly in such a business. Marcos, the veteran and teacher, has no such qualms. He is on the con every minute and every second, he even cons a free newspaper.
Eventually, something comes up, a big chance. Where did it come from? Is it authentic? Who is conning who? How will this end up? Juan needs money bad, if he doesn’t get 20,000 pesos in ten days, his con man father will end up in prison. If he can get the money, they can bribe a judge. And, of course, at some point, there is going to be a girl.
“Nine Queens” is a pleasure. It is an understated film in which the style of filmmaking is unobtrusive but satisfying. It is interesting to compare this film to, say, an
”Ocean’s Eleven.” I liked “Ocean’s Eleven” but “Nine Queens,” impossibly cheaper but not simpler, is just as satisfying. Much shorter on style, it succeeds because of the clever script and plot that is not too clever for it’s own good but rather just clever enough to achieve what it sets out to do; entertain. Nothing about the film ever gets in the way of the intriguing plot, which slowly unfolds new information about our two cons and then dares us to guess what will come next. The dialogue is excellent, the characters complete. “Nine Queens” is an excellent addition to the canon of con films. So good that they had to make it in English!
Story: B + It’s a con, and a damn good one that moves forward and either never, or always, feels false but either way always keeps you guessing and into it all.
Acting: B Solid all the way around.
Visuals: B Nice. Unobtrusive, true to filmmaking and not splattered in your face.
Originality/Innovation: B The idea of a con story is not original, but this one pulls it off.
Enjoyability Grade: A Was glued to the thing.
Overall Grade: B + Better than solid and satisfying to its genre.
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