Confidence

A con man (Edward Burns) scams a hapless accountant of money that belonged to the accountant’s gangster boss (Dustin Hoffman). To make amends, the grifter must pull off the biggest score of his life. Doug Jung’s script takes place in a universe in which The Sting was never made; otherwise, the victim would recognize the scam as something from an old movie. The plot, for all its fussy, complicated twists and turns, never surprises; every new development comes exactly when we expect it and goes exactly where we thought it would. It’s all silly red herrings and overwrought monkey business, but director James Foley and his cast give it the crackling energy it needs. The film is all dressed up in a suit of old clothes, but they still can look pretty sharp on people who know how to wear them.