Is it me, or does everyone else think that the hype for the movie The Hoax is as over done as the original coverage of the bogus Howard Hughes autobiography actually penned by Clifford Irving? The Swedish Director, Lasse Hallström was interviewed by NPR and other outlets. Richard Gere, who stars as Irving has been popping up on every morning show.
Naturally this brings up thoughts of other movies featuring scam artists, cons and plots to steal a fortune. In John Huston’s acclaimed The Asphalt Jungle a criminal mastermind rounds up a gang to steal a million dollars. The French film Rififi features a gang of jewel thieves who turn on each other. No list would be complete without mentioning movies whose very titles betray the premise such The Sting, The Grifters and To Catch a Thief.
On the more comic side, Michael Caine master minds a gold bullion robbery in The Italian Job. And if you prefer your cons to be a bit bungled, why not revisit A Fish Called Wanda or Guy Ritchie’s (Madonna’s husband) Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels?
There are lots of capers in the library’s collection and that’s no scam! What do you suggest?