Matchstick Men (2003) Movie Review & Film summary, Cast

Ridley Scott’s over-fondness for a Sony-ad-like visual cleanliness at least matches hero Nicolas Cage’s OCP. A minor but enjoyable caper with basically only three actors to bother about – Nicholas Cage doing his patented oddball, Sam Rockwell doing his patented slick lowlife, and Allison Lohmann, with her fawnish charm. Scott maintains a deft pace; Matchstick Men trots along like an thoroughbred, and neither comedy nor melodrama outweigh character. If it’s all nothing particularly original, it’s surely done to a turn. Also stands as the second-best use, after The Pope of Greenwich Village, to which I expect some homage was intended, of “Summer Wind” on a soundtrack.