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John Cusack, Anjelica Huston, Annette Bening, Pat Hingle, J.T. Walsh ... see more see more... , Charles Napier , Sandy Baron , Frances Bay , Xander Berkeley , Teresa Gilmore Capps , Lou Hancock , Eddie Jones , Henry Jones , Juliet Landau , Michael Laskin , Micole Mercurio , Jeff Perry , Jeremy Piven , Gailard Sartain , Ray Sharkey , Ivette Soler , Gregory Sporleder , Stephen Tobolowsky , Noelle Harling , Richard Holden , Jan Munroe , Juliet Taylor , Victoria Thomas , Jon Gries

Director Stephen Frears' tense adaptation of Jim Thompson's novel The Grifters was one of a number of revival film noirs in the first half of the '90s. Updating the setting to contemporary Los Angeles... read more read more..., the film follows a trio of con artists who are intent on out-foxing each other. Roy Dillon (John Cusack) is a simple, two-bit con, whose life is thrown into turmoil when his estranged mother Lilly (Anjelica Huston) returns home in an attempt to evade the law. Lilly doesn't warm to Roy's girlfriend Myra Langtry (Annette Bening), who is too similar to herself. Soon, the two women are competing for Roy in a battle that is more of a power struggle than a pursuit of affection, and the battle quickly turns dangerous. Huston was nominated for an Academy Award for her work. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi

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68% liked it

9,789 ratings

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90% liked it

39 critics

R, 1 hr. 54 min.

Directed by: Stephen Frears

Release Date: September 14, 1990

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DVD Release Date: June 30, 1998

Stats: 516 reviews

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The Grifters Annette Bening in The Grifters Annette Bening in The Grifters Anjelica Huston in The Grifters Anjelica Huston in The Grifters John Cusack in The Grifters Anjelica Huston in The Grifters Angelica Huston in The Grifters Annette Bening in The Grifters The Grifters The Grifters Annette Bening in The Grifters
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Flixster Reviews (516)

  • danperry17
    December 29, 2011
    danperry17
    A forgettable outing from one of my favourite directors, unfortunately. Annette Bening is a sparkplug, Angelica Huston is electric, and the final act is a knockout. Unfortunately, the film bounces around for the first hour or more, in a way that, instead of building intrigue, is ... read morejarring and kind of confusing. Every time you think you understand what's happening with a character, the film cuts away and focuses elsewhere. It's not the three way chase that has been mastered elsewhere (see: No Country for Old Men), it's just a rote series of flashes. This film could easily have been 20 minutes shorter. But, to its credit, most of the threads dropped in the wandering earlier portion are picked up in the end, and the final half hour is gripping. Definitely an immature film from Frears, and one that was probably over-rated due to its adhesion to that weird early 90s neo-noir thing (see: Basic Instinct, Fatal Attraction, etc.). If you turned it off before getting to the ending, I won't hold it against you.
  • jennifxu
    April 28, 2011
    jennifxu
    This is my semi-strange parallel: I see this film as a depraved, con man version of My Cousin Vinny. It's regional, it's tricky, and it's female character driven, even though the protagonist in each is ostensibly the male. But I think it's mostly because Annette Bening's characte... read morer reminds me a lot of Marisa Tomei's, body hugging dress and all.
  • BEACHBUNNI
    November 17, 2010
    BEACHBUNNI
    ok first of all..for those who don't know what a grifter is, its when a person manipulates another individual to give them money leaving you high and dry.
    this film is based on a novel and it follows a trio of con artists who are intent on out-foxing each other.
    great performa... read morences and a solid script
  • pier007
    August 26, 2008
    pier007
    Unjustifiably forgotten new classic. A striking and quirky neo noir with a superb triad of criminals blinded by greed. Terrific score by Elmer Bernstein.
  • McKittrick
    September 23, 2007
    McKittrick
    It's dated slightly over the years but the performances are still astonishing "the lady or the loot?"
  • jjnxn
    September 20, 2007
    jjnxn
    Angelica Huston is gloriously hard as nails in this superior film.
  • webalina
    June 6, 2007
    webalina
    A wow of a movie! Angelica Huston blew me away as the female hustler who screws over anybody who gets in her way of riches -- even her own son. The final confrontation between her and John Cusack has stuck with me to this day, and I only saw it once -- 16years ago.
  • DrZeek
    May 30, 2007
    DrZeek
    Roy Dillon: It's great to get away, isn't it? Take some time off. Next week, I'll be back to work.
    Myra Langtry: You already went back to work.
    Roy Dillon: What?
    Myra Langtry: I watched you, working the tat on those sailor boys.
    Roy Dillon: Working the what?
    Myra Langtry: Oh, com... read moree on, Roy, the tat. What you do for a living.
    Roy Dillon: I'm a salesman.
    Myra Langtry: You're on the grift, same as me.
    Roy Dillon: Myra, I'm not following you.
    Myra Langtry: Roy, you're a short-con operator... and a good one, I think. Don't talk to me like I'm another square!

    Smart movie about three characters all in the career of coning people and what they have to do to survive.

    Stephen Frears directs a good neo-noir set in LA and La Jolla with the help of producer Martin Scorsese.

    John Cusack stars as a small-time con artist who makes a little bit of money, getting himself by, but he's not the best at what he does.

    Two femme fatals are also involved in his life, one is his girlfriend Myra, played by Annette Benning, who is also in the con game, but these professions are unknown between them.

    The other lady is Cusack's mother, played by Angelica Huston, who had Cusack when she was very young and is not very involved in his life...they hate each other.

    The movie surrounds these three characters and a few days between them. It's not a standard con artist film where a big score is setup to go down in the end with some big twist. This movie is about the lives that professional con artists live without the bennefit of that big score that they can retire with.

    This is a well acted movie, with a good score, good cinematagraphy, and a good story. Very well done.

    Myra Langtry: I'm Roy's friend.
    Lilly Dillon: Yes. I imagine you're lots of people's friend.
    Myra Langtry: Oh, of course, now that I see you in the light, you're plenty old enough to be Roy's mother.
    Lilly Dillon: Aren't we all?
    Roy Dillon: Play nice. Don't fight.
  • deano
    November 20, 2006
    deano
    Average mood, bleak tale of three small-time, big-aspiration con artists who bring about each other's downfall.
  • fb20312798
    March 3, 2010
    fb20312798
    The biggest problem with all con films is that they all move towards the inevitable "twist" at the very end. The Grifters ignores that cliche and as a result the movie is a resounding success. The characters spend a lot of time talking about "big cons" but they never happen. Its ... read morea film about the characters. The final scene between Cusack and Huston is amazing, you expect some huge twist but instead you get Greek tragedy.

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Critic Reviews

Richard Corliss
November 6, 2009
Richard Corliss, TIME Magazine

Best to savor The Grifters for its handsome design -- the picture looks as clean as a Hockney landscape -- and its juicy performances. Full Review

Jonathan Rosenbaum
November 6, 2009
Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader

A mannerist thriller that doesn't begin to work despite the number of talented hands involved. Full Review

Variety Staff
October 18, 2008
Variety Staff, Variety

Cusack underplays Roy, making him an unbelievable wiseguy, a colorless cipher too akin to the saps he loves to fleece. Full Review

Vincent Canby
May 20, 2003
Vincent Canby, New York Times

The Grifters is so good that one leaves the theater on a spellbound high. Full Review

Hal Hinson
January 1, 2000
Hal Hinson, Washington Post

It seduces you into believing it's merely a cheeky trifle, and then, when you least expect it, lowers the boom. Full Review

Desson Thomson
January 1, 2000
Desson Thomson, Washington Post

This is one human board game that's absorbing to watch. Full Review

Roger Ebert
January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

This is a movie of plot, not episode. It's not just a series of things that happen to the characters, but a web, a maze of consequences. Full Review

Cole Smithey
September 13, 2011
Cole Smithey, ColeSmithey.com

[VIDEO] Although the movie recalls films by the Coen Brothers or the Dahl Brothers, "The Grifters" retains its source material's voice in a thoroughly original way. Here's a neo-noir you can never see... Full Review

November 6, 2009
Film4

A darkly cynical and uncompromising gem. Full Review

Steve Crum
March 22, 2008
Steve Crum, Video-Reviewmaster.com

Clever writing and fine cast make this tale of thieves among us fun to watch.

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The Grifters Trivia

  • He's done bit parts in many John Cusack movies, stealing scenes in "Say Anything" "Grosse Pointe Blank" "The Grifters" "Serendipity" "Runaway Jury" and "One Crazy Summer"  Answer »
  • What actress appeared in The Grifters, Bugsy, and Mars Attacks?  Answer »
  • Recently divorced Diane Lane (Oscar nomination for Unfaithful) enrolls on online dating service. John Cusack (Grosse Pointe Blank, the Grifters) is the guy. Movie title ( part of her bio data) is _   Answer »
  • What is the name of the 1990 movie John Cusack starred in with Annette Bening and Anjelica Huston ?  Answer »
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