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 There are fewer cinematic pleasures like being able to be surprised by a film upon viewing after viewing. You get so used to figuring out a flick's secrets the first time around and ending up disappointed after sitting through it again, it's really something when a film still has the power to keep you guessing after seeing it five times or fifty. The Sting (1973), starring Robert Redford, Paul Newman, Robert Earl Jones and Robert Shaw and the Best Picture winner of 1973, is such a picture.
For me the movie is an absolute joy that is worth popping in for as many go-arounds as one can take. Maybe I'm a sucker for con artist stories, but The Sting is a true filmmaking classic, working as much as pure entertainment as it does as a story of revenge. The art of the con becomes enhanced with each closer look granted to it.
Robert Redford
The Great Depression is in full swing in Joliet, Illinois, but Johnny Hooker (Robert Redford) and Luther Coleman (Robert Earl Jones) get by swindling folks for whatever money they end up with. That is, until Luther announces his retirement after the pair con the mark of their lives out of a huge chunk of dough.
As it turns out, though, the poor sucker was a numbers runner for Doyle Lonnegan (Robert Shaw), a vicious Irish gangster who retaliates by assigning some goons to do in Luther and hunt down Hooker next. With nowhere else to go, Hooker looks up an old friend of his mentor's, Henry Gondorff (Paul Newman), a confidence man extraordinaire in hiding, and almost immediately starts formulating a plan of attack to strike back at Lonnegan. Such a plan involves not guns or knives but rather a con man's shrewd thinking, as Hooker and Gondorff team up to devise a complex scheme to bilk Lonnegan out of a fortune and do justice to their dearly departed friend.
To discuss The Sting, one almost has to be like Fred Astaire navigating a minefield. It's no secret that twists are involved here. This is, after all, a movie about people who bamboozle others for a living. But even hinting at them would destroy the film's magic in an instant. I will say that not once does The Sting ever feel like it's cheating you. All of the surprising turns taken make perfect sense in the context of the plot, not because the screenwriter was bent on proving how clever he was. The cons are things of beauty, each one bringing a smile to your face as they unfold and catch not only the characters but yourself off-guard.
Standing out above all is the classic poker scene, a section of the film so skillfully-made and suspenseful, I haven't even come close to cracking how it's pulled off. But they're just one element of the production that contributes to drawing you further and further into the film's world. Everything, from the pitch-perfect production design to the legendary ragtime score, immerses you in the story's era, never letting a single hint of being made in the '70s shine through, thus endowing the film with a truly timeless quality.
The Sting also owes its great success to a simply fantastic cast that brings their respective roles to life in a big way. All of the key players take what have long since become stock archetypes and transform them into fascinating, fleshed-out characters. Redford plays the inexperienced con artist getting in over his head, Newman takes on the gruff veteran, and character actors ranging from Harold Gould to Ray Walston play fellow tricksters pitching in on the big con. Yet thanks to their lively performances and great rapport, they hide the wear and tear of their roles
Robert Redford
magnificently, as well as generating actual sympathy because they're never seen conning anyone who doesn't deserve it.
In contrast, Shaw gives an especially commendable performance as Lonnegan for what he doesn't do. Since you never really see Lonnegan doing anything dastardly, all Shaw has to work with is the character's reputation, which he conveys perfectly in scene after sharply-written scene.
The Sting ranks among my favorite films of all time. Even eight years after I first discovered it, the movie remains an absolute joy to watch, and in recommending it to others, all I can really say is, "Just watch it." Less really is more with The Sting, for the more unfamiliar you are with the plot and its inner workings, the greater of a delight it will prove to be.
Director: George Roy Hill
Writer: David S. Ward
Cast: Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Robert Shaw, Charles Durning, Ray Walston, Eileen Brennan, Harold Gould
Rating: PG (some language and violence)
Classic Movie Guide Rating: 5 stars out of 5
Run Time: 129 minutes
Studio: Universal Pictures
Format: Color, widescreen
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