The Sting (Universal Legacy Series)
by George Roy Hill
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Charles Durning, Paul Newman, Ray Walston, Robert Redford, Robert ShawDirector: George Roy Hill
Brand: Universal
Cinematographer: Robert Surtees
Editor: William Reynolds
Producer: Julia Phillips
Producer: Michael Phillips
Producer: Robert Crawford Jr.
Producer: Tony Bill
Writer: David S. Ward
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0; Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0; French (Dubbed); Spanish (Dubbed)
Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Special Edition, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 129 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2005-09-06
Audience Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Studio: Universal Studios
Movie Reviews of The Sting (Universal Legacy Series)
Movie Review: To pull off the "BIG CON," all you need is some...CONfidence
Summary: 5 Stars
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"You're right...[The con game] is not enough. But it's close!"
The above is what one of the con artists (or CONfidence game artists) says at the end of this fantastically entertaining movie.
This is a caper film set in late 1936. It revolves around a complicated but interesting plot by two professional con artists (played by Paul Newman and Robert Redford) to swindle a mob boss (played by Robert Shaw). The actual genesis of the idea behind this movie's plot is really unknown but rumour has it that it was inspired by some real-life con games.
The expression "the sting" refers to the moment a con artist finishes the "play" (the mechanics of the con game) and takes the "mark's" (the one being swindled or conned) money. (Today this expression is mainly used in the context of a law enforcement sting operation.)
If the con game is successful, the mark does not realize he or she has been "taken" (cheated), at least not until the con artists are long gone.
This movie goes out of its way to make you feel like you're watching a 1930's film. Here are four reasons why:
(1) During the opening credits, the viewer is shown the main actors (there are eleven) with extracts from the actual movie. This is a style reminiscent of films from the early to mid 1930s.
(2) This movie is divided into distinct sections or parts with old fashioned title cards that has lettering and illustrations.
(3) The costumes that the actors wear. All are 1930's style.
(4) This movie's musical score especially its main theme melody "The Entertainer", a piano ragtime composition by American composer Scott Joplin (1867 to 1917). This music in turn encouraged a surge of popularity and critical acclaim (and deservedly so!!) for Joplin's music. (Ragtime is an originally American genre which had its peak popularity between 1897 and 1918. It predated jazz which began in America roughly around 1915.)
I said in (2) above that this movie is divided into title card sections. The titles on these cards are the preliminary work that has to be done in order to make the actual sting successful. Here are the actual titles:
(1) The Set-Up (24 minutes into the movie). That is, this is the actual set-up for the sting.
(2) The Hook (40 minutes)
(3) The Tale (1 hour, 7 minutes)
(4) The Wire (1 hr, 23 min). The "wire" is an off-track horse race betting scam.
(5) The Shut-Out (1 hr, 33 min). Here, the horse race bettor is unable (that is, is "shut-out") to make his bet.
(6) The Sting (1 hr, 52 min). See above for explanation of this term.
The acting by all is excellent. In fact, Robert Redford was nominated for an Academy Award. However, personally I have to give kudos to Robert Shaw for his fantastic portrayal of a person you want to see swindled.
This movie won 7 Academy Award including Best Picture.
Finally, the DVD itself (the one released Sept. 2005) is perfect in picture and sound quality. It has some interesting extras.
In conclusion, you deserve to see for yourself how the Big Con is performed!! (Note that this review is not attempting to con you into seeing this movie.)
(1973; 2 hr, 9 min; wide screen; 16 scenes; 2 discs)
<<Stephen Pletko, London, Ontario, Canada>>
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Summary of The Sting (Universal Legacy Series)
2 disc set includes: the art of the sting-making of documentary theatrical trailer production notes Studio: Uni Dist Corp. (mca) Release Date: 09/06/2005 Run time: 130 minutes Rating: PgSimilar DVD Movies
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