Review of Confidence (2003) by Carly P — 19 Jul 2008

My rating is not for the movie. It's for Dustin Hoffman alone. The movie probably only deserves three stars, all told, but man. The thing I've learned from watching Dustin Hoffman's work is he has an incredible ability to play completely individual characters, despite himself being a very recognizable individual.

Here he plays a seriously terrifying gangster, with scary quirks and dangerous undertones out the wa-zoo. I just wish he had more to do! He's completely wasted at the end, and you never get to see him really -earn- the reputation he has in the movie, and I think that would have been a smart thing to include.

Even so, he's wickedly good at being a bad guy: I totally underestimated his ability when I read the back of the box to learn he was playing the baddie. Ah, great stuff.