Review of The Sting (1973) by Tim M — 29 Oct 2016

I'm a sucker for con movies, so why it took me so long to see this one is anybody's guess. But what a joy it is to watch. The scheme is complicated, but not too much so - a lifetime of con movies made one of the big reveals a little obvious, but that's no fault of the film - but the joy here is watching it all come together.

There's a scale here I haven't seen much, especially in setting up some of the bigger cons, and watching professionals at work just makes for a fun movie. Combine that with the whole cast - yes, Redford and Newman's effortless charisma carries the film, but the supporting cast is uniformly great - and the nostalgic but never sappy 1930s setting and you have just a joyous, wonderful film.

I had a blast watching it, and loved its easy charm, quick wit, and most of all, its sense of fun.