Gambit (2012)

the audience applauded

How sad is this?

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

Approx halfway through the film I realized what was nagging me that was all rather familiar?.... but of course!.... it was Inspector Clouseau (Colin Firth) getting punched on the nose 3 times, loosing his trousers, getting a glass jar stuck on his hand, getting stranded ten floors up on a window ledge, whilst Dreyfus (Alan Rickman) hated him and wanted rid of him at all costs. There was a woman in it too, Cameron Diaz, while Tom Courtenay kept popping in and out. But not a bad film.

This film included three stellar performances from Colin Firth, Alan Rickman, and Cameron Diaz. The heist plot was intriguing, and the ending was stellar! The gist of the film is that Firth plays an art expert in the employ of a stodgy employer (Rickman). Firth's character Deane enlists Diaz's character named P.J. from Texas in a scam to sell a fake Monet painting to his boys.There is some snappy dialogue and especially good farcical scenes in a swanky London hotel. But the best moment is the ending, which make this 90-minute film a gem.Not to be missed!

Art curator Harry Deane (Colin Firth) intends to take revenge against his abusive boss Shabandar (Alan Rickman) by getting him to buy a fake Monet which was stolen by the Nazis. With the forger Major, they recruit cowgirl PJ Puznowski (Cameron Diaz) for the job. They take a picture of PJ with Grandma Merle (Cloris Leachman) and the fake picture hanging in their Texas trailer. Her grandfather had led the American takeover of the Nazi compound. Shabandar is not as eager as Harry had hoped as the scam drains his coffers. Shabandar brings in his private curator Martin Zaidenweber (Stanley Tucci).The Coen brothers adapted the script and it needed them to bring their vision to fruition. Everybody is doing a slightly off wacky. I'm sure the Coens would have calibrated the characters correctly but far too often, the characters come off as silly cartoons. It's rather annoying to see these characters done so badly. Watching this movie is like trying to listen to that Japanese character saying his English lines. None of it is funny and some of it can be offensive to the senses.

I really enjoyed this film. I don't understand why it got bad reviews. Some of the backlash is that it was the follow up for Firth to the King's Speech and this is not in the same league. I saw it in the movie theater. I liked it so much that I purchased it on DVD. Firth and Courtney were great together. Diaz and Firth had great chemistry. Stanley Tucci and Alan Rickman were weak links, but it was the script, not the actors. Firth was a good sport being put into humorous humiliating situations that evoke Lucille Ball in I love Lucy. The direction by Michael Hoffman could have been better. Nonetheless Firth, Courtney and Diaz made up for those deficiencies. I say See it.