The Grifters (1990)

Still Great in '08
Some movies lose their appeal over time, but not this one! Angelica Huston specifically showed her strength as an actress as Cusack's scam artist mom. Annette Bening is gorgeous and believable as Cusack's girlfriend. And of course Cusack himself was terrific as a sort of straight man between the two rival con-artist women. I never will forget the scene where Huston tries to run down Bening in a parking lot.

Do not hesitate with this entertaining movie!

SUSPENSION OF DISBELIEF
I've always loved this film, but something about it has always bothered me. Angelica Huston looks plenty old enough to be Roy's mother.

Great Writing, Acting Make This A Superior 'Noir'
Here is a modern-day "film noir," if I ever saw one. You get sleazy characters with no morals, brutal attitudes, some interesting photography and a story that is not exactly a happy one - all the ingredients of a good noir. Since the film is a 1990 one and not the '40s and '50s (in which purists think that's the only period for noirs), you also get nudity and profanity.

The best part of the film, to me, is the fact that the three leading characters are so interesting. You never know what these intriguing characters are going to do next. John Cusack, Angelica Huston and Annette Bening are all fascinating. Three supporting guys in here are fantastic, too: Pat Hingle, J.T. Walsh and Charles Napier. Overall, this is a wonderful cast that does full justice to this unusual crime story.

The story has a mean edge to it most of the way, but that's the style of writer Jim Thompson, who is a very good crime author who wrote the novel on which this movie is based. He has written several fascinating books. Donald Westlake, who wrote the screenplay, is a prolific crime story writer.

There is not a lot of action in this film but when it occurs, it is shocking and brutal. This movie always entertains me every time I view it.