शार्पर

I have to stop coming here and using User Reviews as criteria for choosing a movie... I almost didn't watch this because the reviews were blah. But it's better than you'd think if you're just reading the opinions here. It's stylish and well thought out, and the ending was "sharper" than I thought it'd be. The acting is solid, the plot is appropriately twisty, it's not overdone in any way in cinematography or directing. It's just a crisp grifter story, and if you liked movies like "Confidence," I suspect you'll like this too.

If I had one minor complaint, it's that the con artists here aren't faced with a lot of dangerous resistance through most of the story, easily finding non-threatening marks... it all looks so easy. But, as Madeline says "practice," and you get really good at it. That said, I liked the movie.

IN A NUTSHELL: The screenplay was written by Brian Gatewood and Alessandro Tanaka, and was on the Blacklist of best-unproduced screenplays in 2020. It was directed by Benjamin Caron.

The story is about several con artists who take on some Manhattan billionaires.

We're told that a "sharper" is someone who lives by their wits.

THINGS I LIKED: The fantastic cast includes Julianne Moore, John Lithgow, Sebastian Stan, Justice Jesse Smith, and Briana Middleton. They all do an excellent job.

The challenge is for the film to outwit its audience without our seeing what's going to happen because it's so obvious.

I love twists. There are lots of twists.

The party scene features Grammy Award-winner Samara Joy!

The filmmaking is stylish.

One of the characters asked another one which was her favorite movie. What would be YOUR answer? Comment below!

THINGS I DIDN'T LIKE: There are a lot of characters and storylines to keep track of, especially as we try to figure out how everything worked.

Many conversations happen in whispers, often making it difficult to hear everything that's said.

It's helpful to know ahead of time that the story is not told in a chronological, linear way.

Acts 1 & 2 move fairly slowly but then speeds up in Act 3.

The movie thinks it's more clever than it really is.

TIPS FOR PARENTS: Kids will be bored.

Unmarried couples sleep together.

Profanity, including quite a few F-bombs We see someone shoot and kill another person Bloody deaths.

!

You're not gonna see anything too groundbreaking here, but Sharper can provide some higher class thrills and intelligence. I found this film to be pretty intriguing. There's a suave style to the film that makes some of the expected story beats a little more fun. The cast is pretty noteworthy, with Sebastian Stan the standout in my opinion. He plays these mysterious characters well and is always a pleasure to watch.

This is a bit of a surprising film for A24 given it isn't quite as highbrow or bizarre as most of their stuff, but they do manage to class up a straightforward story a bit. Sharper won't blow you away with stunning plot twists, but it's a solid hit for Apple TV+.

If you want an easy watch at home with fun twists and great actors then I highly recommend this movie. It's 2023, do people really expect every movie to come out and be 100% original? Or based on real events? It was an entertaining, dramatized and fantasized movie about con's who obsess over money. Yes there was times where it was predictable but sometimes I found this fun to guess and get it right. I was also was very wrong with my predictions and was left surprised, In a good way.

Overall some of these reviews are way too critical for a movie that you can watch in the comfort of your own home. People saying the script was off but I have seen plenty of other movies with a much worse script than this. I would recommend watching it, don't listen to some of these reviews.

Ignore the critics, this is a wonderfully entertaining thriller with more twists than a Coney-Island roller-coaster! All of the cast are *excellent* in their roles, and, while you can sorta see the end coming, it doesn't make it any less fun. Yes, the final twist is a bit over-the-top (and no, it wouldn't even remotely work in real-life), but don't let that stop you from watching this movie. A Mametesque (there, I had to say it) mash-up of Spanish prisoner meets House of Games by way of Perfect Murder, (and yes, there are a number of Hitchcockian psychological turns that make everything worthwhile.) See it with friends, while sipping a young, impetuous, spicy cab or merlot...