There's little to be said about this movie without dissecting it piece by piece and shot by shot, and thereby betraying plot points: 'The sting' is all but perfect, down to every last detail. This goes for David Ward's screenplay - characters, dialogue, scene writing, and narrative, all dynamic and engrossing, and throwing a couple surprises at the audience. This goes for George Roy Hill's direction, and Robert Surtees' cinematography - lending to exquisite arrangement of every shot and scene, and vibrant imagery from start to finish. The casting is extraordinary, with notable and very recognizable names and faces - Robert Redford and Paul Newman, of course, but also Eileen Brennan, Robert Shaw, Robert Earl Jones, Charles Durning, Ray Walston, Dana Elcar, and Charles Dierkop, among still others. Everyone turns in outstanding, nuanced performances that are inescapably enchanting - and kudos as well to the stunt performers for fine contributions.
Sound design, effects, art direction, production design - in every way, 'The sting' is a feast for the eyes and ears, wonderfully entertaining all the way through. Set design and decoration, hair and makeup, costume design, lighting, music - the rarely since the end of the Great Depression have the 1930s felt so distinctly real and tangible. And the picture fills every last corner of this setting with moments of sharp action, zestful humor, and tension and minor suspense, all realized with the superb acting of every player among the assembled actors.
Somehow I've only just watched this for the first time. Without knowing much of anything about it, and without especially trying, I think I ended up avoiding 'The sting' because, out of youthful folly, for me it fell into a broad swath of well-regarded features starring well-known actors that was too even-keeled and unremarkable to really grab my attention. Well, the joke's on me - I have a much better and broader appreciation for films than I used to, and this solid fun, plain and simple. True, sometimes flourishes of stylization in the editing seem a tad too overt, or the narrative threads tie off a bit too neatly - in some ways recalling more recent blockbusters involving complex, grandiose schemes. Yet these qualities are all intentional, and factored into the picture's cheeky levity and charm. Honestly, I rather had mixed expectations when I began watching, but they were very quickly dispelled. Short of going on a far more verbose ramble, take it from someone who was more than a little skeptical about this before I actually sat for it: 'The sting' is a greatly enjoyable film that's tremendously well made in every respect, and it more than holds up 50 years later. Don't make the same mistake I did for too long - if you have the opportunity to watch this, you must.
Sound design, effects, art direction, production design - in every way, 'The sting' is a feast for the eyes and ears, wonderfully entertaining all the way through. Set design and decoration, hair and makeup, costume design, lighting, music - the rarely since the end of the Great Depression have the 1930s felt so distinctly real and tangible. And the picture fills every last corner of this setting with moments of sharp action, zestful humor, and tension and minor suspense, all realized with the superb acting of every player among the assembled actors.
Somehow I've only just watched this for the first time. Without knowing much of anything about it, and without especially trying, I think I ended up avoiding 'The sting' because, out of youthful folly, for me it fell into a broad swath of well-regarded features starring well-known actors that was too even-keeled and unremarkable to really grab my attention. Well, the joke's on me - I have a much better and broader appreciation for films than I used to, and this solid fun, plain and simple. True, sometimes flourishes of stylization in the editing seem a tad too overt, or the narrative threads tie off a bit too neatly - in some ways recalling more recent blockbusters involving complex, grandiose schemes. Yet these qualities are all intentional, and factored into the picture's cheeky levity and charm. Honestly, I rather had mixed expectations when I began watching, but they were very quickly dispelled. Short of going on a far more verbose ramble, take it from someone who was more than a little skeptical about this before I actually sat for it: 'The sting' is a greatly enjoyable film that's tremendously well made in every respect, and it more than holds up 50 years later. Don't make the same mistake I did for too long - if you have the opportunity to watch this, you must.