The Con is On - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

The Con is On

Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score: ​

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Movie
You know something is a bit hinky with a film when it was shot in 2015, and just now in 2018 making it’s way to a release date. Films that get shelved for years on end AFTER production are not usually ones that you would expect to be slam dunk hits. There is always some sort of drama behind the scenes, with nervous executives worried about its future, stuck on a back shelf for some years, and then unceremoniously dumped straight to DVD without much fanfare. Sure there have probably been a few film that have defied those odds, but the vast majority of movies that have multiple year gaps between completion of the project and release to the masses are generally mediocre flops that have a vote of no confidence from the powers that be. Well, even though it had the abhorrent “shelved” stigma about it, The Con is On (known overseas as The Brits are Coming) peaked my interest simply due to the fact that the trailer was rather snazzy and the cast was a HUGE conglomoration of active talent. Tim Roth and Uma Thurman could technically be considered has beens, but Alice Eve, Maggie Q, Stephen Fry, and even Sofia Vergara, are still bankable names. Movies have defied the stereotype here and there, so I went in with an open mind and was actually surprised. No, I wasn’t pleasantly surprised. In fact, it was the exact opposite. I came out wondering just a cast with this much pedigree could still end up being this banally bland.

Peter (Tim Roth) and Harriet Fox (Uma Thurman) are a pair of British con artists who have landed in Los Angeles looking to score a quick buck (and happen to be on the run as well). Well, the two decided to target Peter’s Ex wife Jackie (Alice Eve), who has a massive ring on her finger that they figure they can purloin. You see, the two con artists owe a considerable sum of money to a criminal named Irina (Maggie Q.), and Irina kind of wants her money back. She’s put out a target on the duo, and the only way they can satiate her before their demise is on Jackie’s ring finger. Thus a con is hatched to separate that ring from Jackie and her bizarre husband (Stephen Fry), all the while dodging Irina, matching up against a drunk and looney Ex wife, and trying to stay alive throughout it all.

You can honestly tell that the producers initially thought they had cinematic gold. The high powered cast of actors, the decent budget given to the film (a moderate $13 million), but for some reason they gave it to the writers and director of an unknown feature film, and a short. Which obviously misfired on them as you can tell from the producers shelving it for this long. The wacky script has the actors stumbling around into hijinks and odd situations, almost as if director James Oakley was hoping that the natural charm and charisma of the actors would just “spark” inspiration in the scene, much like ad-libbing comedians. What ACTUALLY happens is a string of vignette style sequences that are mashed together with the audience checking the run time on the front of their Blu-ray player the whole times wondering when the 93 minute film is over.

Alice Eve, Sofia Vergara, Stephen Fry, Crispin Glover, they’re all wasted in the film. Even Maggie Q. as the assassin Irina isn’t really that interesting. Their interactions with each other is flaccid and boring, with only a couple of chuckle worthy moments to tip my hat to. The only real reason to actually watch the film boils down to our two “main” leads. Uma Thurman is gorgeous as ever (although I’m wondering if she got some plastic surgery, because she looks very little like how she used to look 10 years ago), and Tim Roth steals the scenes he’s in with an underrated performance. He exudes a sort of charming, boyish, flippant sense of wry humor that is the fuel for most of the ACTUALLY funny jokes in the film. His interaction with Uma Thurman is simply gold, and the two made for the best characters in the movie as a result. Sadly, two actors of an ensemble cast can’t make up for the writing, directing and moderate performances of the rest of the cast. At the end of the day The Con is On is a banal, bland, and painfully mediocre con film.




Rating:

Rated R for language throughout, drug and alcohol use, some sexual content and violence




Video:

Filmed using the Arri Alexa cameras and finished in 2K, the 2.39:1 AVC encoded Blu-ray from Lionsgate certainly looks pretty. Once again Lionsgate fulfills Mike’s “rule of 4” once more, giving us a rather nice looking image that impresses, but never shocks and awes the viewer with it’s quality. The digital film is glossy and a bit flat, with solid color saturation (the Red dresses from Jackie and Alice really pop off the screen), while giving us a fairly artifact free picture. Details are really impressive in up close shots and facial tones, with intimate clothing details and facial lines revealing the most to the audience. There’s some color banding in the darker shots of the mansion, as well as a little bit of black crush, but overall this is a good looking 1080p picture all around.






Audio:

Filmed using the Arri Alexa cameras and finished in 2K, the 2.39:1 AVC encoded Blu-ray from Lionsgate certainly looks pretty. Once again Lionsgate fulfills Mike’s “rule of 4” once more, giving us a rather nice looking image that impresses, but never shocks and awes the viewer with it’s quality. The digital film is glossy and a bit flat, with solid color saturation (the Red dresses from Jackie and Alice really pop off the screen), while giving us a fairly artifact free picture. Details are really impressive in up close shots and facial tones, with intimate clothing details and facial lines revealing the most to the audience. There’s some color banding in the darker shots of the mansion, as well as a little bit of black crush, but overall this is a good looking 1080p picture all around.






Extras:

• Trailer
• Lionsgate Trailers

Final Score: ​

I really wanted to like The Con is On due to the cast and all of the good work that they’ve done in the past. But the wandering plot and the squandered character moments makes the film a miss despite my desires. The Lionsgate Blu-ray is quite excellent for the most part, with good video and audio, but a distinct lack of extras to round out the package. I want to give the film a “rental” recommendation so very badly, but the film was such a bland watch that I can’t do so with a clean conscience. I did love Tim Roth’s performance, but he and Uma just couldn’t elevate the material from what it isn’t…. which is a good movie. As such, I have to give the unhappy job of giving this a solid thumbs down and recommend just skipping it entirely unless you’re really intrigued by the cast and trailer.



Technical Specifications:

Starring: Tim Roth, Alive Eve, Uma Thurman, Sofia Vergara, Parker Posey
Directed by: James Oakley
Written by: James Oakley, Alex Michaelides
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 AVC
Audio: English: DTS-HD MA 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, English, Spanish
Studio: Lionsgate
Rated: R
Runtime: 93 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: July 24th, 2018

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• Michael Scott
• May 11, 2017

Recommendation: Skip It

 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. Will skip it based on your recommendation.