Gambit (2012)

An art curator decides to seek revenge on his abusive boss by conning him into buying a fake Monet, but his plan requires the help of an eccentric and unpredictable Texas rodeo queen.

Director:

Michael Hoffman

Writers:

Joel Coen (screenplay), Ethan Coen (screenplay)

Stars:

Colin Firth, Cameron Diaz, Alan Rickman

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Colin Firth	...	Harry Deane
Tom Courtenay	...	The Major
Alan Rickman	...	Shabandar
Mike Noble	...	Gunboy
Brodie Ross	...	Shabandar's Shoot Servant
Alex Macqueen	...	Mr Dunlop
Joe Berryman	...	Gas Station Cashier
Ralph Alderman	...	Rodeo PA Man
Cameron Diaz	...	PJ Puznowski
Terry Dale Parks	...	Cowboy 1 (Merle) (as Terence Parks)
Russ Dillen	...	Cowboy 2
Cloris Leachman	...	Grandma Merle
Sarah Goldberg	...	Executive Wilson
Obi Abili	...	Executive Slazenger
Anna Skellern	...	Fiona (Secretary)

Storyline

Curator Harry Deane is an expert in fine art, but he's equally accomplished in taking abuse from his insolent boss. That's about to change. The plan - trick the avid art collector into buying a fake Monet painting. To assist in the heist, Deane hires a rowdy Texas cowgirl to help him fool the richest man in England. But as the plan begins to unravel, Deane finds he is falling in love with the rodeo queen, ensuing further complications.

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Plot Keywords:

painting | heist | art forgery | cigar smoking | black comedy | 

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Taglines:

A fake masterpiece. The perfect plan.

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some suggestive content, partial nudity and a rude gesture

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Japanese

Release Date:

21 November 2012 (UK)

Also Known As:

Гамбит

Filming Locations:

London Heathrow Airport, London Borough of Hillingdon, London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Crime Scene Pictures, ArtPhyl, FilmNation Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Datasat SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Jennifer Aniston was considered for the role of PJ Puznowski.

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Goofs

The stunt double used for PJ in the calf roping scene is heavier than Cameron Diaz.

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Quotes

[first lines]
The Major: [narrating] This is the story of my brave, foolish friend Harry Deane. Mr. Deane's work as a curator in London had gone, he felt, largely unappreciated. He told me of countless insults suffered at the hands of his employer, Lionel Shahbandar, media tycoon, art collector, and an absolute brute of a fellow.
Lionel Shahbandar: [covered in mud] Do not touch my person! You, idiot...
Man: Yes, my lord.
Lionel Shahbandar: ...give me your boot.

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Crazy Credits

Opening credits are shown over cartoon characters performing odd actions with artwork and elevators.

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Connections

Referenced in Unikal'noe pozdravlenie (2014)

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Soundtracks

Moonlight Serenade
Performed by The Guy Barker Nonet
Written by Glenn Miller and Mitchell Parish
Published by EMI United Partnership Ltd
Master courtesy of Shabandar Productions Ltd

User Reviews

Why pick this for a remake?

Colin Firth obviously wanted a less taxing role after stammering as King George VI. In this remake of a Sixties Michael Caine comic 'caper' he plays a disgruntled art dealer who decides to trick his unpleasant billionaire boss into buying a fake Monet. Shirley MacLaine's Hong Kong dancer roped in as co-conspirator and candy-floss in the 1966 version has became a Texas rodeo queen - Cameron Diaz doing her best with a one-dimensional part.

Alan Rickman does an appropriately pantomime turn as the monstrously egotistical tycoon and gets some of the movie's most embarrassing scenes, but he seems to be having fun. Colin Firth makes a visible effort to enjoy losing his pants on a ledge outside the Savoy Hotel, but the role would have perhaps been easier for Hugh Grant. Stanley Tucci plays a German art expert who may (or may not) be inspired by Albert Schweitzer. The London scenes are livelier than the scenes at Rickman's Downtonesque country house, though a farting dowager moment targets a younger audience than this is likely to pull in.

This piece of fluff comes from the Coen brothers who usually apply themselves to something zanier and zingier. If they wanted to revamp a comedy heist movie, why didn't they take on Peter Ustinov's all-star Istanbul romp TOPKAPI (1964) or, if they wanted to keep the budget down, Warren Beatty's KALEIDOSCOPE, also from 1966, which had more pace and plot than the original GAMBIT but not such deft performances? It's really only the actors who raise this year's GAMBIT from being potentially dire into something that is merely mediocre.