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.
Colin Firth
Harry Deane
Cameron Diaz
PJ Puznowski
Alan Rickman
Lionel Shahbandar
Tom Courtenay
The Major
Stanley Tucci
Martin Zaidenweber
Cloris Leachman
Grandma Merle
Alex Macqueen
Mr. Dunlop
Joe Berryman
Gas Station Cashier
Anna Skellern
Secretary Fiona
Lorna Brown
Couple Wife
Pip Torrens
Desk Clerk
Julian Rhind-Tutt
Xander
Selina Cadell
Dowager
Mike Noble
Gunboy
Sarah Goldberg
Executive Wilson
Obi Abili
Executive Slazenger
Ross Gurney-Randall
Georing
Paul Leonard
Auctioneer
Togo Igawa
Takagawa
Gerard Horan
Mr. Knowles
Sadao Ueda
Chuck
Masashi Fujimoto
Bigman Chon
Charlotte Eaton
Maid
Jon Wennington
Businessman (uncredited)
Augustina Amoa
Concierge
Director
Michael Hoffman
Story
Sidney Carroll
Writer
Joel Coen
Writer
Ethan Coen
June 21, 2014
I came to this because of the Coen brothers credit. It's an anomaly in their filmography — one of only two feature-length films they wrote but didn't direct, and the first since 1985. Sure, the poster makes the film look a lot less art-house-ready than the last film of theirs I saw, but I've enjoyed a Coen brothers farce before. Maybe the reason it hasn't made it stateside is because it's a misunderstood oddball. Turns out, no, it's pretty easy to understand. It's a cheaply-felt farce, replete with broad stereotypes sporting funny-sounding accents and the usual game of misunderstandings, several of which looking like they could quickly end if only certain characters decided to use peripheral vision. You wonder how different this film would have looked if the Coen's script hadn't reportedly been reworked or if they directed it instead. I did enjoy the idea that our conman hero initially paints his mark as a cartoonish and sour individual. But when we meet him in a more objective gaze, he seems much more rational, though clearly impatient with his employee. There's an intriguing antihero-versus-antihero story in that. I wish the film had further explored that idea.