Sick Product of a Sick System

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

It's a feast for the eyes. But what really makes this dramedy work is the acting.

The jokes are just to die for.Seen it 5 times already and the jokes stay fresh. Some are very subtle and typically english, but other jokes are really in your face and childish , but really well done nevertheless, with hilarious results. Colin Firth running around in a hotel without his pants on, is one of those memorable scenes that might sound childish and it is, but man oh man does it give cause to great jokes and mix ups . Mind you, I normally loathe watching childish comedies, but when jokes are performed the right way, the most simplest jokes are the best. And often the simplest jokes are childish in nature, think of Peter Sellers in the Pink Panther, which has some stunning resemblances to the jokes in "Gambit".I love this story about about an intelligent con game in which a stuck up English rich guy gets sold a painting for millions that isnt worth the paper it is painted on. How it is exactly done is the mystery of this marvellous english comedy with magnificent roles by Colin Firth, Alan Rickman, Stanley Tucci and ofcourse the ever charming Cameron Diaz.This is a hilarious comedy which young kids and adults can both enjoy. Some subtle jokes are mixed in for the adults and the fart jokes are certainly liked by the kids, although I adored them as well. Come to think of it, the fart joke was one of the best!

Fed up with his rude and denigrating boss by the name of "Lord Shabandar" (Alan Rickman) an art curator by the name of "Harry Deane" (Colin Firth) comes up with a scheme to swindle a large sum of money from him by getting an artist known as "The Major" (Tom Courtenay) to paint a reproduction of Monet's "Haystacks at Dusk" in an effort to fool Shabandar into buying it. Once the painting is finished Harry also convinces a woman from Texas named "P.J. Puznowski" (Cameron Diaz) to pretend that she was given this masterpiece from her grandfather who obtained it from Herman Goring's private gallery during World War 2. Unfortunately, it soon transpires that everybody involved is much smarter than Harry and as a result things don't go exactly as planned. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this movie certainly had some potential. However, even with the decent cast of characters, it wasn't quite as good as it should have been due in large part to the uneven pacing and the crude humor. That being said, despite these faults I suppose it's good enough for a rainy day and for that reason I have rated it accordingly. Average.

Art curator Harry Deane (Colin Firth) intends to take revenge against his abusive boss Shabandar (Alan Rickman) by getting him to buy a fake Monet which was stolen by the Nazis. With the forger Major, they recruit cowgirl PJ Puznowski (Cameron Diaz) for the job. They take a picture of PJ with Grandma Merle (Cloris Leachman) and the fake picture hanging in their Texas trailer. Her grandfather had led the American takeover of the Nazi compound. Shabandar is not as eager as Harry had hoped as the scam drains his coffers. Shabandar brings in his private curator Martin Zaidenweber (Stanley Tucci).The Coen brothers adapted the script and it needed them to bring their vision to fruition. Everybody is doing a slightly off wacky. I'm sure the Coens would have calibrated the characters correctly but far too often, the characters come off as silly cartoons. It's rather annoying to see these characters done so badly. Watching this movie is like trying to listen to that Japanese character saying his English lines. None of it is funny and some of it can be offensive to the senses.

I really enjoyed this film. I don't understand why it got bad reviews. Some of the backlash is that it was the follow up for Firth to the King's Speech and this is not in the same league. I saw it in the movie theater. I liked it so much that I purchased it on DVD. Firth and Courtney were great together. Diaz and Firth had great chemistry. Stanley Tucci and Alan Rickman were weak links, but it was the script, not the actors. Firth was a good sport being put into humorous humiliating situations that evoke Lucille Ball in I love Lucy. The direction by Michael Hoffman could have been better. Nonetheless Firth, Courtney and Diaz made up for those deficiencies. I say See it.