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CRIMINAL

"Just Desserts"

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What You Need To Know:

CRIMINAL is a remake of an Argentine movie about two con men in Los Angeles, Richard and Rodrigo, who stumble upon a scheme to sell a forged copy of a rare 1878 Monroe Silver Certificate to a shady businessman who’s being deported. Rodrigo has lots of reasons not to trust the older Richard, who is very slick and amoral. Of course, things don’t go smoothly, and Richard finds himself having to bet all of his savings on the Hannigan fraud. He even agrees to drop a lawsuit against his sister that’s preventing her and his brother, Michael, from getting any of their dead mother’s money.

Like the original, CRIMINAL is a sly caper movie that’s also a character study. Richard is an oily, suave swindler. In the first part of the movie, he takes Rodrigo under his wing, showing him how to do bigger cons. A series of amusing plot twists keeps the action moving, yet CRIMINAL doesn’t really rebuke the lying, cheating and stealing in the story. This remake is edited more tightly, but it loses the original’s spontaneity. The older con man still gets his well-deserved comeuppance in the final reel, however.

Content:

(Pa, B, LLL, V, S, A, D, MM) Pagan worldview in story about confidence games, with moral element where one man gets his comeuppance; 60 obscenities including many “f” words, three strong profanities and three light profanities; light violence includes robber holds gun on men, scuffles and men chase thief; man apparently forces sister to fornicate with older man, but no sex scenes shown; no nudity; alcohol use; smoking; and, man poses as policeman and cheating, lying and stealing not really rebuked.

GENRE: Drama/Caper Movie

More Detail:

CRIMINAL is a remake of a 2000 Argentine movie, NINE QUEENS about a day in the life of two con artists.

In the remake, an older con artist in Los Angeles named Richard Gaddis takes under his wing a young Mexican con artist, Rodrigo. After teaching the boy a few of his tricks, Richard gets an urgent call from his sister, Valerie, that one of Richard’s former partners, Ochoa, has gotten ill at the hotel where she works after causing a scene trying to see a VIP guest, William Hannigan. She doesn’t want any con artists lurking around her hotel and asks Richard to help Ochoa leave.

Richard and Rodrigo enter the room where Ochoa is waiting for the paramedics. Ochoa tells them about his scheme to sell Hannigan a counterfeit of a rare 1878 Monroe Silver Certificate. Richard and Rodrigo agree to help Ochoa pass off the counterfeit to Hannigan, who must leave the country by the next morning because his visa has expired. Of course, things don’t go smoothly, and Richard finds himself having to bet all of his savings on the Hannigan fraud. He even has to agree to drop a lawsuit against his sister that’s preventing her and his brother, Michael, from getting any of their dead mother’s money.

Like the original, CRIMINAL is a sly caper movie that’s also a character study. Richard is an oily, suave swindler. In the first part of the movie, he takes the younger Rodrigo under his wing, showing him how to do bigger cons. Rodrigo never fully trusts Richard, however. A series of amusing plot twists keeps the action moving, but CRIMINAL doesn’t really rebuke the lying, cheating and stealing in the story. This remake is edited more tightly, but it loses the original’s spontaneity. The older con man still gets his well-deserved comeuppance in the final reel, however.

Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.

What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.

You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.

Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.


Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.

What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.

You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.

Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.