Gambit is a 2012 comedy about an art curator who 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.
Every once in awhile it’s good to sort of tune out a bit and a let a simple breezy comedy do its magic, and if you happen to find one with a fun cast and a good sense of humor about it, well, all the better. Enter 2012’s Michael Hoffman-directed crime caper Gambit, a remake (of course) of the 1966 film of the same name starring Shirley MacLaine and Michael Caine. The story goes that British art curator Harry Deane (Colin Firth) is none to happy with his nasty boss Lord Shabandar (Alan Rickman), so takes to a plan to con him into buying a fraudulent work of art. To do this, he enlists some help, including the lovely rodeo queen PJ Puznowski (Cameron Diaz), the granddaughter of the soldier responsible for capturing none other than notorious Nazi Hermann Göring in 1945, who he explains had a hand in plundering such art. Now, with all the players in place, can the gig trick the master? It’s a silly farce with expected results but both Firth and Diaz make for a surprisingly fun on screen duo, giving this light comedy lots of energy. Diaz has always been best when she’s making us laugh and does so here very well.
THE LAST WORD
Easy and breezy, this is a perfect movie for simple light escapism. Great fun from the leads help keep this afloat.
Not too challenging, it is definitely not a film made for keeping you on your toes. Silly plotting and pratfalls will keep this at bay for those looking for something with greater depth.