Impressive Con Artistry

"Lie, cheat, steal, rinse, repeat."

This appropriate tagline, from the new movie "Matchstick Men," encapsulates the life of Roy, played by Nicolas Cage. A successful con artist plagued by phobias and obsessive-compulsive disorder, his life and business become even harder to control when he learns that he is the father of a 14-year-old girl.

Roy works with his equally adept colleague Frank (Sam Rockwell). The movie reveals several of their clever ways to manipulate people out of their money. In the middle of one of their biggest swindles, Roy learns of his daughter Angela's existence during a session with a psychiatrist and plans a meeting with her.

The reunion of a psychiatrically imbalanced con artist and his teenage daughter allows for many comedic elements in a movie whose plot would not traditionally have them. Angela, played by (Alison Lohman), pries into his life and even gets him to show her some of the basics of his livelihood.

"Matchstick Men" is somewhat of an uncharacteristic movie for producer Ridley Scott. His most popular work of recent years includes "Gladiator" and "Black Hawk Down." His newest movie is quite a leap from the action-driven movies of his past.

However, the role of one "in need of professional help" is not an unfamiliar one to Cage. He won an Oscar in 1995 for his role as suicidal alcoholic Ben Sanderson in "Leaving Las Vegas." Last year, Cage was nominated again for his role as Charlie and Donald Kaufman in "Adaptation." While Charlie was not exactly suffering from any specific disorder, he was not stable either. The unstable protagonist seems to be a role Cage has a taste for.

Along with the comedic elements, "Matchstick Men" also defies the traditional professional thief movie with a heavy dose of morality, namely the importance of family. As Roy spends more time with his daughter, he begins to want a different life for himself in order to be a better role model for her.

The plot of the movie begins to take some serious turns when Roy follows through with his plan to leave the life of crime. In the final stretch of the movie, much of what the audience thought about the characters and where the plot was leading changes.

In the unexpected ending, the movie's true aim at deception hits the target dead-on, thanks to a couple interesting plot twists. Also as a result of the twists, the movie's plot is not without a hole or two.

However, the performances of Nicholas Cage and Alison Lohman are impressive enough for the movie to be entertaining and worthwhile. Beyond the acting, the movie has laugh-out loud comedy sequences in several scenes.

If these are the kinds of things that viewers enjoy in a movie, "Matchstick Men" can be added to their list of films to view. It is enjoyable and lively for the entire two hours of its running time.