Grifters, Cons and Three Piece Suits

Sometimes you just can't recreate the fun and the style that is intertwined in so many great old-school films. This past Saturday night, in between eating dinner and getting ready to go out for the night, I happened to catch a great film that I had never seen before, The Sting directed by George Roy Hill and written by David S. Ward in 1973. I should have known it was going to be a great film when I saw that Paul Newman and Robert Redford were staring in it and I was not let down. Redford and Newman play two Grifters that are famous for their cunning cons they set up on unsuspecting "marks" and the film revolves around one massive con they play in Chicago. In the same classically cool way that Clooney and Pitt pull of amazing heists in the Oceans 11 movies, Redford and Newman craft a genius plan to con a shady banker out of one million bucks. I wont give away any more of the plot but there are some great twists and turns and even though some of them are predictable, some of them keep you guessing. Aside from being a great film, the style exhibited by Newman and Redford is impeccable. You dont see either of the characters in anything but three piece suits and tuxedos the whole time. Pretty much, the film made me wish we still lived in a time when every gentleman always sported such attire. In one scene in particular Redford heads into a local dive at about 3 in the morning after a long night and is wearing a blue three piece suit but without the tie, leaving his top collar undone a couple of buttons. You cant beat a great film with amazing, classical style. Check it out, The Modern Gentleman definitely endorses this classic film. Oh yea, I forgot to mention the 7 Oscars this picture took home!