Nicolas Cage is a bad actor, in my opinion. He plays the same person, normally, in every movie he has appeared in. Though this is a problem, he can break the mold occasionally (Raising Arizona, Windtalkers). In Matchstick Men, Nicolas Cage had his best performance as a phobic con artist Roy Waller.
The former and his “trainee” (Sam Rockwell) are about to crack on a scam that involves some heavy problems that could come their way, but when Roy’s daughter Angela (Alison Lohman), whom he didn’t even know about, shows up, those problems begin to start up in a very dynamic way, and eventually, Roy questions his own occupation, and if he should settle with Angela and be there and be happy.
Best Aspects: Nicolas Cage is great for the first time like ever, and so is the ensemble cast. The writing, based on the great book by the great author Eric Garcia (The Repossession Mambo (Repo Men)) that was adapted by Nick and Ted Griffin, and the direction by Ridley Scott, were both beautifully done.
Bottom Line: A. Good movie, one of Ridley’s better ones. I don’t know why he doesn’t do more movies like this (maybe because A Good Year failed so bad).