Sharper

A film about confidence tricks, set in New York. The structure is divided into sections, each named after a character. The first shows Tom, who works in a bookshop, and Sandra, who takes an interest in him. Then the film rewinds and tells the same events from someone else's point of view. In each section what the previous one was changes. The idea is that the material of a con is not money but the story the other person wants to believe. The characters sell each other an identity, and the audience buys the same story. At the centre is a very wealthy family, and all the plans lead there. Julianne Moore, Sebastian Stan, Justice Smith and Briana Middleton lead. Benjamin Caron directed; he comes from television and this is his first feature. It was shown directly on a streaming service. A brisk example for anyone who likes con films and narratives constructed like puzzles. For a viewer looking for depth of character, the film is interested in the mechanism; the people stand as parts of the structure and the ending is predictable.