A classic Crime movie
This a movie that doesn't rely on special effects or a lot of action, instead it relies on a good story, excellent acting, combined with good directing. We have Paul Newman and Robert Redford showing why they were the top actors of their day.
The film is set during the Great Depression, in the beginning we have Johnny Hooker who pulls a con on an unsuspecting victim. The victim however was a courier for the local crime boss, oops. The courier and Johnny's partner are killed on the crime boss's orders so Johnny heads to Chicago as quick as he can.
There he finds Henry Gondorff, someone that can teach him the next level of the con game. The two of them team up and gather a crew in order to really teach the crime boss a lesson by taking him for a large amount of money.
The con they decide to pull is known as "the wire" something that hasn't been used for a while and only the old timers have performed it before. They need a decent crew to create a phony betting parlour, this is important as they manage to convince a local bookie that they have a connection in the Western Union office who will allow them to win bets by past-posting, i.e. betting after the race is run.
The crime boss has managed to track Hooker to Chicago, it is here that he is met by undercover FBI agents who are after Gondorff. The FBI agents believe that they can use Hooker to get to Gondorff. The crime boss still has his associates looking for Hooker, they aren't having much luck. The crime boss insists that his best assassin Salino is now given the task of eliminating Hooker.
The first past-post bet wins, this results in the crime boss agreeing to put to $500K on the next bet. Meanwhile the FBI have managed to get Hooker and he if forced to betray Gondorff.
The night before the sting Hooker meet a local waitress, he spends the night with her and next morning as she is walking towards him she is shot dead by someone that was following Hooker. It turns out she is the hired assassin.
The crime boss receives the tip to "place in on Lucky Dan", so he races to the betting parlour and places a bet on Lucky Dan to win. This is when we find out that there was a mistake made, the bet should have been for the horse to place NOT win. The crime boss rushes the teller and demands his money back.
It is at this point that the FBI rush in, they confront Gondorff, and thank Hooker for his help. Hooker is free to go, and enraged Gondorff shoots Hooker, the FBI then shoot Gondorff. The crime boss and his bookie friend leave the scene as far too many questions are likely to be asked.
Once the crime boss is gone, both Hooker and Gondorff rise, the FBI agents were also con men and part of the sting.
This is one of those movies where we don't see all the angles until the end, e.g. that the FBI agents were part of the crew. So if you like a movie with a few surprises, this could be for you.