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#con artists
awesomecooperlove · 6 months
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🗑️🗑️🗑️
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copperbadge · 4 months
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hi sam! do you have any recommendations for good sources of info for someone who'd like to learn more about cons and con artists? Any format is fine, books, podcasts, youtube, whatever, i'm just having a hard time finding a good source that really digs into and examines the actual techniques and 'mechanics' so to speak.
It is a little bit tough because of course most scammers are also self-embroidering liars :D And my education was very patchwork. For specifically cons and con artists (outside of art crime, which generally doesn't touch the con world directly) I'd advise starting with "Titanic Thompson: The Man Who Bet On Everything" by Kevin Cook, which is a biography of one of the early 20th century's most preeminent con men; it's a good tale but it also demonstrates the general life trajectory of con men, which can be pretty grim. Most cons end up in prison, and even those that don't or that get out tend to die poor and alone, because they can't stop scamming.
The Mark Inside by Amy Reading is one that I don't remember vividly but I did write a review of here, and I think it's another good starting place. (All the links following are to reviews I did.) If you've ever watched The Sting, which is a movie about con artists and also kind of a good primer, it's based on The Professional Thief by Edwin Sutherland, which is an anthropology of professional crime in the early 20th century. While technically it was written less by him than by an anonymous contact of his in the criminal underworld, that doesn't mean it's accurate per se; we only have that writer's word that any of it is true, so again, read skeptically.
I'd have to look up which piece it was because there's been a lot about her, but if you give Doris Payne a google she's another great example of a fascinating person who is just a giant liar. She paints a very vivid picture of her own career, but if you read about her later years you do realize that she's still conning everyone (she attempts to swindle at least one journalist working with her) and has nothing to show for her career, which may be a pack of lies to begin with. A lot of her stories have been fact checked and found wanting. I'd read up on the life of Victor Lustig as well; he's most famously known as the man who fraudulently sold the Eiffel Tower (twice) but I don't have a good biography offhand.
In your reading you will probably run across Han Van Meegeren, who forged Vermeers and ripped off the art world with them, then was tried for colluding with Nazis because he sold Nazis many "Vermeers" -- he had to paint a Vermeer while in prison to prove he'd forged the ones he sold the Nazis. This is a charming story but until very recently it was not widely noted that Van Meegeren was ABSOLUTELY A BIG NAZI HIMSELF. I was suckered by the story for years and I know most people were, so if you encounter media about him that does not include this fact, and you're interested in his story, look for newer scholarship.
There's a tangentially related book, "Where The Money Was" by Willie Sutton and Edward Linn, that is the semi-autobiography of a bank robber and it's very fun and funny, so despite not being directly about crime, I'd recommend that one.
The Napoleon Of Crime by Ben MacIntyre is a biography of the man who Moriarty was purportedly based on; it's sort of related rather than direct, but I recall enjoying it and there's a fascinating example of the VERY rare times when art heists are for a specific piece rather than for a specific goal.
There's a podcast called Scam Goddess that I found...enjoyable and informative, but also not very well-researched. In particular some of the earlier episodes are really poorly fact-checked. That said, she reads out letters from people writing in to discuss their scams and she talks about a lot of famous scam stories, so as long as you listen with the knowledge that she's neither a researcher nor an expert you should be okay.
Provenance by Laney Salisbury and Aly Sujo is what I'll close with, because it's about the interplay between art crime and con artistry, but it's also a strong argument for not valorizing cons; it's a documentation of how a couple of criminals out for nothing more than a quick buck really fucked up the entire system by which we authenticate art, and did insane levels of damage to genuine art scholarship. This isn't a little guy punching up against millionaire art collectors or fat cat museums, the way the narrative is often framed; art crime like this, involving forged or altered provenances, really harms art historians and the study of art.
I think the study of confidence crime and art crime is absolutely fascinating. There's a lot to learn about social engineering and society itself. But I think if I can impart to you one piece of wisdom, it's that con men are never, ever out for anyone but themselves and have no qualms or hesitations about hurting you to get what they want. The romance of con artistry often fools journalists and sophisticated researchers as well, so it's very easy to get swept up in it, but you should approach the entire genre with the attitude that everything you read has a 75% chance of being a charming work of total fiction.
On that note -- you may enjoy the short stories of O. Henry, some of which are about confidence men; I can't recommend specific titles but his fiction is very enjoyable generally, at least in my opinion.
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mysharona1987 · 1 year
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Herschel Walker was never so unusual. In that respect.
Say one thing in public.
Do something entirely different in your private life.
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creativenicocorner · 2 years
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The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Stupid Kid [working title]
The shenanigans, scams, crimes, and misadventures of one Amazing Maurice and a young Überwaldian runaway known to us readers as Moist von Lipwig (armed with a speedily growing list of aliases).
___〆(・∀・) What will this conniving pair get up to next?
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ChatGPT as con artist:
People love ChatGPT. People have confidence in it.
They want to use it for everything—legal work, medical advice, term papers, or even writing Substack columns...
* give people what they ask for
* don’t worry whether it’s true or not—ethical scruples aren’t part of your job
* If you get caught in a lie, serve up another lie
* always act sure of yourself— your confidence seals the deal
Ted Gioia
(h/t Kottke)
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The Company You Keep is officially my new obsession.
- It’s got a family business, of thieves/con artists, which is AWESOME
- Two hot lead actors with really hot kissing scenes
- Romance between opposing forces (a la Romeo & Juliet) who don’t KNOW they’re opposing forces (and it’s a law enforcement agent and a thief, which is my favourite kind of opposing force-romance <3)
- Milo Ventimiglia on a motorcycle..... <3<3
I am LOVING this show, so I really hope it lasts.....*crosses fingers*
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secretgamergirl · 1 month
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The latest disinformation campaign from the con artists pushing "AI" - Expanding the definition.
As a growing percentage of the population is waking up to the fact that the whole "AI" thing is some combination of outright lies, the same autocomplete function your phone has had forever, and obfuscation of the outright theft of an unfathomable amount of art, writing, contents of theoretically secure databases, etc. the newly emerging strategy to keep the world from pulling the plug on the whole thing and putting the people stealing basically every file accessible on the internet is a pivot to a defense of "well SOME uses of AI are outright criminal acts sure, but there's a lot of useful things about it to!" However, since that's... you know, not actually true, what they're actually doing is just going around pointing at literally anything cool involving computers and going "see, that's AI!"
Some of the examples I've been seeing have really just been flooring me, too. These hucksters looking for useful software to use as a shield for their scams are pointing at stuff like the basic fundamental concept of a database, AI in the sense of the routines that dictate enemy behavior in games, and even things like freaking shaders. You know, the code that gets applied to 3D models to determine whether they react to lighting realistically or look cartoon-y or whatever. There's a post going around this site right now trying to claim we wouldn't have Miles' jawline in Spiderverse if we shut down the people stealing every digital artist's portfolio to repackage and pretend a computer did it. Yeah no, putting a hand drawn looking line on the edge of a 3D character's jaw is something we've been doing for at least 30 damn years now.
Everything about these scams infuriates me, but this latest set of lies is particularly setting me off, because we're already apparently dealing with a serious problem in society where a huge number of people under the age of 25 or something are just shockingly lacking in basic computer literacy, and now we've got a bunch of con artists trying to convince them that basic math and data structures are beyond all human comprehension and possible only because of whatever goes on inside of the unknowable black box that has an honest to goodness thinking machine, which not only can't be understood, but will stop functioning if you try to stop people from committing blatant theft.
I'm honestly mostly just venting here, but for real, any time you see this sort of crap, please do your civic duty and call out how none of this stuff is "AI" and useful software has nothing to do with any of these creeps scraping every file they can off the internet.
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sigil-snoot · 10 months
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Art from Acen 2023 (Part 1) Ty everyone that stopped by! You're all awesome!
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lya-dustin · 4 months
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Inspired by what @emilykaldwen rebloged on my post.
I.E. Alys Rivers is really a con artist who gaslit, gatekept and girlbossed her way to the top
And because that sounds a lot like the best con artist in American history , Cassie Chadwick/Elizabeth Bigley, here's the similarities
Alys Rivers/Cassie Chadwick(Elizabeth Bigley) parallels
Claims to be clairvoyant (Alys who sees things in fires, Cassie was clairvoyant Madame Lydia DeVere in her first american con)
Humble beginnings (Alys was a bastard wet nurse in Harrenhal, Cassie was born Elizabeth Bigley in Canada to a railroad worker and his wife)
Claimed to be a wealthy man's bastard (Alys Lyonels daughter, Cassie, Andrew Carnegies illegitimate daughter)
Claimed connection to upperclass (Alys with the Strongs, Cassie to the Cunard Family, the Carnegies, in one con claimed her family, the Bigleys, were rich)
Had a bastard son (Aemond’s pressumed bastard, Cassie had Emil Hoover as Cassie Hoover, brothel madam)
Conned a man into a relationship (Alys possibly with Aemond, Cassie with all three of her husbands and her lovers)
People(some) believed she was who she said she was (with Lyonel and the Strongs dead, amd Aemond as well, Alys could lie and say she was a bastard Strong and married and the baby was Aemonds, Cassie fooled the Rockfellers, three banks, and most of high society with fraudulent papers until Andrew Carnegie found out about her)
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Traveler's Guide to Yesterday
Fandom: DC Comics, Flashfam, Flash Rogues
Summary: Owen is stranded in his present (a time he's never been to) while traveling through the past in search of his soul mate. He needs a con artist's help to repair his timepiece and return to the past.
Chapters: 1/?
Characters: Owen Mercer, Axel Walker, Leonard Snart, Meloni Thawne, Evan McCulloch, Mark Mardon
Relationships: Owen Mercer/Axel Walker
Additional Tags: Time Travel AU, No Powers AU, Dysfunctional Family, Boys in Love, True Love, Soulmate, Con Artists, Strangers to Lovers, Partners in Crime, Romance, Amputee Axel Walker, Not Actually Unrequited Love
Chapter One: Med Pod
I woke up in a battered med pod, which meant something had gone horribly wrong. I pressed my hand against the glass, knocking it until I heard whirring from outside the machine. The incubation fluid spilled onto the floor, making a gelatinous noise as it hit the pavement. I shivered as the cool air blew against my skin. Someone removed the breathing apparatus, and I gasped, taking in the sour taste of their oxygen. I spilled out of the machine, naked and exhausted. I couldn't see. The med pod temporarily blinded me, but I could feel and hear everything around me. "I thought you fixed the drain in the old med pod," a man asked. His voice was deep and cold. Almost detached from his present state of affairs.
"I was gonna get to it but couldn't find the right parts. Couldn't make the pieces either... Not without boiling the gestation gel and the occupants inside. Get him a towel. He's probably freezing half to death," a younger, sardonic voice commanded.
"Don't get sharp with me, Kid... And his belongings better be accounted for when he's ready to leave," the older man warned. I felt a warm, rough fabric wrap around my bare skin, and I couldn't speak to tell him thank you. The words were lost on my tongue as my heart beat quickly. "Don't worry, Kid. Your senses'll come back in a few days or so... Old machine's busted," the older man reassured.
"Give him this before he gets sick," the younger voice warned.
I felt a gloved hand slip under my chin, tilting my head upward. "Open your mouth," the older man ordered gently. I obeyed and was immediately met with the taste of orange and corn syrup. It was a disgustingly viscous fluid that made me want to puke the second I tasted it, and the older man must've sensed that because he squeezed my nostrils shut. "Swallow... Swallow." He used the same tone a parent would for a difficult child.
"He couldn't spit that up if he tried, Len," the younger one reassured him.
"Just to be safe, I'll wait until he's got it down... All the stuff we found in this old med bay, and we couldn't scavenge some of the good meds," Len complained, "Axel, all this stuff is pond sludge."
"Pond sludge that saved his life. You're the one who wanted to keep the time fugitive," Axel muttered. Len let go of my nose, and I gasped for air.
"What makes you think he's a time fugitive? He might be somebody important," Len replied in my defense.
They were both right. I was a fugitive, but not necessarily a time fugitive. I had a bad habit of looking for love in all the wrong places. Having dalliances with men in times where it was outlawed. This last time, I thought it'd be it. I thought I'd found the one. Charming. Bookish. Blonde. Rich. He was perfect, and we got along pretty well for a few months. That was until the maid caught us, and he turned on me. His father fired a shot at me. That was the last thing I remembered. Pain. He betrayed me as if I was only a simple pleasure of the flesh. I could've understood it had he not convinced me otherwise. Had he not snuck into my bed at night to whisper poems in my ear or indulge in the smoke from my mouth while I smoked. He loved me... And that made his betrayal all the more raw.
I must've lost my senses because I woke up crying. This time, I was clothed in a fabric I'd never felt before. It was strange, yet comforting. I felt the pillows around me and soughed relief. "How long has it been since you stepped foot in your own time?" Axel asked.
Time sickness. It happened whenever time travelers made a drastic jump forward. I was experiencing my memories in real time while blacking out in my present. It was a lot like hallucinating, except the moments were real. It was the mind's way of skipping like a scratched CD.
I reached for Axel in the dark, and he squeezed my hand. His hand was smooth, artificially warm. Not like a glove. I let my fingers travel to his wrist, and he pulled away. "Do you want something to eat?" Axel asked. I nodded. I still couldn't speak. He opened a container, and I could smell the savory aroma of seafood. "It's all we have right now until I can get money for the repairs I did on the shop down the street."
He placed the cup and fork in my hands, and I bit into it, screwing up my face. "Squid's the only cheap meat we can get here now... Especially in this area," Axel explained. The texture was strange, but I couldn't see it. So, I ate.
But eating made me remember. Maine in nineteen-seventy-seven. I worked in a restaurant on the shore, and he was a regular customer. I tried to shake myself free from the time, but I was too deep into the memory. I could taste the clam bake and blueberry pie. I knew he wasn't the one but ignored all the signs. I slept on his boat, kicking myself in the morning for falling into bed with him again. He was wrong, but he felt so good.
Someone punched me, and I woke up. I shook my head, still in the dark. "It's two to this bed, buddy. Try to have a memory that doesn't make me wanna take a green med pac," Axel complained. I ran a hand over my face, embarrassed and flushed from my memory. I turned on my side and tried to sleep. "You must've jumped two hundred years forward when you got shot..."
My breath caught, and I started choking. Shot. It never once occurred to me that I got hit. Axel rubbed my back until I relaxed. Fever. The time sickness shifted, and I was no longer in and out of consciousness. I'd reached the physical illness phase. Unlike most illnesses, time sickness had to run its course. There wasn't a cure for it. That's why time travelers rarely returned to their own times. The jump was enough to have a man bedridden for weeks. I shivered and violently trembled as Axel threw blankets over me. There was nothing else he could do. It had to run its course.
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awesomecooperlove · 4 months
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🤧💊⚰️
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Religion’s demand for money is reason enough to conclude they have no connection to any deity. A true religion would be an organization of divine aegis.
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incarnateirony · 1 year
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I’ve seen you mention wigglebox a couple times the last few days. Are they bad news? I thought they were team destiel.
Wigglebox got banned from my server for triangulating Jensen's colorado home. Used satellite, after trying to pretend to be investors trying to buy vacation homes didn't work, and other weird steps they did whilel I wasn't paying attention. I had made them a little hobby room to find if/where misha was during the finale and somewhere they completely lost the plot. They found mishas sisters places and like 3d toured their houses on realty and shit like it was SO out of fuckin pocket.
Wigglebox ran to a server named Andromeda, where they continued their weird stalky shit. And swore it was "to protect Jensen's address." they also insisted they found it accidentally. They accidentally looked for unique trees in his videos and accidentally swept the entire town they knew he was in by satellite to accidentally find him.
Per the linked post, Andromeda did some really shady shit during the spn finale script thing. POLOL was arranging a 25 dollar distribution with the vendor to release multiple copies anyone could buy and put us on the first issue list. But Andromeda found out we were doing that and had arranged some shady backdoor deal for a supposed second physical script for 400 (never happened) and kept trying to aggro us out of the 25 dollar deal because wigglebox REALLY wanted that script and attention.
And we were like. No??? so anyway. 2po was busy boning Kelios and Vinnie at that time, which he denies despite my pinned receipts. That whole server denies it. Why?
Because despite wigglebox swearing 2po wasn't trustable and that's why they needed THEIR script save or whatever they decided to team up, and Andromeda became Scripthunt. 2po got on the secondary distro list of the digitals and waved it around like LOOK WHAT I DID and we all rolled our eyes. OK whatever but we have the truth and guess what 2po you were wrong I was right. But meantime he boned V/K for 5K, which again, despite receipts, they deny.
But in came that group. And every big name fan that felt the end of their throne coming in the new show, every salty ass, bitter ass motherfucker lined up in there. It's not even like. Just one lane. Like. Hellers used to know better than to work with Jules, or Fangasm. Those were ones that had big warning signs stapled on them about being snakes and untrustable. (And I mean, her bad intel DID already bone 2po earlier about THE FAKE SCRIPT, because her Very Shiny Crew Badge.) Oh and the next wave there was people I banned from my server for trying to hijack admin permissions and delete shit in mine. Oh and the one bastard banned from my server for being a blatant sea lion troll that was annoying literally the entire server for months on end.
Like. Aborddeimpala? Makes great gifs. But hard anti. They're trying to play the moderate "OH NO WE CAN ALL JUST GET ALONG" like it's 2011 again. And like. no. the show was made to get rid of a bunch of those people.
Anyway, that's also where a lot of my targeted hate comes from, it's all directed out of that server. They refuse to back off even when proven wrong on the pilot or anything else, 2po just shifts new lies and narratives and pumps it through the scripthunt server while wringing money out of people to send their buddies to cons free, even with gold passes. "for autos, for charity" that see a sliver of it back. And idk why gold is included. silver autos are the same. Also why they attack me so hard for freely distributing scripts. It really fucks their game up.
Almost like. Wait for it. The entire origin of that server is shady snakes, clout seekers, stalkers, aggros, antis, bitters, and people with major agendas that are forming their final stand of relevance as the self proclaimed guardians of old scripts. That's ... basically who makes the place. Fangasm wants to stay relevant. Superwiki wants to stay relevant. And even with her badge and bajillion followers her traction isn't really even higher than mine. And that pisses them off. Fangasm doesn't have jared to uwu at now. Like. I could just go on and on and on breaking down how it's a toxic installation of fandom old BNFs that just don't want to go irrelevant in the new fandom.
And, again, another reason they attack my SPNWIN leaks so hard. Because they realized they got left in the past and their coffee runner Wiki has shittier, older access than what I found. And I knew, when that server sent THE ENTIRE FANDOM AT ME SCREAMING IT WAS FAKE, it was wrong, both cuz the draft stamps and, you know, I HAD THE OLDER DRAFTS AND ARENAS. But reality didn't matter to them. They just wanted to beat down the people ahead of them in the information game, the people giving out stuff free instead of giving them money or convention rides for it.
THAT'S what that fuckin server is.
So yeah. Wigglebox is a FUCKING problem.
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stardustpinkart · 2 months
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Is anyone else getting a bunch of messages in there Inbox pleading for donations for various things? Cancer, isulin, operations, etc etc?
It sounds like a con to me and there as rapidly occuring at the mo as spambots. I just wanted to know if anyone else was getting these? Im 99 percent sure there fakes.
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brokenspring · 1 year
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Funny story
Funny story:  Crustaceans cannot predict the future.  Stop falling for it.
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nix-whythisfilm · 11 months
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Brilliant Con Artists in Indian Movies
Dolly Ki Doli (2015)
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We all only hear of girls being money diggers by sceptical mothers and mothers-in-law, but the main character in this film made it her profession and got a kick out of it. Starring Sonam Kapoor as Dolly, the girl running marriage scams in the towns of North India, it entails her getting married to potentially well-off boys and then running away with valuables on the first night of their marriage. From wealthy landlord families to simple-minded business owners, she loots them all and disappears with her fake family. When a police officer catches up to her antics after a few prominent families, he plans to set a trap for her to fall into.
A fresh idea for the serious commitment that marriage is believed to be in India, this film was entertaining to the end of how she played her part well. While Sonam Kapoor is not well received through her work, this film was exemplary with a few other films. The idea was novel to me when it was released, I nevertheless believe it is easy to get away with a similar scam, as marriage is a sensitive and elaborate process between families with not many serious qualifications needed. While it is a light-hearted film about a charming con girl, marriage scams are authentic leaving its victims with serious consequences.
Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl (2011)
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One of my first films on con artists, this film too glorifies the illegal profession. With Ranveer Singh as the lead, we first see him scamming a girl to fall in love with him while convincing her father to buy his property from a fake owner. We then see him run a painting scam with a businesswoman, only for her to get conned by him. In her rage at being fired, the businesswoman teams up with other women conned by the same man and plans revenge to get back their money.
Having presented the same topic in college, I stand by my statement, that India is one of the top ten on a list of countries with the most frauds and scams. This movie was charming, convincing us of how good-looking he was that we almost forgave him for his crimes. But in reality, this film, however unintentional, glorified the actions of a con artist. It was one of my favourite films to rewatch, and it still is, not just for the story but for the empowered victims and gave them a course of action. While the tactics are hard to replicate in reality, the film is still entertaining.
Players (2012)
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Another classic in this list, this film has a brilliant execution of their elaborate plan of subjective justice for their lives. Initially planning to steal gold with a unique team of individuals, the film spins out of trajectory when their plan goes unfinished. The film then picks off from a different perspective, and with every turn in the movie we zoom out to see that there was a bigger picture than the one we saw before and believed. The film was mindblowing with the nuances added to the plot that made it gripping every single time, and with stereotypes that were not all that unique but still had humane characters.
Having a specific aesthetic through the direction and actors that were skilled and very specific to the character roles, this film is entertaining and compelling until the very end. Being over a decade old, it might initially seem cliche for today’s standard and yet it has a timeless value repetitively ingrained throughout. The film focuses heavily on loyalty and doing right by what is morally expected of someone, even though it is a conflicting topic in this genre of the film. ‘Players’ was thrilling with a sense of humour while keeping us on the edge of our seats on what could unravel next.
Vaastu Prakara (2014)
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One of the first films by Rakshith Shetty, this film is a bag of laughs and drama. While conning is not the leading theme here, it is ruled by romance and them deceiving one family for their own reasons. Two men come together for a profession deeply dependent on faith and indigenous science, though their beliefs are inconsistent for the same. With a job that brings romance to one and work to do for both, they both go on a trial of their skills.
With seasoned actors like Ananth Nag and Sudha Rani, this film is an amusing punch. It is easily a family watch despite the romance and the humour. It also highlights the generational gap most people experience with their parents and children. With a controversial director, this film had its fans and critics having unique opinions, but I’d like to point out they only presented a perspective, not the reality.
Roy (2015)
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Creating enormous buzz when it came out, this film was a paradox to the audience until someone dissected the storyline to make it sensible. With enchanting directions and captivating actors playing enigmatic characters, the storyline makes sense but somehow leaves a vital dot that needs to be connected that suddenly makes sense in the very end. It starts with a story of an art thief falling in love and changing his direction with another parallel of a filmmaker who meets a captivating woman and connects with her. The rest of the film takes us on a journey that none of us can predict.
With its enchanting music, dreamy visuals and ensnaring plotline, this film is one for an evening that requires contemplation on the experience it was. While the story is not original or unique, the narration and direction of the story makes it distinctive. Somewhat appearing to break the fourth wall of the cinema, this film gives a perspective peek into the lives of the storytellers we regularly consume from.
Special 26 (2013)
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Based on a real story, this film entails the time of individuals fraudulently posing as government officers and raiding corrupt politicians and local businessmen. Getting away with it was the easy part, with them being quickly followed and chased by the legal government officials, fleeing them in minutes and having a solid system. It was based on the heist in 1987, where they even interviewed the people for the heist, making it seem like they were actual officers, involving real police authorities for support during the raids.
This film was an enormous success in the theatres and the television when it was released, well-known for the story and the work of prominent actors. While the film seems like an adaptation of a Robin Hood figure, taking black money from corrupt individuals, the money does not flow out to the people as the original story goes. The brilliant execution of the raids, the plot twists and the stunning performance by the actors are unmatched. With a very Indian touch to the film theme and the art of conning being perceptible from the beginning, this film is exceptional.
Drive (2019)
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With distinctively bad ratings, this film is a good watch for the first time. Starring Sushanth Singh Rajput and a few other stars from Bollywood, it was refilmed several times to fit into the genre of OTT Platforms. The film starts with a buzz, a corrupt politician hiding her money in the Rastrapathi Bhavan only to hear rumours that it could be stolen by the “King”. With steep conflicts and two officers dispatched to dissolve this situation, the film pans to a group of individuals dabbling in illegal car racing who encounter another mysterious character who offers help with everything and nothing.
With innumerable plot twists and characters revealing their identities layer by layer, this film is mind-boggling and undeniably fictional. The film is like a meld of Dhoom and the Race series, with cliche themes of adrenaline pump and complex characters coming together for the impossible. While the mix is not invalid, somehow the film does not pack the punch either series did. The chase is thrilling, and this film is absolutely recommended to people who love the adrenaline rush. The car races are the icing of the film.
Operation Alamelamma (2017)
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A truly underrated gem from the Kannada film industry, this film was hilarious with an excellent plan that was successfully executed. The film starts with a simple man who casually picks up a luggage bag on the street only to get hauled into a kidnapping case making him the prime suspect. Claiming to have picked the bag out of curiosity, the man ends up on a road trip with the police officials scrambling to find the son of a businessman. The story has flashbacks and unique characters, everything coming together in the end with an unimaginable tale.
I was enamoured by this film, not having seen anything like this in any other films of any language. The characters not being con artists in reality, the film is ingenious and out of the ordinary. With nearly all the actors being underrated, the reception was limited amongst the audiences with barely any fame, making it a hidden jewel. The language and setting are local to South Indians and could be a fresh perspective to the prospective global audience. Having very down-to-earth characters and a story that leaves us speechless, this film is like no other.
Race series (2008, 2013,2018)
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The first Race film was groundbreaking setting standards high in the con artists and heist experts genre of films, with the second film surpassing the first film with the buzz created. With nearly terrible ratings for the third film, I promptly ignored its existence while rewatching the first two. The film mafia groups, complex familiaes with hidden crimes and agendas, and a plottwist to leave us all in shock. The first film came with a lot of twists and turns, mostly involving family drama between two ambitious brothers. The second film features one of the said brothers and he many heists he gets involved in with a very well-known business tychoon to make money.
Being very young when I first watched both the films, the adrenaline rush and the exciting plot left me entalled in its brilliance. Having rewatched it recently, I can certainly find plenty of faults in the films, but nonetheless, it is fast paced and takes us on a race to the end with the exhilaring story. The films are creative thats for sure, but the characters never seem to evolve which is both good and bad for the story. Race was always a classic in this genre of films, with con artists living the best life while also having incredible music, and each of their entrances with alluring romances.
Dhoom series (2004, 2006, 2013)
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If anything could beat the Race series in its brilliance, its these three films. While the Race series highlighted the cons and the heists from the perspective of the con artists, these three films takes a wider shot including the storyline of the infamous two cops in the three films while also letting us in on the con artists lives behind the crimes. The thieves here are called just the ame and pan out from just India to South and North America with the crimes being greater than the one featured before.
The first film involves heists that are local but frustrating enough to the police officials who are unable to catch them on their own, having to bring in special officers to deduce the mind of this unique crime group. The second film however brings in an artistic persective to the tale with the con artist not just being excellant at his job, but also being a master of disguises. The last film involves Aamir Khan taking the stage as a circus entertainer, brought by his father in the same profession sworn to revenge for a bitter past and brilliant plans for the American Banks.
The plots were incredible, unique to each con artist and with endings that are unpredictable every time. The films have stayed imprinted on my mind from a young age, and while it glorifies the crime it also show us the incredible amount of commitment and hardwork that actualy goes behind it. With visuals that blow our minds and avant-garde technology, the films are sure to blow our minds and leave us reeling for more.
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