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Flawless? Not Quite, but it is certainly a little heist gem. This year, with so far a fairly disappointing turnout of high calibre movies, a very narrow niche has been reinvigorated. That little slice of the celluloid pie (mmmm, sounds good) belongs to the British heist flick. With The Bank Job, and now with Flawless, this could mark the beginning of a revamp of all capper films to follow. Or at least we can hope.

Directed by Michael Radford, who has had little mainstream acknowledgment, (save perhaps the star studded Merchant of Venice) makes his shove into the limelight with a film although never destined to make the big bucks, hopefully at least will be sought out by some. Similarly to The Bank Job, Flawless concentrates more on atmosphere and character development then flashy drawn out robbery sequences, although that can most defiantly be rewarding, as seen in The Italian Job. The opening sequence is a hybrid of Blood Diamond and Lord of War, showing the journey of a diamond from a muddy African field to a throne atop a ladies dainty finger. This film has similar political views to that of Blood Diamond, and such morals are imbedded into multiple facets of the story. It also has elements of Pay it Forward, numerous cat and mouse thrillers, even a scene reminiscent of the opening monologue of Titanic. But as such, Flawless never rips of any of these films, and instead, combines a number of classic elements to create a riveting and original picture.

Most heist films either follow a straightforward narrative, where we follow key characters as they assemble their teams, and carry out the theft or, the other broad characterization is to opt for a scattered chronology, beginning with the hero in prison, where their fate is (sometimes) certain. Flawless manages to incorporate wisps' of both these narrative flows, and is better off because of it. Set in 60's London, we meet Michael Caine, who plays janitor "Mr Hobbs", a 15-year veteran employee of the largest supplier of diamonds at the time, The London Diamond Corporation. Still coping with the loss of his wife, he recruits the help of American Laura Quinn (Demi Moore), who is a sour senior administrator; sour because she has been passed up for promotion one too many times. (In addition to the fact that she learns she will be terminated shortly) Using their opposite shift work and positions to their advantage, they plan to steal enough diamonds to live their lives out in comfort.

Demi Moore has never been much of an actress, but despite her slipping English accent, she gives probably her best performance to date, fading into her role, and for once, playing a character that looks their age. The problem with her character is not with Moore's performance but with how she is presented; unsympathetic and shrill. She always seems unwilling and bitchy, which could be partly due to the stark contrast between Moore and her male counterpart's composure and cool. That "male" of course being Michael Caine, who is solid as always and makes for a very atypical criminal which is part of the films charm. He is sweet, old and can barely walk, but his history (which does not include training for a career in janitorial work) makes him a formidable foe. We get nice supporting work from the always devilish Lambert Wilson, who we all remember as The Merovingian from The Matrix Reloaded, as the internal investigator and from Joss Ackland as one of London Diamond's heads and who is a powerfully menacing figure. (He played Arjen Rudd, the evil African diplomat in Lethal Weapon II)

Flawless has a good feel for the times, in reference to the setting, clothing, dialogue, etc. The inevitable twist that is associated with almost all heist films stands alone in its uniqueness, which you will have to see to truly understand why it is different. Director Radford gives us some powerful sequences; one which perfectly captures the political intentions of the film involves Michael Caine's character tossing one of the largest cut diamonds in the world into a bin of tiny uncut stones, which the executives wouldn't floss their teeth with. It is a vivid reminder of what diamonds really are, and what we are willing to give and do for such.

Destined to be a ghost in the theatres, this is definitely a film to scrounge for on DVD shelves. Presenting emotionally charged and involving performances and extracting a blind-siding twist from a source which I though must have been drained years ago, Flawless is a solid and intellectually stimulating movie experience.

View all my reviews at Simon Says Movie Reviews: www.simonsaysmovies.blogspot.com

"Flawless" is a very unusual heist film. While this is generally a wonderful genre with MANY great caper pictures (such as "Rififi", "Oceans Eleven", "Grand Slam" and "Bob le Flambeur"), it's also a genre that seems to have little in the way of twists to make newer heist films worth seeing. With "Flawless" they managed to come up with a dandy twist...making it yet another lovely heist film worth your time.

When the story begins, Laura (Demi Moore) is an elderly woman in the present day being interviewed by a reporter about her extraordinary career. It seems that back in the 1950s, Laura was a real groundbreaker...an executive in the diamond industry in London when other women only became secretaries. But the interview goes in a way the reporter didn't suspect when Laura admits that long, long ago she was involved in a huge diamond robbery...one for which she managed never to be caught. Now, with the statute of limitations behind her, she's about to tell her story.

It seems that in the 1950s, Laura is a very talented and capable executive with London Di, a huge diamond firm. But again and again and again, men are being advanced to upper management and she has come to realize she has hit the so-called 'glass ceiling' and because she was a woman, she'd never go any further. This is rough....but imagine how frustrated she becomes when the company janitor, Hobbs (Michael Caine), tells her that he read a letter in the CEO's office...and it said that they were going to fire her and blackball her in the industry!

Why would Hobbs tell Laura this? Well, after showing her a copy of the letter, he lets her in on his plan...to rob the vault of many millions of pounds worth of gems. And, with her being angry and hurt, she reluctantly agreed to help. What's next? See the film.

There were some very good performances in this movie. Joss Acklund is wonderful as the soulless CEO....a vicious and imposing figure that few other living actors would be able to play well. Moore is also very good....and gave a much better performance than usual because she was given excellent material. And, well, Michael Caine is Michael Caine! Fine acting all around in this one.

So is the film worth seeing? Absolutely. But I must warn you....folks with short attention spans, teenagers and children or folks who need explosions and boobs instead of plot might not enjoy this picture. But I thought it was terrific...and I do like how it managed to make you feel no sorry for the victims (after all, the whole blood diamond angle is alluded to in the film) and breathe new life into the genre. My only quibble, and it's a minor one, is that Moore's character seems a bit wishy-washy about the robbery late in the movie...something I would have preferred hadn't been in the story.

I cannot, however, for the life of me understand why the film only has a paltry 6.8 average currently on IMDB...it's much better than that.

Flawless is a charming, tense, and nicely executed caper movie.

I had absolutely no idea how the robbery was done until the revelation: and, like most of us, I have watched enough heist movies to quickly go "Yup, got it!", more often than not, but not here.

Excellent understated performances from Demi Moore and Michael Caine, especially in the small facial gestures when stressed and so on. The settings etc; all add to a nice retro feel. You really get a sense that they tried hard to build the 1960s into this - very buttoned-down, very regimented, a very male world.

One of the major attractions for us was that the sense of pace builds slowly - and compared to the Bank Job I have to say this is the better movie.

All in all a clever, entertaining film, with a good script and very nice central performances, and even a human message.

Definitely recommended

I recall some woefully erroneous movie critic writing about Michael Caine in the late 1960s that Caine was the sort of actor whose career would have three brief stages: 1. Get me Michael Caine; 2. Get me a Michael Caine type; 3. Who is Michael Caine? Needless to say, that movie critic is now long gone and forgotten, while Michael Caine has simply gotten better and better, aging like fine wine. This is not a big "message" movie, or a huge budget extravaganza, but rather it is an extremely well-made and entertaining and suspenseful crime film with very human characters you can really care about. It is set in 1960 England, in which Caine, a janitor, attempts a spectacular robbery of precious jewels. With the able support of Demi Moore, in one of her best performances, and the fine direction of Michael Radford, and a wonderful attention to the little details that make a film so much better, FLAWLESS is very much worth the price of admission. And Mr. Caine, with his finely nuanced performance, a man who can make a glance or a subtle movement speak more than a ton of histrionics by lesser actors, is topping the bill. Need I say more?

This is a well done film with Michael Caine and the not so young Demi Moore. Regardless of their ages, the depth of the characters puts together a timid plot to make an enjoyable film, with a feel good film/ story. Okay for a night to replace boredom with small laughing outbursts on the quirkiness of subtle underlying jokes. It is a slow movie to begin, and is so through out the rest of it, but it does it in such a way to continue the growing curiosity and find out the sum of the show from the small twists and plays of the storyline. It is mostly the lovable character (Caine) that keeps the viewer involved so deeply in the story, also his lost but not forgotten past. It leads to a cliché ending but still very acceptable in my view. And the actor whom plays Mr.Finch also plays the Merovingian from The Matrix. A small plus to see his acting career develop and hopefully become more mainstream.

2 things that i want to comments here. 1st : Brilliant story. 2nd : No sex scenes. (Great to have this movie). Opening of this movie was attracted me very good with 50's background music playing along, so curious. All actors & actress role acting very solid. Me just keep on thinking how a lot of diamond can be disappear a few hours. But only one things that look not so natural was during Laura Quinn old. Her eyes look so fresh!!!..... Anyway it was a really really great story. I suggest you people out there recommend this movie very much. You will know how much your money can by. I would like to give seven out of ten for this brilliant story.

A reporter comes to interview Laura Quinn (Demi Moore) as a woman manager in a man's world from the old days. Laura pulls out a giant diamond and retells the story of when she stole it back in 1960 London. Laura is frustrated as the lone female executive at London Diamond Corporation having been passed over yet again. Hobbs the janitor (Michael Caine) approaches her with a plan to steal some diamonds from the vault. When Hobbs takes the plan to an unexpected way, insurance investigator Finch (Lambert Wilson) is suspicious and Laura is trapped.

Demi Moore always speaks deliberately with a smoky voice and I don't mind her British accent. Director Michael Radford has created a good sense of an era but the caper lacks a certain energy or power. It's a slow moving film where Michael Caine shows his brilliance. He is very convincing in every word he speaks. It's a little film that is well made enough. The caper is simplistic and has the feel of the truth.

Everything works in this movie : The direction, the acting, the shooting, the story and the script - one commentators claimed that it was limited and one dimensional but it is quite on the contrary : the script was written very elegantly with quite a lot of subtelties and these would probably be missed by those who are used the usual wham bahm great Hollywood films.

The only (small) flaw in the film was its so called "feministic" flavour, it was completely unnecessary - any, if all, "politically correct messages", would have been understood from the story itself - there was no need to shove it in the audience face.

All in all this movie is intelligent, interesting and exciting. I highly recommend it.

In full, adorable Cockney glory, Michael Caine plays a janitor in Flawless. He works in for London Diamonds, and he's a reliable staple in the building—no one would ever suspect he'd do anything wrong. One day, he approaches Demi Moore—whose British accent isn't nearly as adorable or believable—and asks if she wants to be a part of a robbery he's planning. She's the only female executive and doesn't get the credit she's due, so he figures she's angry enough to take what she's earned.

Let's face it, without Michael Caine, this would be a mediocre heist movie. You might not even be rooting for the leads. But Michael Caine is in the movie, so you've got someone completely likable and charming to root for. While most heist movies are filmed in a lightweight style, with flashy cuts, upbeat music, and bright colors, this one is on the darker side. It's set in the sixties, so director Michael Radford filmed in deep, saturated colors and reflected the gloomy weather of London by using lots of darks and grays. It's a new and welcome change to the heist genre, and it makes all the difference in turning Flawless into a classy film.

I just watch this movie last night and let me say that I thought the movie was terrific. Since the movie hasn't even premiered in the US or Europe, I was hesitated because there were no reviews at all out there. But I'm glad to say that I enjoyed every minute of it.

The story is set in the 1960s, so don't expect the heist to be high-tech or complicated like the Ocean's series, Entrapment or The Italian Job. The real gem in the movie is the way it explains itself, all in good timing - it's nice to see a movie that still makes its viewers guessing.

Demi Moore and Michael Caine did a good job, and so is the supporting characters, played by Lambert Wilson and Joss Ackland. I am surprised however that Demi Moore can carried the whole movie, she was practically almost in every scene, and she proved that given the right material, she can make the viewers empathize with her. I certainly felt cheated, nervous and uneasy during the last half of the film, just like her character did.

If you appreciate a smart, subtle and entertaining movie, this is the movie for you. I highly recommend it!

It's a charming and entertaining story. I would have rated it higher but I just can't get past the heist itself. The details, though interesting, are just too far fetched to be believable. The very foundation of the storyline is the film's one glaring flaw.

It is good to see Demi Moore in a role that seems a bit more interesting and also takes her more seriously as an actress. She plays Lara Quinn who is a female manager at the London Diamond Bank set in 1960 London. Under-appreciated and disgruntled, she is being passed over and over again for promotion for male colleagues less talented than her. When she gets advice from the night time cleaner Mr Hobbs (Michael Caine) who knows a lot more than he lets on to everyone, he offers her a deal: to steal all the diamonds in the safe and share the benefits between them. So as the tagline says 'he had a scheme, she had a motive'.

First of all, Demi's British accent is well...passable, but then she is playing an American who lived in London. I accepted that, but then you can't help but wonder if they added that line in just to cover that up. But she is a sympathetic character that you feel sorry for. Michael Caine gives a solid performance though I have to admit I had a bit of trouble hearing some of his lines - his accent is a bit heavy in this and there were no subtitles on the DVD. But it is funny to see two unlike characters team up to do this deed, but it makes it more fun since it is two people the whole company would least likely suspect.

There is also a political aspect to the film, and it's through the last third of the film you start to feel the tension for the characters. What I should mention is that this feels more like a movie played on a quiet Sunday, so don't expect big action scenes or over the top thrilling mystery music that occurs in a lot of these films. It is simply a clever story told with subtlety that actually adds a lot to the tension halfway.

I felt myself caring for Demi's character and she is playing someone who is her own age, which is good. I almost forgot this was Demi Moore, being used to seeing her in more modern films such as Ghost or horrible movies such as Striptease, to the excellent Mr Brooks. And she does her best. I actually think her being an American who immigrated to London gives her character some weight and she is very classy in this.

It is fun and with two charismatic leads, you really root for them in this story. If you never liked Demi Moore, well this might change your mind about her as an actress.

At last a decent thriller this year. Flawless it's been a good surprise from beginning to end. Is a thriller with all substance and no flash. There's no tricks, characters and their relationship are really good developed. You understand them, their motives to rob and also their doubts and the most important, you understand how they do it. No tricks, no James Bond gadgets which solve every issue.

The story is truly believable. Also are the characters. Michael Cain (janitor)as usual fills the scene just with his presence. Demi Moore is in one of her best, probably her best, role and performance (and I'm not a big fan at all of her). The screenplay and dialogues are brilliant. The plot is very well knitted and the final twist is different, refreshing.

Is like to be watching a good movie from the 60's. No doubt, I recommend this movie to those who like real thrillers.

7.5/10

If you are looking for car chases, kidnappings, and violence- you won't like this little gem (can't resist the pun) of a heist movie. Instead you have a clever plot that unwinds in small and subtle bits, like a trail of bread crumbs. Just when you think you have it figured out, another quiet twist sets your theories spinning again.

It keeps you on the edge of your seat, not because you are afraid of the next gun fight or bomb blast (there are none) but because you care about the characters and what happens to them. The casting is perfect, with Moore as the smart, strong, but emotionally stoic diamond manager; and Caine as the simple janitor with a brilliant plan. It was refreshing to have the "relationship" between the male and female lead not be a romantic one- there are so many more dimensions to human interactions.

While this movie is appropriate for the whole family, it may be too subtle to hold the interest of younger audiences. Also its themes- a woman in a man's world, career disappointment, mourning a lost love- are not themes that children relate to. A movie my boyfriend and I both enjoyed.

I like a good heist movie, but this is a heist movie with a difference. For one, it's set in 1960's, and for another, only two people are involved in stealing one hundred million pounds worth of uncut diamonds.

It all begins quite formulaically with a reporter interviewing an older woman for a piece about women who had power in business in the 1960's. We then go into flashback as the woman, Laura Quinn, tells her story. She had fought her way up to the position of manager at the worlds leading diamond supplier, the London Diamond Corporation. This was no mean achievement in the male dominated world of business at the time. However, she now finds it harder and harder to progress her career and, having been passed over for promotion several times is getting disheartened with it all. She is then approached by the cleaner, Mr Hobbs, who tells her he knows a way of stealing some of the diamonds. He needs her help to get the combination to the safe before he can go ahead with the plan. She eventually agrees to help him, but things don't exactly go according to plan. I'll leave my short summary there, don't want to give away too much now.

This is a very well made film although in a subtle and rather reserved style. There is no booming soundtrack to distract you from the dialogue, which is nice for a change. Very good performances from all of the leading cast, in particular, Demi Moore as Laura Quinn, Michael Caine as Mr. Hobbs, Lambert Wilson as Finch and Nathaniel Parker as Oliver 'Ollie' Ashtoncroft. Also nice to see Joss Ackland as Sir Milton Kendrick Ashtoncroft.

I quite enjoyed this film, it took a while to get going, but once it did I found it quite enthralling. It's quite a straight-forward plot, but there are subtleties to it that can easily be missed. Nicely shot in that 60's style that seems popular these days, and some very good performances, particularly from Demi Moore and Michael Caine. Over all, recommended.

My score: 6.7/10

Start with two of the most reviled yet tolerated institutions: diamond broking and large insurance underwriting. Spin a story around these heartless institutions getting their "just comeuppance". Justice is served by two very different individuals who quite remarkably find themselves in this extraordinary situation. Singularly they wield no power over such old established hallmarks, yet together they bring these "takers" to their knees.

Speaking of together, Michael Caine continues his low key return to excellent work ever since Ciderhouse Rules. He's great here and surprise...Demi Moore is spot-on in her portrayal as the brilliant, yet stepped-on lone female executive who sacrificed too much before she realized too late it was for naught. These two elevate the all ready good story to great heights.

Special mention is due to the set design. It really nails the 60's-some of which I recall and all of which looks totally appropriate. The directing is most excellent too as it builds the story slowly, never revealing too much, and allows the tension to slowly mount. The movie has a quite satisfying ending that you really couldn't figure out exactly until it too was revealed. Really a great movie, highly recommended.

Most heist movies of the last 10 years tend to share the similar done-to-death storyline as they fail to come up with any originality. Such films mostly rely on extravagant special effects and over-the-top action sequences to capture the audience's attention. Of course there are a few exceptions and a majority of these exceptions tend to be gems. Such is Radford's 'Flawless'. Of course merely labelling it as a heist movie wouldn't be doing justice for the depth of the story exceeds beyond the robbery.

The opening sequence of a diamond being extracted from the African mud and then it's transformation till it lands on a woman's finger may look familiar but it doesn't feel stale especially how it gets straight to the point in the following sequence where a pompous young journalist meets an aged Laura Quinn for an interview. The sequence thereafter takes us back to 60's London. Radford cleverly tackles themes of sexism, blood diamond, class etc by incorporating them withing the story and never sounding preachy. He deals with some heavy issues in a cleverly subtle way.

Through scenes in the bank, he also distinguishes the contrast between the status of men and women in 60's London. It doesn't feel to be such a long time ago yet it is surprising that Quinn is the only woman in the bank (and perhaps the world as is hinted) to work as an administrator while each and every one of her colleagues are men. Clearly she's a woman trying to survive in a man's world and continues to struggle as she is continuously passed over for promotion and soon learns that her employment at the bank will be terminated shortly. However, when the janitor comes up with an unexpected proposition, she reluctantly sees a way out.

'Flawless' is both story driven and character driven while being atmospheric. The writing is solid. The witty dialogues are loaded with dry and sarcastic humour and there's a philosophical element to most of them. The characters are wonderfully developed and the story moves at a smooth pace. The 60s atmosphere is well created and I liked how it contrasted with modern day London.

Caine and Moore are in top form. Caine's gentlemanlike Mr. Hobbes is not your typical criminal. He's polite, charming but eventually the viewer sees that things are not as they seemed. Michael Caine easily plays his part with élan. Demi Moore is fantastic too. Many have complained her accent bouncing back and forth between British and American but that makes sense because Quinn is an American who's been living in London for more than fifteen years. Thus it is believable that her accent would be distorted. Her reaction in the scenes with Hobbes and Finch are remarkable. Some of the best sequences in 'Flawless' are the ones between Moore and Caine and Moore and Wilson. Lambert Wilson delivers a very good performance in a strong supporting role.

I didn't know much about the film before seeing it. Unfortunately, such movies do not get the deserved attention during its release but I hope it gradually gets the well deserved recognition. What caught my attention prior to viewing was the odd but seemingly interesting pairing of Caine and Moore and when I finally got to see this refreshing gem, I was more than glad with a more than satisfying film experience. I've already included this little film treasure in my shelf of DVDs.