Deception (1992) User Reviews (31)

OK Mystery with lovely scenery

[dlmiley · 6/10 · 26 July 2001]

Not sure why this movie rates so bad with my fellow IMDB members.

I just watched it and found it to be a pleasant diversion. It has interesting locations and the gorgeous Andie McDowell to brighten up the scenery. True, the mystery is not that much, and the ending leaves somewhat to be desired, but this movie is not as terrible as its IMDB rating suggests. The baseball card keys are somewhat unique and I'm an old Pittsburgh Pirate fan--which made it a little more interesting to me. Anyway, give this movie a chance when you have time. 6/10

If it's Wednesday, this must be Cairo!

[jotix100 · 5/10 · 13 October 2004]

This film is pretty to watch, but it adds nothing new to the genre; the plot is silly as there is almost no logic in what we are watching. From the opening scenes we know this film is something by the numbers because there is no real suspense; it fails to make sense about what we are watching.

The only thing this movie has going is the different locales in which the director, and his crew, decided to take us: Veracruz, Berlin, Athens, Cairo. All in pursuit of the illusive Johnny Faro, the two timing man without scruples.

The stars are wasted. Let's hope they had a good time while they were in location.

Before Schindler's List, before Lord of the Rings - there was this

[blanche-2 · 4/10 · 19 February 2006]

Sporting a good cast - Andie MacDowell, Liam Neeson, and Viggo Mortensen, "Ruby Cairo" (aka "Deceptions") is the story of a widow who goes on an international chase to find money her husband left in various bank accounts. For this, she uses baseball cards he left behind with a series of markings indicating clues. When she reaches one of the last banks, she realizes that her husband is still alive.

The "you're supposed to be dead but you're still alive" scenario has been used often - "The Third Man" and the wonderful Goldie Hawn film, "Deception" come to mind. This film adds nothing to the genre. The scenery is glorious, and MacDowell is effective and beautiful as a courageous woman who is tougher than she looks. But the story is highly implausible, full of holes, and just not very good.

If you want to see this because of Liam Neeson and/or Viggo Mortensen, forget it. Neither one of them has that big a role. Mortensen has a big scene toward the end of the movie, if you're still watching.

Just Wonderful!

[superstar49 · 3 February 2004]

Any film that can draw you in completely, as this movie did with me, succeeds. I missed the first ten minutes not knowing even the plot, and I was immediately taken in by Andie MacDowell's quest for answers regarding her husband.

I'm surprised by the many negative comments and reviews posted here. This was one of the few movies (like "Pyscho") that took me on sort of a ride that I didn't want to end. This movie was intelligent and I found it to be a great escape as Ruby travelled around the world. I'll certainly never visit Athens, Greece, or stand on top of one of the pyramids. But I felt like I was there. Whomever said this was boring must have had their eyes closed the entire time. I never realized how beautiful Andie MacDowell was until I saw this film or what a really good actress she was. Liam Neeson was a plus even if his role was rather short.

You can bet I'll be recommending this film to others as I do whenever I see a really good movie. Hope to see this released on DVD soon.

Weak, weak, weak last half hour nearly kills any suspense or momentum this movie had going for it

[mbs · 3/10 · 2 February 2018]

This movie has a pretty decent first half hour or so as Andie McDowell learns her pilot husband has been killed in Mexico and she needs to go there to identify the body. She then discovers that he had stashes of cash hidden at various banks around the world, and because of how well she knew him is able to transcribe his very elaborate decoding system (each bank falls under a different alias, and the way McDowell figures out which alias goes with which bank in which country actually got me pretty good while watching it) Unfortunately the movie pretty much falls apart once she gets to the last bank and is told that that account was closed out by the account holder himself. (which of course is impossible since she just identified his body earlier in the movie) No spoilers here, but McDowell then spends the rest of the movie trying to track down how that could be, eventually hooking up with Liam Neeson along the way. Neeson by the way has almost nothing to do in this movie...given his above the title billing, you'd think he'd have more to do, but no, his entire role is to look adoringly at McDowell, they have a nice little montage of walking around together and they climb a hill at one point, but Neeson is literally given nothing to do with the actual plot of the movie that we're watching. I'm not saying that that's a bad thing, but you know he's known these days as a man of action, so to see him standing idly by while McDowell does all the sleuthing is kind of funny to me. The last half hour is a real let down btw. Again after that first half hour, I was thinking we're in for a semi decent suspense film (and we're getting a decent-ish travelogue here as well as McDowell is hopscotching from one country to another) but that last half hour loses so much steam that the ending came as a real disappointment to me.

Improbable, Weak Ending

[skinner_douglas · 3/10 · 12 November 2013]

Andie MacDowell is not a strong enough actress to carry this on her back as she did. She was basically a sleuth but the persona she conveyed made it seem as if her sleuthing powers just appeared by magic--amazing what script writers can do! It is totally improbable that she could have walked around some of the worst districts of Cairo looking like she did and remain unmolested. Ditto the locations in Mexico. The plot was weak and there were a lot of loose threads. The most interesting part of the movie was the scene shot in a Coptic church in Cairo and, of course, Hollywood had to pull its punches. For while Dr. Lamb credits them with saving his life, it is not clear that he has actually converted. John Faro, the lynch pin for the movie's plot and Bessie's husband, was a weak character, weakly portrayed by Mortensen. I agree with some of the other reviewers that the movie started out to be interesting but began to fall apart about 1/3 of the way into the picture. The ending was very weak--a characteristic of American movies for several decades now and one of my pet peeves.

Sad day for die-hard Neeson/Mortensen fan

[Magistrafamiliae · 1/10 · 14 November 2004]

"Liam Neeson" caught my eye as I walked past the DVD bargain bin. I picked up the case and flipped it over. "Viggo Mortensen". That's all I needed to know- into the cart it went. After all, I'd pay almost as much to rent it. As a die-hard fan of both actors, I'm proud to say I endured the entire 90 minute mess. Of course, my attention was not in appreciation of the movie itself. Nor was it the (usual) amazing ability of the 2 leading men. My attention was sophomoric at best...I was watching just to catch a glimpse of their lovely faces and to hear Neeson's throaty brogue. I knew that it would be so from the beginning of the opening credits- I actually rolled my eyes and said, "Oh please" before the story(?!) even began. Unfortunately, they are on screen a tiny fraction of the time. So in the end,I realized I'd have been more satisfied washing the dishes with scenes from Les Miserables or A Perfect Murder running in my brain.

"Deception:" Still Worth Watching

[ccthemovieman-1 · 7/10 · 16 September 2007]

Being in the USA, I know this film under the title, "Deception."

The first half of this movie was very good, very interesting, but the final segment was a big, big disappointment. Overall, it's kind of a strange, confusing story yet fascinating for the most part. I liked the baseball card angle, even if most other people didn't.

When "Bessie Faro" a.k.a. "Rubie Cairo" (Andie MacDowell) finally finds her husband, the film goes to pieces.

The scenery is great to view - scenes from Veracruz, Berlin, Athens and capped off by some magnificent shots of the Great Pyramids outside Cairo. Liam Neeson did his normal superb acting job and creating a likable character.

Boy, this could have been a super movie with a much-different and better done finale. The premise and the scenery were the highlights; the script, the lowlight. However, I'll think you'll find overall it's still a lot better than the national critics would have you believe. It's worth a look. Just expect the film to go downhill the last third.

Watched because of the actors, extremely disappointed with the film

[krcovil · 3/10 · 22 April 2014]

A great idea for a movie, but a terrible script. Watched this movie on Netflix under the title "Deception" because I love the actors in this film, but again, a terrible script! Do you really expect me to believe that MacDowell's character would seriously attack an armed gunman who just shot her husband and then throw herself over her dead husband's body (who, by the way, just faked his death in order to dump her and her children with nothing to live on) when she's got three kids waiting for her to come home?

She seemed to take all of that rather well when she saw him for the first time in Cairo and just wandered off with him, holding hands, on their way to his little palace... I don't think so...I would have beat him down for deserting me and my kids and for forcing my children to deal with the "death" of their father and at such a young age. Let's don't forget that he left them with nothing and didn't give a crap about them--at all!

The characters just aren't believable or reliable because the dialog is plain awful and the characters are not well-developed at all. The story between Liam Neeson's character and Andie MacDowell's character could have been great but it was too choppy to relate to. I would not watch this movie again and I would not recommend it to anyone. Sorry Liam, you're one of my favorites but this movie was a waste of time.

Andie goes around the world

[HotToastyRag · 6/10 · 23 July 2019]

I just can't seem to tell the difference between Ruby Cairo, As Good As Dead, The End of Violence, and Harrison's Flowers, since they all star Andie MacDowell searching for her lost husband! If you've never seen any of them and have no clue where to start, just pick your favorite of the husbands and rent that one. Do you like Cary Elwes? Rent As Good As Dead. Like Bill Pullman? Try The End of Violence. Were you always a sucker for David Strathairn? Check out Harrison's Flowers. And if Viggo Mortensen floats your boat more than the others, watch Ruby Cairo.

In this one, Viggo dies in a plane crash, so Andie doesn't exactly chase after him. She does chase after his financial records, which are left in a total mess. She soon learns he didn't walk the straight-and-narrow, and as one clue leads her to another to another, she's sent on a trip around the world to find out more about what he left behind. Once in Egypt, hence the title, Andie meets Liam Neeson, the head of a philanthropic organization. Fans of Viggo, don't despair: there are quite a few flashbacks to satisfy your eye candy. And if you love Andie, this sexy thriller is a fun one! If you liked it, check out Harrison's Flowers next. It's a touch more violent, but it's still good.

You can run, but you can't hide for long.

[michaelRokeefe · 3/10 · 18 June 2001]

When a young housewife(Andie MacDowell)is informed of her husbands death; she refuses to believe he is dead. Her husband(Viggo Mortensen)supposedly is killed in a plane crash; in actuality he is leading a double life leaving a trail in various exotic locales around the world. MacDowell finally tracks her husband down by following clues he left on his old baseball cards.

This movie does not come even close to being the movie it could have been. The scenery is impressive, but the story drags down and the script is bland. Miss MacDowell's performance is enhanced by her quality looks. Mortensen's character is easy to dislike. In a supporting role, Liam Neeson is calm, cool and collected as he usually is.

Without expecting greatness, this movie is still worth watching. Just don't go out of your way.

A delightful diversion

[derry.angel · 10/10 · 21 November 2003]

Beautiful scenery and locations, almost exotic especially when the characters are in Cairo, the whole religious aspect adds to the it's atmosphere. A pleasant diversion for a rainy day. Andie MacDowell alone is enough to make the movie interesting. Enjoyed Liam Neeson and actually wished he had a larger part. Viggo Mortensen played his character well, although he was only seen in a small part of the movie. It was nice to see Australian actor Jack Thompson too.

International Mystery

[gavin6942 · 6/10 · 20 February 2014]

When Bessie Faro's (Andie MacDowell) husband Johnny (Viggo Mortensen) dies in a plane crash in Veracruz, Mexico, she finds that his air cargo business is deeply in the red. When she visits the airline's terminal in Veracruz, she discovers her husband was pumping large amounts of money into bank accounts all over the world.

I watched this as part of an appreciation for Liam Neeson, and was sad to see this really was not a big role for him. Of course, it was an even smaller role for Mortensen (who was not yet famous), but this is not a Neeson film. Now, that being said, it is still a decent mystery.

I would really like to see this again and get a better feel for it. I get the impression it was not widely appreciated in its day and could get a better hearing now (2014).

Running Errands With Andie

[ghostofchurch · 1/10 · 5 January 2014]

I've seen plenty of terrible movies in my time, but this may be in the top 5 worst of all time.

The first 50 minutes of the movie feel like you're running errands with Andie Macdowell, and boring errands at that. The remaining 40 minutes of the US version Deception are only a minor improvement. I kept waiting for the "thriller" aspect of the movie to kick in and it never did.

There are several plot holes that never get filled, and the part that was cut from the US version would have most likely made the ending make at least some sense.

I wouldn't recommend watching this if you're a die-hard Viggo or Liam fan, they don't exactly have much screen time. However, if you've always wanted to know what it was like to spend 90 minutes with Andie this might be the perfect movie for you.

a choppy plot.....

[muveebuff15 · 1 July 2002]

Ruby Cairo is a would-be good movie despite the choppy plot and horrible script. Liam Neeson is reason enough to see this movie because his performance is the best out of the whole (mis)cast. Andie McDowell's scenes where she was talking to herself were very unreal and uncharacteristic of any human. The love story between Liam and herself was charming but thrust into the movie suddenly and was not picked up at the right times in the plot. The ending, however was cute, despite no real victory on Andie's part. 1/2 *.

Where have you gone Bill Mazeroski; Joltin' Joe has left and gone away

[helpless_dancer · 5/10 · 12 February 2004]

Run of the mill thriller which has a woman searching high and low for a missing hubby thought to have been killed in a plane crash. A few old baseball cards provided clues to a mysterious humanitarian aid group and finally leads her to a country in Africa where all questions were answered.

Not worth the rental fee

[mh1974 · 1/10 · 25 November 2014]

I just finished watching this film, and can say that this is a "B" movie in every sense of the phrase. Andie MacDowell (complete with Southern drawl) plays Elizabeth "Bessie" Faro, a woman whose bad boy husband Johnny (played by Viggo Mortensen) is killed in Mexico. While going through his affairs, Bessie discovers that Johnny had money hidden in accounts all over the world. As she globe trots through the world, she discovers along the way that (surprise surprise) Johnny is still alive. Soon Bessie starts to track Johnny down in order to learn why he did what he did. Along the way, she meets a doctor (Liam Neeson in a wasted role) whose organization is tied to Bessie's husband.

This is a film of wasted talent. MacDowell's performance feels like she phoned in her lines, Mortensen comes across as wooden (think of Adam West's portrayal of Batman) and the rest of the no-name cast is just as terrible. Only Neeson's performance is worth the mention in this turkey. Originally released in 1992, this film feels like it was made years earlier (references to East Berlin) and may well have been the first leading part for MacDowell. Both Neeson and Mortensen would struggle for years before either of them carved their own niche in Hollywood.

Two Funerals But No Wedding or I Wish I Were In Vera Cruz

[drjude518 · 5/10 · 14 February 2021]

The settings of this messy little thriller really are the main characters; if anything, the actors get to spend some time in some of the world's greatest travel venues. It starts with a faked death with clues on baseball cards; a clever plot twist I've never seen before. Man - any movie writer could have run with that one but they didn't. Don't know why. Lack of money perhaps? Wikipedia says the film only grossed 600,000 domestically. And it says they had to recut it with an additional 21 minutes before release on DVD. They could have done more with better writing. I'm not sure why they permitted Andie McDowell to revert to her native dialect when she is fully capable of doing a blander midwestern. Did they want to trash up her character a bit? The South Carolina drawl; it's so tiresome and so distracting. Liam Neeson bravely puts up with her. He is a class act; in the face of a bad script he does his part to imbue a stability that no one else can. Jack Thompson has a small role but would prefer to hide in the background -that's how sad the script is. Viggo Mortenson is gorgeous but is almost not there, so underused is he. A few interesting secondary characters; the Undertaker and the Coroner add a little plot development that goes nowhere. The owner of the chemical company that makes ink for ball point pens casts an interesting gaze on Bessie's bare legs as she exits his office. All of these moments could have been stretched a little to flesh it out. Look out for a nice little cameo by a lovely Tarantula spider under the desk in Vera Cruz. There is one scene that drove me crazy. "Bessie" emerges from the Berliner Bank after discovering that her not quite dead husband has closed the account, tears up the baseball card and throws it on the ground in a purely American I-don't-give-a- gesture. It really irked me. I think today that would get you arrested for littering. Clothing is used to signal her character's progression from baby obsessed haus frau to grown up competent business woman. Initially dressed in Earth Mother duds she acquires proper business attire and her perennial wild child hair is pulled back and tied up in a neat little knot. Andie's character is a real tough broad as it turns out. She salvages her husband's Aerospace Salvage business with a garage sale. All amazing little developments that could have been a springboard to wherever. Even the hotels become more upscale as the money pours in; from Vera Cruz to Egypt. All very interesting but where does it go? When she finally turns her back on her past after her curiosity is satisfied; it's all over. This film could have done so much better with a little more meat on the bone.

Pretty good!

[kneazles · 6/10 · 16 May 2004]

I saw this movie a couple years ago, after Viggo Mortensen became famous with LotR. Only now have I found it again, and although I missed the beginning of the film, I really liked it!

Viggo plays a scheming husband who leaves only baseball cards as a clue; his wife, played by Andie MacDowell, travels the world to find out what just happened to her husband (is he dead or not?), and along the way meets up with a friendly acquaintance (Liam Neeson), together they unravel Viggo's deception.

Okay, so it kind of dragged on, but the storyline wasn't too shabby, and the locations were great! Seeing Viggo play a bad-guy is always fun too! From a late teenager's POV, this was a pretty good movie. Not the best out there, but good enough to hold my interest!

A VERY boring movie!

[Mulle-3 · 1/10 · 18 April 2000]

This could actually have been a pretty good film. There are some great actors, some cool locations and it is an quite interesting story. I don't know what has gone wrong, but the movie is VERY boring. All the questions it builds up during long sequences of a woman's search for her "dead" husband are not answered at all. Too bad. Rating: 1/10

Choppy

[wojo84 · 6/10 · 31 January 2013]

The premise and plot were great....just too bad the directing was not able to match.

I finished watching the movie with many questions left unanswered. Who were the men from Mexico overall? Who was being supplied the chemicals? Why did they shoot Faro? Etc. Also, the idea of a woman not having remains conclusively identified is too much of a stretch for anyone to believe. All of these things left me wanting more from the movie and feeling like I wasted time.

Too choppy for me but if a good director got ahold of the script, it could be a 10. Fill in the gaps.

Watch It for Andie MacDowell's Sincere Performance...

[namashi_1 · 5/10 · 5 August 2013]

Andie MacDowell proves her potential as a performer once again in 'Ruby Cairo'. Its her sincere performance that leads the film & is undoubtedly the biggest merit as well.

'Ruby Cairo' Synopsis: A businessman is supposedly killed in an airline crash. His wife has her doubts and travels the world searching for him. It slowly unravels that he faked his own death and was an international smuggler.

'Ruby Cairo' is an average film. It surely begins well & some portions do leave a mark, but overall, the result is ordinary. The Screenplay is erratic & the twists & turns are predictable. Graeme Clifford's Direction is decent.

On the whole, If you're a true Andie MacDowell Fan, you should watch 'Ruby Cairo'.

A Little Jewel (DVD)

[leplatypus · 10/10 · 14 June 2009]

Maybe 10 is a little overrated but i didn't expect to enjoy this movie so much. This was a real good surprise:

I imagined that it would be a romance taking place in Egypt while it is rather a treasure hunt all around the world: north and south America, Germany, Greece and Egypt… It is very exotic and the middle-east locations are beautiful: the pyramids, the mosque…

I also really like how Andie carries the entire movie on her shoulders alone. Her drive is interesting and not so common by the way. Only Angelina Jolie got characters like this.

It is also an eye-opener for charities because it seems that they have to deal with the devil to achieve their humanitarian goals.

As always, Liam Neeson plays a trustworthy and dedicated man.

Field of Schemes

[wes-connors · 5/10 · 12 May 2012]

After her missing husband's remains are identified as having died in a Veracruz, Mexico plane crash, pretty mom Andie MacDowell (as Elizabeth "Bessie" Faro) must face reality. He is gone, or is he… She should have taken those mysterious teeth in for a second opinion because they appear to be non-human. It's also strange how easily Ms. MacDowell's workman opened such an important piece of mail. There are more jaw-dropping story developments to be seen, so be forewarned...

Flashbacks to romantic times introduce handsome husband Viggo Mortensen (as Johnny Faro), an aviation enthusiast. A Pittsburgh Pirates fan, Mr. Mortensen calls MacDowell "Ruby Cairo". Few couples look as good as they do from behind; for proof, replay the end of that flashback. Investigating her husband's passing, MacDowell meets "Feed the World" worker Liam Neeson (as Fergus Lamb). She also finds a stash of Mortensen's old baseball cards, leading her around the world in search of a double life...

***** Ruby Cairo/ Deception (4/30/93) Andie MacDowell, Liam Neeson, Viggo Mortensen, Jack Thompson

Bad everything

[sweetchic5991 · 4 July 2003]

Ruby Cairo would have been an okay movie, if they had re-written the scripts, gotten a better screenplay, etc. I thought the acting was a little too good for the movie. But the whole thing was a bust. I was utterly disappointed in Viggo Mortensen's performance.