| | | It Took the Heist of the Century to Settle the Score.
Features: DVD, Widescreen, Spanish, Subtitled
Flawless, a clever diamond-heist thriller starring Demi Moore, who plays Laura Quinn, a bright, driven and beautiful executive at the London Diamond Corporation who finds herself frustrated by a glass ceiling. Michael Caine is Hobbs, the nighttime janitor who observes Laura's frustration, and convinces her to help him execute an ingenious plan to steal diamonds from the company's vaults.
"A deeply satisfying catharsis. An entertainingly nostalgic journey to old Britain...It's a pleasure to tread those old streets again." Desson Thomson, The Washington Post
"The theft is ingenious and Demi Moore is fascinating, doing some of her best work ever." Karen Durbin, Elle Magazine
"A taut caper film in which the robbery is ingenious. Like a diamond, it's a story with many intriguing facets." Marshall Fine, Star Magazine
"Provocative. A slick and swift heist film. Demi Moore is a smoldering presence." Ned Martel, Men's Vogue
"Demi Moore and Michael Caine are an inspired pairing." Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald
"...assured and neatly crafted - the time zips by while you're watching it." Ty Burr, Boston Globe
"Caine is typically brilliant and Demi Moore gets to sink her teeth into what may be the best pure acting role she's had since Ghost." Wade Major, LA City Beat
Editor's Note
Michael Radford (IL POSTINO) brings an artful touch to Edward Anderson's screenplay with FLAWLESS, a serious account of a remarkable heist at London Diamond, one of the world's premier diamond holders. Set in 1960s London, the film focuses on Laura Quinn (Demi Moore), a woman so driven she's chosen career over personal life and found her way into the boys' club known as the diamond business. As Laura gets overlooked for a manager position year after year, she resolves to work even harder, hoping that, despite her history, her efforts will one day pay off. Ironically, it's Mr. Hobbs (Michael Caine), a night janitor, who takes note of Laura's frustration. The seemingly simple Mr.Hobbs finds a way to use this to his advantage, proposing a plan that will only work with Laura's cooperation. When Laura rejects the offer, Mr. Hobbs encourages her to question just what's holding her back, personally and professionally. While Laura's precarious position within a male-dominated world gives her understandable motive, Mr. Hobbs's is trickier to decipher.The story is based on a fictional heist, but the film is faithful to its setting. Beautiful costumes and sets and strong attention to detail instantly transport viewers back to a different era. Moore's performance may feel wooden at times, but this is fitting considering the obstacles a woman in her position and time would have been up against. Her acting chops come through when she finally breaks down, only to have to pull herself back together for a room full of her male colleagues. Caine seems predictably at ease in his role as Mr. Hobbs, who drives the plot from behind his unassuming mop and duster. Though slow-moving at first, this stylish thriller slyly draws its audience in as its characters take on more depth.
| Features | Audio Commentary | | Audio: English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound | | Cast Interviews | | Deleted Scenes | | Interactive Menus | | Scene Selection | | Subtitles: Spanish |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: MAGNOLIA PICT HM ENT |
| Release Date: 6/3/2008 |
| Running Time: 109 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 2007 | | Catalog ID: 10103 | | UPC: 00876964001038 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English | | Available Subtitles: Spanish | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78:1 |
| Cast & Crew
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| | Professional Reviews | ReelViews 8 of 10
While Flawless follows the rules of the genre, it does so in a kindler, gentler manner. This movie has no chases or killings and lacks many of the violent trappings audiences have come to expect from heist movies...Michael Caine anchors the film with his portrayal of a man who's after far more than a bump to his pension fund. Caine can make even the most bland character seem interesting and, while Hobbs is not the best-defined protagonist ever to venture into a heist, Caine deepens and enriches him...With this movie, Radford gets to touch on some "hot" social issues of the day, such as the glass ceiling for career women and the concept of blood diamonds. While these aren't crucial to the central story elements, they provide context for what transpires and allow Laura and Hobbs to take the moral high ground. Their act is unquestionably lawless, but it's hard to argue that there's an element of justice to it. This goes back to one of the reasons many viewers watch heist movies - to see David triumph over Goliath. The victory is more sweet when David is fighting the battle for something less ignominious than personal gain. As heist films go, Radford has crafted an engaging, if not especially memorable one, with Flawless. It's good disposable entertainment that offers the right mix of character identification, plot unpredictability, and suspense to keep viewers interested throughout. - James Berardinelli
Variety 7 of 10
It may not live up to its title, but as a polished and lustrous exercise in '60s nostalgia, "Flawless" holds its value. A heist movie that pits Michael Caine, ironically reprising his own work in that genre, opposite Demi Moore -- here an ambitious businesswoman, providing pic's only concession to 21st-century tastes -- pic is as neatly tailored, clean-cut, and visually appealing as a Savile Row suit...The lengthy, nerve-wracking central heist sequence is beautifully shot, shuttling between Hobbs' attempts to enter the vault, security footage, a hungry guard and Moore's nervous attempts to make a red-herring phone call...Caine, shuffling around in blue overalls, uttering softly spoken eternal truths, plays himself to perfection, but the duo's relationship, despite the actors' hard work, never quite sheds its artificiality or earns our sympathy. Ackland, as the spluttering, rubicund Sir Milton, is enjoyably Falstaffian...Period detail is lovingly rendered (it's a nice touch to have people smoking in the cinema), while the technology is wonderfully '60s. Dialogue is occasionally spot-on; one potential suitor to Quinn explains that, since he's married, any affair would have to be "unadventurous"...Away from Stephen Warbeck's effective orchestral score, smoky jazz -- such as Dave Brubeck's epoch-defining "Take Five" -- gorgeously reminds us where we are. - Jonathan Holland
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