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THE GRIFTERS

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Grifters
Theatrical release poster
Directed byStephen Frears
Screenplay byDonald E. Westlake
Based onThe Grifters
by Jim Thompson
Produced byMartin ScorseseRobert A. HarrisJim Painten
StarringJohn CusackAnjelica HustonAnnette Bening
CinematographyOliver Stapleton
Edited byMick Audsley
Music byElmer Bernstein
Production
company		Cineplex Odeon Films[1]
Distributed byMiramax Films
Release datesSeptember 14, 1990 (TIFF)December 5, 1990 (United States)[1]
Running time110 minutes
CountryUnited States[1]
LanguageEnglish
Box office$13.4 million[2]

The Grifters is a 1990 American neo-noir[3] crime thriller film directed by Stephen Frears, produced by Martin Scorsese, and starring John Cusack, Anjelica Huston, and Annette Bening.[4] The film follows a lifelong con artist (Huston) who reunites with her estranged son (Cusack) and, along with his girlfriend (Bening), becomes embroiled in a complex web of criminal activity. The screenplay by Donald E. Westlake was adapted from Jim Thompson‘s 1963 novel.

Huston and Bening both received Academy Award nominations for their performances in the film, while Huston also garnered a Golden Globe Award nomination, and Bening, a BAFTA Award nomination. Frears received an Academy Award nomination for Best Director, and Westlake for Best Adapted Screenplay. The film won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Film and was named one of the Top 10 films of 1990 by the National Board of Review.

Plot

Lilly Dillon is a veteran con artist. She works for Bobo Justus, a mob bookmaker, making large cash bets at race tracks to lower the odds of longshots. On her way to La Jolla for a race, Lilly stops in Los Angeles to visit her son, Roy, a small-time hustler she has not seen in eight years. She finds him in pain and bleeding internally after one of his marks caught him pulling a petty scam. When medical assistance arrives, Lilly threatens to have the doctor killed by Bobo if her son dies.

At the hospital, Lilly meets and takes an instant dislike to Roy’s girlfriend, Myra Langtry, who is slightly older than her son. Lilly urges her son to quit the grift as his con nearly got him killed. Because she leaves late for La Jolla, she misses a race where the winner pays 70 to 1. For this mistake, Bobo punches Lilly and insinuates he will beat her with oranges wrapped in a towel, causing permanent damage, but he burns her hand with a cigar instead. Myra, like Roy and Lilly, is also a con artist, often using sex as a means of getting what she wants, including paying her landord with sex.

Upon leaving the hospital, Roy takes Myra to La Jolla for the weekend. On the train, Myra eyes him conning a group of sailors in a rigged dice game. Myra reveals to Roy that she is also a grifter and is looking for a new partner for a long con. She describes her association with a con man and how they took advantage of wealthy marks in business cons. Roy, who insists on working only short-term cons, resists the proposition, fearing Myra may try to dupe him. Seeing Lilly’s power over Roy, Myra accuses him of having an incestuous interest in his mother. Infuriated, Roy breaks off their relationship. Thirsty for revenge, Myra finds out Lilly has been stealing from Bobo over the years and stashing the money in the trunk of her car. After Myra leaks this information to Bobo, Lilly is warned by a friend and flees. Myra follows her to a remote motel, intending to kill her and steal the money for herself.

Later, Roy is called by the Phoenix police to identify his mother’s body, found in a motel room with the face disfigured by a gunshot wound. Though he tells them it is Lilly, Roy notices the body lacks the cigar burn that he had noticed on her earlier. He returns home to find Lilly has broken in to steal his money. Lilly reveals she shot Myra in self-defense at the motel while Myra was trying to strangle her. She arranged the scene to appear as though Myra’s body was her own and that she had committed suicide. When Roy refuses to let Lilly take his money, she desperately pleads with, then attempts to seduce him, even claiming that he is not really her son. Roy, disgusted, rejects her, causing Lilly to angrily swing a briefcase at Roy just as he is taking a drink of water, shattering the glass and sending shards into his neck, which cause him to bleed to death. Sobbing over her deceased son, Lilly gathers up the money and disappears into the night.

Cast

Production

Development

The project originated with Robert Harris, Jim Painten, and Bruce Kawin, who brought it to Martin Scorsese. Martin Scorsese subsequently brought in Stephen Frears to direct while he produced.[5] Frears had just finished making Dangerous Liaisons (1988) and was looking for another project when Scorsese approached him.[6] The British filmmaker was drawn to Thompson’s “tough and very stylistic” writing and described it, “as if pulp fiction meets Greek tragedy“.[6] Scorsese looked for a screenwriter, and filmmaker Volker Schlöndorff recommended Donald Westlake.

Frears contacted Westlake who agreed to reread the Thompson novel but, after doing so, turned the project down, citing the story as “too gloomy”. Frears then phoned Westlake and convinced him that he saw the story as a positive one if considered as a story of Lilly’s drive to survive. Westlake changed his mind and agreed to write the adaptation.[5] Frears was unsuccessful, however, at convincing Westlake to write the script under his pseudonym “Richard Stark,” a name he had used to write 20 noir-influenced crime novels from 1962 through 1974. Westlake said: “I got out of that one by explaining Richard Stark wasn’t a member of the Writer’s Guild. I don’t think he’s a joiner, actually.”[7] (Stark’s name appears in the film, though, on a sign reading “Stark, Coe and Fellows”; Westlake explains in the film’s commentary track that he has written novels as Richard Stark, Tucker Coe and “some other fellows”.)

Casting

John Cusack had read Jim Thompson’s novel in 1985 and was so impressed by it that he wanted to turn the book into a film himself.[8] When Cusack found out that Scorsese and Frears were planning an adaptation, he actively pursued a role in the project. Cusack has said that he saw the character of Roy Dillon as “a wonderfully twisted role to dive into.”[8] To research his role, he studied with actual real-life grifters and learned card and dice tricks, as well as sleight-of-hand tricks, including the $20 switch that his character performs in the film. He succeeded using this trick at a bar, while practicing on a bartender he knew well.[9]

For the role of Lilly, Frears originally considered Cher but she became too expensive after the success of Moonstruck.[10] Sissy Spacek also read the part of Lilly Dillon.

Frears first contacted Anjelica Huston about playing Lilly in 1989 while she was filming Crimes and Misdemeanors, but after reading the script, she was unsure.[11] Although she was “transfixed” by the story and the character, a scene in the script where Lilly is beaten so violently by Bobo Justus with a sack of oranges that she defecates alarmed Huston with its explicitness.[12] A few months later, Frears contacted Huston again to see if she was still interested.[11] Still wavering, Huston’s talent agent Sue Mengers told her bluntly: “Anjelica, if Stephen Frears tells you he wants you to shit in the corner, then that’s what you must do.”[12] The next day Huston auditioned for the role in front of Frears at the Chateau Marmont. Frears’ initial reluctance to cast Huston, because she looked too much like “a lady”, was resolved with the decision to cheapen her look with a bleached blond wig and “vulgar clothes.”[6] To research her part, she studied women dealers at card parlors in Los Angeles County, California.[11]

Filming

Principal photography of The Grifters began on October 23, 1989, with filming primarily occurring in Los Angeles.[1] Locations included the Bryson Apartment Hotel.[1] Additional filming took place over a three day-period in Phoenix, Arizona.[1]

The shoot was emotionally challenging for Huston.[11] After completing the final scene between Lilly and Roy, she was so drained from the experience that she ran from the set and the studio. It took her hours to recover.[11] After shooting the scene where Bobo Justus tortures Lilly for betraying him, Huston was so affected by the rough quality of the scene (which did not make the final cut of the film) that she spent that night throwing up.[11]

Annette Bening explained that she accepted being full frontally nude in this film because she felt the scenes were comedic rather than dramatic. “I thought I could do them because of the context it was in. It made sense to me. It was appropriate to the part, it wasn’t exploitative,” she said.[13]

Release

The Grifters had its world premiere on September 14, 1990 at the Toronto Festival of Festivals at the Elgin Theater.[6][14] The film had a brief Academy Award-qualifying run in New York City and Los Angeles on December 5, 1990,[1] before opening wide in January 1991.[15]

Home media

The film was released on LaserDisc in 1991.[16] The film was released on DVD as part of the Miramax Collector’s Series on September 24, 2002.[17] The Criterion Collection issued the film in 4K UHD Blu-ray and Blu-ray formats on January 21, 2025.[18]

Reception

Box office

The film was successful in its limited run,[19] grossing $13.4 million.[2]

Critical response

For The New Yorker, Pauline Kael wrote that the film retained Thompson’s “hardboiled pitilessness, and a tension is created by placing these fifties or early sixties characters in nineties L.A. locations.” She goes on to write: “The movie starts with comic capers, then uses Thompson’s class resentment and grim hopelessness to smack us with discord. We’re watching a form of cabaret.” Kael lauds Huston’s performance saying “Huston is willing to be taken as monstrous; she contains this possibility as part of what she is. And when Lilly shows her willingness to do anything to survive she’s a great character.”[20]

The film received positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes it holds a 92% rating based on 49 reviews. The site’s consensus reads, “Coolly collected and confidently performed, The Grifters is a stylish caper that puts the artistry in con”.[21]

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave The Grifters 4 stars out of 4, praising the lead performances and the script, which he thought more accurately captured the essence of film noir better than any in recent memory. He wrote: “This is a movie of plot, not episode. It’s not just a series of things that happen to the characters, but a web, a maze of consequences.”[22]

Accolades

AwardCategoryNominee(s)ResultRef.
Academy AwardsBest DirectorStephen FrearsNominated[23]
Best ActressAnjelica HustonNominated
Best Supporting ActressAnnette BeningNominated
Best Screenplay – Based on Material from Another MediumDonald E. WestlakeNominated
Artios AwardsOutstanding Achievement in Feature Film Casting – DramaJuliet TaylorNominated[24]
Boston Society of Film Critics AwardsBest ActressAnjelica HustonWon[25]
British Academy Film AwardsBest Actress in a Supporting RoleAnnette BeningNominated[26]
Chicago Film Critics Association AwardsBest ActressAnjelica HustonNominated[27]
Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association AwardsBest PictureNominated
Best DirectorStephen FrearsNominated
Best ActressAnjelica HustonNominated
Best Supporting ActressAnnette BeningNominated
Edgar Allan Poe AwardsBest Motion PictureDonald E. WestlakeWon[28]
Golden Globe AwardsBest Actress in a Motion Picture – DramaAnjelica HustonNominated[29]
Independent Spirit AwardsBest FeatureWon[30]
Best Female LeadAnjelica HustonWon
London Film Critics’ Circle AwardsNewcomer of the YearAnnette BeningWon
Los Angeles Film Critics Association AwardsBest ActressAnjelica HustonWon[31]
National Board of Review AwardsTop Ten Films10th Place[32]
National Society of Film Critics AwardsBest Film2nd Place[33]
Best DirectorStephen Frears2nd Place
Best ActressAnjelica HustonWon
Best Supporting ActressAnnette BeningWon
Best ScreenplayDonald E. Westlake3rd Place
New York Film Critics Circle AwardsBest FilmRunner-up[34]
Best ActressAnjelica HustonRunner-up
Writers Guild of America AwardsBest Screenplay – Based on Material from Another MediumDonald E. WestlakeNominated[35]

References

  1.  “The Grifters”. AFI Catalog of Feature Films. American Film Institute. Retrieved December 8, 2025.
  2.  “The Grifters”. Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on December 7, 2025.
  3.  Silver, Alain; Ward, Elizabeth; eds. (1992). Film Noir: An Encyclopedic Reference to the American Style (3rd ed.). Woodstock, New York: The Overlook Press. ISBN 0-87951-479-5
  4.  “The Grifters”. Turner Classic Movies. Archived from the original on August 6, 2021. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
  5.  Bygrave, Mike (July 16, 1990). “A Shot at Point Blank”. The Guardian. p. 36 – via Newspapers.com.
  6.  Kelly, Deirdre (September 15, 1990). “An English Director on Challenge of Making his First Yankee Flick”. The Globe and Mail. p. C11 – via Newspapers.com.
  7.  Stark, Richard (1 March 1999). “Richard Stark: Introduced by Donald E. Westlake”. Payback. Grand Central Publishing. pp. vii–x. ISBN 978-0-446-67464-5.
  8.  Van Gelder, Lawrence (August 31, 1990). “At the Movies”. The New York Times.
  9.  Goodman, Joan (January 31, 1991). “Getting the Drift of the Grift”. The Guardian. p. 25 – via Newspapers.com.
  10.  Johnston, Sheila (January 31, 1991). “The Innocent Abroad”. The Independent. p. 13 – via Newspapers.com.
  11.  Sharkey, Betsy (December 2, 1990). “Anjelica Huston Seeks the Soul of a Con Artist”. The New York Times.
  12.  Anjelica Huston (2014). Watch Me. Scribner. p. 216. ISBN 9781476760346.
  13.  “Annette Bening: A Private Star”. lebeauleblog.com. 21 April 2021. Archived from the original on 6 February 2022. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  14.  Harris, Christopher (August 29, 1990). “Frears to Attend Premiere”. The Globe and Mail. p. C3 – via Newspapers.com.
  15.  Green, Tom (December 11, 1990). “Haute Huston”. USA Today.
  16.  “LaserDisc Database: The Grifters”. LaserDisc Database.
  17.  Erickson, Glenn (October 8, 2002). “DVD Savant Review: The Grifters”. DVD Talk. Archived from the original on December 7, 2025.
  18.  “The Grifters 4K Blu-ray”. Blu-ray.com. Archived from the original on December 7, 2025.
  19.  Broeske, Pat H. (January 22, 1991). “‘Home Alone’ Fends Off Yet Another ‘Intruder’ : Box Office: Vietnam War film opens to mediocre business as comedy remains on top for 10th week. After four weeks of release, ‘Godfather Part III’ drops to 12th”. Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 7, 2025.
  20.  Kael, Pauline (2011-10-27). The Age of Movies: Selected Writings of Pauline Kael: A Library of America Special Publication. Library of America. pp. 783–786. ISBN 978-1-59853-171-8.
  21.  “The Grifters”. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2025-01-29.
  22.  Ebert, Roger (January 25, 1991). “The Grifters”. Chicago Sun-Times.
  23.  “The 63rd Academy Awards (1991) Nominees and Winners”. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
  24.  “Nominees/Winners”. Casting Society of America. October 17, 1991. Archived from the original on June 15, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
  25.  “BSFC Winners: 1990s”. Boston Society of Film Critics. July 27, 2018. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  26.  “BAFTA Awards: Film in 1992”. British Academy Film Awards. Retrieved September 16, 2016.
  27.  “1988-2013 Award Winner Archives”. Chicago Film Critics Association. January 1, 2013. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
  28.  “Category List – Best Motion Picture”. Edgar Awards. Retrieved August 15, 2021.
  29.  “The Grifters”. Golden Globe Awards. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
  30.  “38 Years of Nominees and Winners” (PDF). Independent Spirit Awards. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  31.  “The 16th Annual Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards”. Los Angeles Film Critics Association. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  32.  “1990 Award Winners”. National Board of Review. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  33.  “Past Awards”. National Society of Film Critics. December 19, 2009. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  34.  “Awards – New York Film Critics Circle”. New York Film Critics Circle. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  35.  “Awards Winners”. Writers Guild of America Awards. Archived from the original on December 5, 2012. Retrieved June 6, 2010.

Wikiquote has quotations related to The Grifters (film).

vteStephen Frears
vteMartin Scorsese
vteIndependent Spirit Award for Best Film

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