The Hustle

A suave con artist on the French Riviera must contend with the arrival of a brassy rival for the area's rich pickings in this gender-switch remake of 1988's old-school comedy Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (itself a remake of 1964's Bedtime Story). With Anne Hathaway taking the Michael Caine role of high-toned swindler and Rebel Wilson supplying goofball contrast in the upstart Steve Martin part, what unfolds is almost a scene-for-scene rerun, albeit with a few modern tech touches. Sadly, it's no improvement on its predecessor, labouring under similar credibility issues, and making very little of the girl-power angle which might have given some fizz to the femme-friendly redo. Wilson works her socks off to bring some life to the proceedings, and her catty asides raise the occasional smile, though Hathaway by comparison gets weaker material and seems to be operating well outside her skill-set. The result: genuine laughter is in short supply.