bregund When I see Michael Caine's name in a film's credits, I tend to think of it as "his" film, and I'll watch it just because he's in it. There aren't many actors that do that for me. It's always a treat to see him in any role. I really like that he can step away from the huge big-budget films like The Dark Knight and into these more intimate movies, from Little Voice to A Shock to the System to Flawless, all of which I enjoyed simply because he was in them.Anyway, the real draw with Flawless, besides Caines's presence, is Demi Moore's growing realization that her partner in crime has deceived her; this isn't as much a heist film as it is a revenge film, albeit one loaded with unrealistic scenarios. It's beautiful to look at, and Moore is a knockout in her tailored clothes, but there are many places where Hobb's elaborate plan could have fallen apart. It's interesting how he uses Laura's indignation as leverage to get the ball rolling; without it, his plan wouldn't have worked.The beginning of this film seems rather pointless, with an elder Laura sitting in a coffee shop recounting the subsequent events in the film; the ending is no better, showing a quick montage of Laura's philanthropy over the last fifty years, complete with close-ups of her signing millions of dollars over to charity and working with underprivileged children in Africa. It comes off as unnecessarily sappy and tacked-on. Moore is no Meryl Streep, but she gives a decent enough performance.

filmalamosa This film held my interest and since I am 55 appealed to my nostalgia also. I guessed the minute I saw all the diamonds were gone how Hobbs (Michael Caine) did it. And at that point I had to suspend disbelief that 1) the detectives working on it would not have thought of the sewers or 2) the sewers them selves would have been guarded in some way (catch basins etc...).In South Africa the miners were searched daily on leaving work including what a proctologist normally does. The sewers would have been protected if the company spent the money to put "foot thick reinforced steel" around all the walls.I also found weak the argument that Hobbs wife would cause such passion in a 60+ year old man 15 years after his wife's death. Then there is the dangling question about the 100 million and would that not have been watched somehow. Also I presume the large diamond that Caine sucked up out of the toilet came up out of the sewer...nothing else makes sense.Well considering what crap (pun intended)that comes out of Hollywood these days this movie surely deserves a 5. I was fearful that Michael Caine's motive would be that his dead wife was a black South African but fortunately this piece of PC stuff was not injected. It is injected in one of John Le Carre's or Graham Greene's books...(Sorry thankfully forgot the name of it).If you are 55 like myself you will enjoy the movie.

paloma54 Demi Moore and a host of British worthies are great in this psychological bank/heist/thriller. I may be the only person in the world who is not so keen on Michael Caine. It seems to me he has been playing essentially the role of Michael Caine for an entire lifetime. He muffles his words, so I missed a lot of his dialog, and found this very unsatisfying, and his personal "charm" was unable to overcome it. The first 45 minutes of the movie drags a bit, but I found myself much more involved in the plot after that. There are interesting plot twists, even though at times I was straining to distinguish exactly who was in among the company of diamond and insurance company executives. Overall, an enjoyable film, if you have a bit of patience.

classicalsteve During the 1980's and 1990's, rumours of Moore's off-screen ego have sometimes come off as the direct antithesis of someone like Audrey Hepburn who always distanced herself from her own fame. Especially when she was married to Willis, Moore appeared to drink in the spotlight of Hollywood fame like an alcoholic reaching for another vodka. Now her star has dimmed somewhat which has allowed her to do what she does best: simply act in high-quality entertaining projects. The main reason Moore has been where she is has to do with her ability as an actress, not her celebrity. In the right part, Moore is as convincing as they come. And in this case she stepped up to the plate with one of the best clean-up hitters of the film industry, Michael Caine."Flawless" is my favorite performance by Demi Moore thus far. The film begins with a young journalist meeting an older woman at a modern tavern. In less than a minute, I realized the older woman is Moore with aging makeup to make her seem much older. The older woman says she has not been a free woman until now. Her story begins as a young ambitious executive-want-to-be in the men's world of the diamond trade in 1960. An American who was Oxford-educated, Laura Quin (Moore) had been dedicated to her job at London Diamond for a decade and a half as a high-end negotiator, but had been passed up for promotion on several occasions.One crucial day, a massacre of slave labor in one of the diamond mines run by the London firm threatens to compromise their hold on the trade market. They fear the Russians, who have been in bed with the London firm as a way to control their monopoly, will back out of their trade relations as a way to show support for the laborers. Quin makes an interesting proposal: allow the contract to continue in secret and let the Soviets "pound their fists" toward unjust capitalism at the UN. The Firm believes its a good idea, but they also decide she knows too much and should be relieved of her position, since only people in the inner circle should be privy to such information. Quin is informed of her dismissal from Hobbs, the night janitor (Michael Caine) in a kind of clandestine meeting at a movie theatre.Later when the two meet again, the hypothesis of stealing a small amount of diamonds from the firm's vault becomes the main topic of discussion, simply for the money. Hobbs claims he needs a pension, and she'll need it because she'll be unemployed. The vault contains heaps of uncut raw diamonds which have not been measured or cut, presumably straight from the mines. If a few go missing, a thermostat's worth, none will be the wiser save Moore and Caine. Even at a million pounds each, "They wouldn't even notice that much," Hobbs explains.Like most typical Heist movies, the plans are made and the execution keeps you at the edge of your seat. The two seem somewhat ill-chosen for this operation which is one of the key ingredients of heist movies. However, what happens after the heist's completion is what turns this film from a good one to a great one. A remarkable twist occurs in the middle of the film, and from then on, I had no idea where the story was leading, which in my book is where a great film has to go. And the ending is convincing and satisfying. Moore and Caine offer outstanding performances, and the film seems to get more interesting as it goes along. Apparently, this movie was a box office disappointment, which is unfortunate as it deserves much more recognition than it has achieved.