There's a fine line between hip and self-consciously hip, and the new movie Confidence falls closer to the latter. This isn't to say that the film is a failure. It's actually quite entertaining, despite it's gimmicky plot tactics.

In the thriller, Edward Burns plays the leader of a con gang who crosses paths with a lovably sinister Dustin Hoffman. Before long, Burns and his crew set out to commit a big-time heist in an attempt to...Well, let's just say they do it for several reasons, and the big plot gimmick is in trying to figure out who's conning who.

Confidence has David Mamet written all over it, bringing to mind everything from House of Games to The Heist. And, while I'll admit that most of the movie is good fun, it does have it's fair share of annoyances. It certainly would have benefited from dialing it down a notch. Thankfully, the sure-handed direction by James Foley keeps it from slipping into the totally absurd (if only Basic benefited from the same thing).

As the head grifter, Burns can't really find his footing. He just isn't charismatic enough. I have a hard time buying him as a tough guy. Hoffman is a hoot as the sexually ambiguous gangster. He's like a time bomb waiting to go off, and he brings much needed spontaneity and tension to all of his scenes. I would call this the perfect supporting role and some of Hoffman's best work in a long time. Actually, there are many terrific supporting turns throughout Confidence including Andy Garcia as the cop on Burns' trail.

If only Confidence were a little less flashy in the writing department. There are far too many wannabe Damon Runyunisms in this picture, and they offset the stuff that does work. And there are some great scenes here. One of my favorites involves Rachel Weisz' seduction of a banker in a bar. The timing and execution of this sequence is absolutely perfect, making for pure film magic.

Confidence is a fun movie bogged down by some truly awful dialogue. Thankfully, this film has good performances and great direction to fall back on.