The Sting [HD DVD] | ![The Sting [HD DVD]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51BKHVPHRNL._SL500_.jpg)
| Director: George Roy Hill
Actors: Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Robert Shaw, Charles Durning, Ray Walston
Studio: Universal Studios Home Entertainment
Category: DVD
List Price: $19.98
Buy New: $6.89
You Save: $13.09 (66%)
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Rating:  207 reviews
Sales Rank: 4336
Format: Anamorphic, Color, Dolby, Subtitled, Widescreen
Languages: English (Original Language), Spanish (Original Language), French (Original Language), French (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled), French (Dubbed), Spanish (Dubbed)
Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Media: HD DVD
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 130 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 6.6 x 5.4 x 0.4
MPN: 61032810
UPC: 025193281029
EAN: 0025193281029
ASIN: B000KN7BIQ
Theatrical Release Date: 1973
Release Date: January 16, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Winner of 7 Academy Awards including Best Picture The Sting stars Paul Newman and Robert Redford as two con men in 1930s Chicago. After a friend is killed by the mob they try to get even by attempting to pull off the ultimate "sting." No one is to be trusted as the twists unfold leading up to one of the greatest double-crosses in movie history. The con is on!BONUS MATERIALS : The Art of the Sting - Retrospective Making a Masterpiece The Legacy Theatrical Trailer Production NotesSystem Requirements:Run Time: 130 minsFormat: DVD HD Genre: COMEDY Rating: PG UPC: 025193281029 Manufacturer No: 61032810
Amazon.com essential video
Winner of seven Academy Awards including Best Picture, Director, and Screenplay, this critical and box-office hit from 1973 provided a perfect reunion for director George Roy Hill and stars Paul Newman and Robert Redford, who previously delighted audiences with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Set in 1936, the movie's about a pair of Chicago con artists (Newman and Redford) who find themselves in a high-stakes game against the master of all cheating mobsters (Robert Shaw) when they set out to avenge the murder of a mutual friend and partner. Using a bogus bookie joint as a front for their con of all cons, the two feel the heat from the Chicago Mob on one side and encroaching police on the other. But in a plot that contains more twists than a treacherous mountain road, the ultimate scam is pulled off with consummate style and panache. It's an added bonus that Newman and Redford were box-office kings at the top of their game, and while Shaw broods intensely as the Runyonesque villain, The Sting is further blessed by a host of great supporting players including Dana Elcar, Eileen Brennan, Ray Walston, Charles Durning, and Harold Gould. Thanks to the flavorful music score by Marvin Hamlisch, this was also the movie that sparked a nationwide revival of Scott Joplin's ragtime jazz, which is featured prominently on the soundtrack. One of the most entertaining movies of the early 1970s, The Sting is a welcome throwback to Hollywood's golden age of the '30s that hasn't lost any of its popular charm. --Jeff Shannon
Amazon.com
Winner of seven Academy Awards including Best Picture, Director, and Screenplay, this critical and box-office hit from 1973 provided a perfect reunion for director George Roy Hill and stars Paul Newman and Robert Redford, who previously delighted audiences with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Set in 1936, the movie's about a pair of Chicago con artists (Newman and Redford) who find themselves in a high-stakes game against the master of all cheating mobsters (Robert Shaw) when they set out to avenge the murder of a mutual friend and partner. Using a bogus bookie joint as a front for their con of all cons, the two feel the heat from the Chicago Mob on one side and encroaching police on the other. But in a plot that contains more twists than a treacherous mountain road, the ultimate scam is pulled off with consummate style and panache. It's an added bonus that Newman and Redford were box-office kings at the top of their game, and while Shaw broods intensely as the Runyonesque villain, The Sting is further blessed by a host of great supporting players including Dana Elcar, Eileen Brennan, Ray Walston, Charles Durning, and Harold Gould. Thanks to the flavorful music score by Marvin Hamlisch, this was also the movie that sparked a nationwide revival of Scott Joplin's ragtime jazz, which is featured prominently on the soundtrack. One of the most entertaining movies of the early 1970s, The Sting is a welcome throwback to Hollywood's golden age of the '30s that hasn't lost any of its popular charm. --Jeff Shannon
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| Customer Reviews: Read 202 more reviews...
 THE STING (UNIVERSAL PICTURES/1973) January 2, 2009
prospero72 (Cox's Creek, Kentucky)
REVIEW: This sparkling comedy/crime caper not only cemented George Roy Hill's reputation as a first-class director: but also proved to be THE perfect showcase for the acting team of Paul Newman and Robert Redford. "THE STING" is a classic re-creation of the Depression-era 30's complete with mobsters, grifters, cops, feds, and small-time confidence men. Newman and Redford play two such con-men looking to outsmart a big-headed crime boss/banker named Doyle Lonnegan (Robert Shaw) who is responsible for killing a mutual friend of theirs. Along with a bevy of co-conspiritors (including Ray Walston, Eileen Brennan, and Harold Gould): they cook up a scheme to divest the mob of half-a-million dollars, and to hoodwink a crooked cop (played with gusto by Charles Durning) who is hot on their trail. This is a grand entertainment: everything about the film looks as sharp as a pair of spit-shined, patent-leather shoes. And even though it's all breezy, good-natured fun: it does have its fair share of serious moments, and a finale that is truly a bravura of filmaking genius. It's easy to understand (considering the technical quality of the production, the superb acting, and the glorious screenplay by David S. Ward) why it earned seven ACADEMY AWARDS. HARSH LANGUAGE: about 38 words (45 if you count the bonus material in the LEGACY EDITION). VIOLENCE: about 10 scenes. NUDITY/SEXUAL REFERENCES: A couple of bedroom scenes involving no nudity or sex, and the part where Redford visits his girlfriend who is a burlesque dancer in a very, very revealing...ah...outfit. DRUG REFERENCES: quite a few scenes of smoking and drinking (including the scene where Newman makes his first appearance passed out drunk on his bedroom floor).
THE MORAL COMPASS: This is a lightweight, charming picture that does have a more somber core in that the two leads are trying to "sting" the evil Lonnegan in honor of their grifter friend (Robert Earl Jones) who is married with children and murdered in cold blood because he (along with Redford's character) inadvertently conned one of Lonnegan's stooges out of thousands of dollars. Of course the "code" (if you can call it that) of the grifter is to take money from the "mark" (without the use of force or bloodshed) by playing upon that person's own weaknesses and greed. And even though such "bandit" behavior may not be the most moral of examples to follow: the audience will certainly cheer the comraderie (and die-hard friendship) that these guys have for each other in fleecing the selfish, crooked, and morally bankrupt suckers who (pretty much) get what they deserve. It is also necessary to keep in mind that the film is set in the Depression-era of 1936 Illinois where jobs were scarce, people were out on the street, and the mob was in full swing. But as far as the content is concerned: there is a decent amount of mild profanity (although God/Jesus' name is taken in vain about five or six times); a few scenes of brief violence; one risque scene at a burlesque show; and several instances of smoking, drinking, and drunkenness. It would probably have gotten a PG-13 rating if released nowadays, and thus should earn a CAUTIONARY rating for the reasons noted above.
ACADEMY AWARDS: Best Picture, Best Director (George Roy Hill), Best Original Screenplay (David S. Ward), Best Music Adaptation (Marvin Hamlisch), Best Film Editing (William Reynolds), Best Costume Design (Edith Head), Best Art Direction/Set Decoration (Henry Bumstead and James W. Payne)
ACADEMY AWARD NOMINATIONS: Best Actor (Robert Redford), Best Cinematogrphy (Robert Surtees), Best Sound (Ronald Pierce and Robert R. Bertrand)
GOLDEN GLOBE NOMINATIONS: Best Screenplay (David S. Ward)
3.5 stars out of 4 December 18, 2008
One-Line Film Reviews (Ann Arbor)
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
The Bottom Line:
Always entertaining, The Sting is a lighthearted caper movie that features a nice give-and-take between its two leads, a plot that (mostly) holds up, a great poker scene and a lot of twists and turns--what more could one ask from such a film?
To pull off the "BIG CON," all you need is some...CONfidence December 18, 2008
Stephen Pletko (London, Ontario, Canada)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
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"You're right...[The con game] is not enough. But it's close!"
The above is what one of the con artists (or CONfidence game artists) says at the end of this fantastically entertaining movie.
This is a caper film set in late 1936. It revolves around a complicated but interesting plot by two professional con artists (played by Paul Newman and Robert Redford) to swindle a mob boss (played by Robert Shaw). The actual genesis of the idea behind this movie's plot is really unknown but rumour has it that it was inspired by some real-life con games.
The expression "the sting" refers to the moment a con artist finishes the "play" (the mechanics of the con game) and takes the "mark's" (the one being swindled or conned) money. (Today this expression is mainly used in the context of a law enforcement sting operation.)
If the con game is successful, the mark does not realize he or she has been "taken" (cheated), at least not until the con artists are long gone.
This movie goes out of its way to make you feel like you're watching a 1930's film. Here are four reasons why:
(1) During the opening credits, the viewer is shown the main actors (there are eleven) with extracts from the actual movie. This is a style reminiscent of films from the early to mid 1930s.
(2) This movie is divided into distinct sections or parts with old fashioned title cards that has lettering and illustrations.
(3) The costumes that the actors wear. All are 1930's style.
(4) This movie's musical score especially its main theme melody "The Entertainer", a piano ragtime composition by American composer Scott Joplin (1867 to 1917). This music in turn encouraged a surge of popularity and critical acclaim (and deservedly so!!) for Joplin's music. (Ragtime is an originally American genre which had its peak popularity between 1897 and 1918. It predated jazz which began in America roughly around 1915.)
I said in (2) above that this movie is divided into title card sections. The titles on these cards are the preliminary work that has to be done in order to make the actual sting successful. Here are the actual titles:
(1) The Set-Up (24 minutes into the movie). That is, this is the actual set-up for the sting.
(2) The Hook (40 minutes)
(3) The Tale (1 hour, 7 minutes)
(4) The Wire (1 hr, 23 min). The "wire" is an off-track horse race betting scam.
(5) The Shut-Out (1 hr, 33 min). Here, the horse race bettor is unable (that is, is "shut-out") to make his bet.
(6) The Sting (1 hr, 52 min). See above for explanation of this term.
The acting by all is excellent. In fact, Robert Redford was nominated for an Academy Award. However, personally I have to give kudos to Robert Shaw for his fantastic portrayal of a person you want to see swindled.
This movie won 7 Academy Award including Best Picture.
Finally, the DVD itself (the one released Sept. 2005) is perfect in picture and sound quality. It has some interesting extras.
In conclusion, you deserve to see for yourself how the Big Con is performed!! (Note that this review is not attempting to con you into seeing this movie.)
(1973; 2 hr, 9 min; wide screen; 16 scenes; 2 discs)
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there's nothing that "special" about this edition December 15, 2008
S. Vesecky (New York)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I'm not sure what other people are saying about the widescreen format. however, there is no need for this material to be on two discs. disc two just has a documentary and some other stuff. there's not really enough bonus features. also, there's no feature commentary. boo!
 Was it worth it? December 12, 2008
T. E. Denton
I hadn't seen The Sting is decades, so I didn't remember much of anything about it. My oldest son had seen it sometime back and just raved about it, so when I found it on HDDVD for a good price on Amazon, I decided to go ahead and spend some of my birthday money on it. However, although it is a really good movie, it wasn't worth it for me to have purchased it and have it take up space in my DVD cabinet. I try to get & keep only the ones I feel most necessary, and this isn't one of those. It's DEFINITELY worth renting and watching ... once a decade or so, but that's it for me. Now their Butch Cassidy and Sundance Kid would be worth purchasing & keeping!
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