“Nine Queens” vs “Matchstick Men”: Determining the Degree of Globalization

In trying to gain a better grasp on recent world cinema, it is sometimes useful to compare films of similar nature. The Argentine film “Nine Queens” directed by Fabian Bielinsky, shows an astonishing similarity with the American film “Matchstick Men.” Through comparison of these to films we see many similarities and differences. In my argument I will show how the film “Nine Queens” portrays globalized cinema whereas the film “Matchstick Men” does not despite American films ubiquity. In this discussion we will first look at a brief synopsis of each film, what exactly defines a film’s globalization, as well as comparisons between the films, and applying them to the argument.

It is imperative to have an understanding of the plot of each movie in order to effectively compare the films. The film “Matchstick Men” follows a team of two con-artists on their way to pulling off a huge scam. The leader and eldest of the two, Roy, finds out that he has a 14 year old daughter of his ex-wife, whom he begins to get to know when she runs away from home. They become particularly close when Roy agrees to teach her a scam, and she never lets her interest of her “Dad’s” occupation go until he includes her in the big scam with partner Frank. When the scam goes awry at the last minute, the three frantically get away to a place where the team recaps and analyzes the situation. Just when they believe they have gotten off scot free, they find out that Angela (Roy’s daughter) has a criminal record, jeopardizing the whole team. The man at the wrong end of the con finds Angela, Frank and Roy, but Angela ends up shooting him after retrieving a payment for the man. Frank and Angela get away but Roy is hit in the head and goes to the hospital with a concussion. After leaving the hospital, the audience finds that in fact Roy was the one being scammed all along. The surprise ending reveals that his “daughter” Angela was the one who was actually partnered with Frank in the con against Roy.

As for “Nine Queens” the film starts with small time conman Juan shortchanging a gas station attendant. When he gets caught trying to do it for a second time, a man who he thinks is a police officer escorts him out and away, later to find out that he too is a conman (Marcos) and takes Juan under his wing to teach him some better “tricks.” They walk through the streets of Buenos Aires pulling fairly small (but greater than shortchanging) cons. Later Marcos introduces Juan to this huge scam of a lifetime involving selling counterfeit stamps (the Nine Queens) to a very rich stamp collector. After they have set up a purchase of the stamps, they get stolen right outside the hotel where the deal is made. Now they must attain the real ones from an woman who also wants in on a cut from the purchase. Once collecting these they think they can go on to sell the stamps only to find that the buyer wants Marcos’s sister, a hotel clerk, to sleep with him and make the deal. Using his sister the deal is made and Marcos turns on Juan. In the end it is also protégé over master when we find out Juan has set up the whole scheme and Marcos is conned out of his own money.


These two films are very similar and dissimilar on a number of levels. To state the obvious, each film is about a team of conmen, one leader and one protégé, and following them through a number of different scams, only in the end to find out that the protégé has fooled the teacher. Each team differs, however. Roy and Frank have been a team for what seems to have been a while. They work well together and know each other very well. When Frank comes over to Roy’s house to check up on him he knows exactly what to do when he finds Roy hyperventilating on the floor; they act almost as if they are a married couple. On the other hand, Juan and Marcos meet in the beginning of the movie and have to learn to work together as they go, and there is also a bit of uncertainty of whether to trust the other or not. Also, in each movie the team happens upon a very large scam. In particular each leader of each partnership brings in a family member in a bind to help with the scam, who in the end, you find out is actually working with their partner. Another similarity is that in each film the main conman teaches someone under him how to con, but they actually end up teaching them in the end. In “Matchstick Men” a majority of the plot is devoted to Roy spending time with and getting to know his alleged daughter, and in “Nine Queens” that same character relationship is not developed. Lastly, we find that in each movie of partner starts second guessing their ways, such as Roy in “Matchstick Men” and Juan in “Nine Queens,” the only difference being that Juan is the protégé in his partnership, whereas Roy is the leader in his. All in all, one can see that these films are very similar, with a few defining differences.

Defining globalization in cinema is a problem because there is no set definition. The best way to get an idea is to contrast global cinema with that of national cinema. Global cinema tends to involve a movie that easily can be received by people from all over the world. This includes but is not limited to using story lines that all people can relate to, settings that do not define a certain place but could be many places, if not anywhere in the world. “Nine Queens” does a good job of this because although it is filmed in Buenos Aires it feels like it could be set in an urban environment almost anywhere. Bielinsky accomplishes this by using plain cityscape scenes, scenes at places like a convenience store, as well as a generic looking hotel. “Matchstick Men” does not do this as well as “Nine Queens” because you clearly see that it is L.A. because the skyline is shown in many scenes. “Matchstick Men” uses “production design combining with a decision to generally avoid familiar L.A. landmarks in order to achieve a feel of Anywheresville, U.S.A.” [1] Each movie shows globalization through themes and plot situations. In “Matchstick Men,” people can relate to the way Roy is reconnecting with a long lost child. In both movies people around the world can relate to the types of petty crimes that are committed because conmen can be found everywhere. “Nine Queens” is a more globalized film because of the generic setting and scenes, and because the relationship between Juan and Marcos is a relationship that people can connect with. These are just a few of the ways these movies portray global cinema, and why “Nine Queens” is a more globalized movie than “Matchstick Men.”

Through this discussion you can understand as well as compare and contrast the movies of “Nine Queens” and “Matchstick Men.” Through the definition and analysis of the globalization of these two films, we can conclude that whereas they both may have global elements, “Nine Queens” is the only one that can truly be considered a global film.

[1]http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117921674.html?categoryid=31&cs=1

[2] http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/reviews/cl-movie000027809apr19,0,5131306.story (LA Times)