Sharper

Julianne Moore and Sebastian Stan star in the new film from The Crown and Andor director Benjamin Caron.

[subscribe now](http://radiotimes.com/magazine-subscription?utm_term=evergreen-article). Meanwhile, during this earlier scam, Max had realised that Hobbes's son Tom (Smith) could also be a potential victim, and working with his new accomplice Sandra (Middleton) he manages to con him out of a huge amount of money. Tom's death had been staged, he is still alive and she has therefore given all the money away to him This leads to a major confrontation at the end of the film which sees Madeline shooting Tom dead. It also has a non-linear plot that takes a lot of turns over the two-hour runtime, all leading up to one massive final twist. [Film](https://www.radiotimes.com/movies/) coverage or visit our [TV Guide](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/tv-listings/) and [Streaming Guide](https://www.radiotimes.com/streaming-guide/) to find out what’s on. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to the [Radio Times View From My Sofa podcast](https://www.radiotimes.com/audio/podcasts/). [terms and conditions](https://www.immediate.co.uk/terms-and-conditions/) and [privacy policy](https://policies.immediate.co.uk/privacy/). [The Crown](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/drama/the-crown-season-6-release-date/) and [Andor](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/sci-fi/andor-episodes-release-schedule-disney-plus/), and boasts a starry cast that includes the likes of Julianne Moore and Sebastian Stan. [Apple TV+](https://www.radiotimes.com/appletv/) film [Sharper](https://www.radiotimes.com/movies/sharper-apple-tv-tinker-tailor-inspiration-exclusive-newsupdate/) is definitely one for you. [learn more](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/commercial-links-on-radiotimes-com/)) [Subscribe to Radio Times magazine and get 12 issues for £1](https://www.radiotimes.com/magazine-subscription/?utm_term=evergreen-article)

Julianne Moore and Sebastian Stan are con artists with a master plan in Apple TV+'s slick new psychological drama, Sharper. With their eyes set firmly on hedge ...

Turns out Tom and Sandra were in on the final con together. So now everything is theirs, and Sandra gets to strut out of the airport victorious. First thinking it was Max who had orchestrated a big con to eventually run off with Sandra, it slowly dawns on the couple that Sandra hasn't returned to her seat. Sandra (who's now gone back to being called Sandy) asks Tom out to dinner, and he accepts. With Tom dead, the foundation reverts back to her anyway as a trustee, so she's lost nothing. A struggle ensues and Sandra shoots Tom in the stomach. As Tom bleeds out on the floor, Madeline panics and believes he's dead. When the gang is back together, Sandra lunges at Max, wanting an apology, something he refuses to give because he's not sorry that he did it. Until this point, he'd hidden his family's wealth from her but happily calls in the favour with his father because she needs it so badly. Unsure whether he could trust Tom with the inheritance due to his previous mental health break, Richard instead leaves him his foundation. The plan works beautifully, with Tom swept along by the enigmatic Sandra, who wanders into his bookstore as his perfect woman. After spotting junkie Sandy in a bar, he recruits her to be his new partner-in-crime.

Sharper is a slick and stylish, but flawed con man thriller. The Sebastian Stan and Julianne Moore-led film premieres Friday, February 17 on Apple TV+.

The film feels, in many ways, like a homage to the kind of modest genre thrillers that were commonplace in the 1990s. For most of its runtime, the film is a slick and efficiently well-told con man thriller, one that delights in keeping its audience on its toes just as much as it does in embracing its fictional con artists’ cold-hearted tactics. Sharper, in other words, makes the same mistake as so many of the con man movies that have come before it. The film’s final flashbacks rely, therefore, on viewers buying into the idea that Sharper‘s characters weren’t ever as intelligent as we’d been led to believe, which might have been easier to accept had its first hour not done such a good job of showing us otherwise. For most of the movie’s runtime, Gatewood and Tanaka maintain such a steady, controlled flow of information that it becomes easy to stay invested in Sharper‘s various twists, turns, and acid-tongued conversations. Caron’s emphasis on Sharper‘s various shades of blues, reds, and blacks also combines well with the shadowy cinematography that Charlotte Bruus Christensen brings to it. Behind the camera, director Benjamin Caron fills Sharper with enough intimate close-ups and smooth dolly shots to give the film a sleek, considered polish that only makes the sexy, duplicitous nature of its story that much more palpable. Even more importantly, it gives the film a chance to present certain details and events in a nonlinear fashion that doesn’t require it to constantly overexplain their importance to the audience. Tom falls hard for Sandra, so much so that he’s immediately willing to loan her $350,000 to bail her unseen brother out of a bad situation the moment she mentions it. Through a series of subsequent chapters, Brian Gatewood and Alessandro Tanaka’s script reveals that Sandra was not, in fact, a kindhearted and well-read student who just so happened to walk into Tom’s bookstore one day. One night, while Tom (Justice Smith), the naïve son of a rich businessman (John Lithgow), is preparing to close the New York City bookstore that his father bought for him, he’s approached by Sandra (Briana Middleton). As a matter of fact, every time the film cuts to a new title card bearing a different character’s name, it’s easy to imagine a reality in which Sharper’s story has been stretched out to accommodate a Netflix or [Apple TV+](https://www.digitaltrends.com/movies/new-on-apple-tv-plus/) limited series.

Sharper is the latest Apple TV+ movie to hit the platform. Here is where you've seen the cast before.

The actor also had a starring role in one of my [favorite video game adaptations](https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2489648/the-best-video-game-movies-including-detective-pikachu), Pokemon: Detective Pikachu, and is set to have a starring role in the upcoming [2023 film, Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Amongst Thieves](https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2573008/dungeons-and-dragons-quick-things-we-know-about-the-chris-pine-movie). Last but not least, we have John Lithgow, who is arguably one of the biggest names on this list and has been in Hollywood for a long time. Big nerd and lover of Game of Thrones/A Song of Ice and Fire. [plenty of other great movies](https://www.cinemablend.com/streaming-news/sebastian-stan-what-to-watch-if-you-like-the-marvel-actor) during his time in Hollywood, starting off with a lot of smaller movies and moving into bigger ones that won him a lot of praise. [sexy Amazon Prime movie](https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2552561/the-sexiest-movies-on-amazon-prime-you-can-stream-right-now), The Voyeurs, Paper Towns, and both Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, and its sequel, Jurassic World: Dominion. [The Hunger Games franchise,](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/all-of-the-hunger-games-movies-ranked) where she played one of the villains, as well as her Academy-Award winning role in Still Alice. But she has appeared in movies such as The Tender Bar, and Augustus. He was also a part of the TV film, Paterno. [Marvel Cinematic Universe](https://www.cinemablend.com/superheroes/marvel-cinematic-universe) movies. [some awesome movies](https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2567126/the-best-apple-tv-movies-to-watch-right-now) over the last few years, ever since the service's launch. Next up is Sebastian Stan, another one of the main stars, and he plays Max. From the [Academy-Award winning CODA](https://www.cinemablend.com/streaming-news/coda-what-to-know-about-the-best-picture-oscar-winning-movie), to some of the latest films like Causeway, the streamer has been knocking it out of the park with some of its original films.

Julianne Moore and Sebastian Stan topline a throwback movie about con artists that maybe could have worked when movies were allowed to be titillating.

It bears the stench of everything somehow working out despite it all. [Julianne Moore](https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-reviews/gloria-bell-julianne-moore-804440/) and [Sebastian Stan](https://twitter.com/rollingstone/status/1569510551599857664) as a pair of ne’er-do-wells who’ve mastered the art of intimate thieving. A lack of humanity is low on these characters’ laundry lists of personal issues. The movie’s got the lifestyle-envy sleekness of a commercial for a luxury sedan, a glossiness meant to remind us that certain of these characters have no souls, only surfaces and empty gestures and a gluttony for dollar bills. One of these people is lying to the other — a “sharper,” per the movie’s title, is a con artist. It’s also trying to tell us that everything playing out in front of us is sexier than it really is. Most deceptions are cleared up within the space of a scene or two; the movie is trying to tell us that lying, for these people, is second nature, hardly a secret worth keeping once the damage is done. We have fun because we’re expected to want to figure it all out, to get one step ahead of people who’ve read the script and know how this all ends. Deception, in this arena, is as tricksy as a chess match, only — if the movie is worth watching — the contestants emerge afterward with self-satisfied blood on their muzzles. It’s bigger than the two of them and their booklice. ( [John Lithgow](https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-news/john-lithgow-rudy-giuliani-stephen-colbert-late-show-902568/), who is solid here, plays an unlucky billionaire.) How they connect to Tom and Sandra is a secret best left to the movie, though it isn’t very interesting — few of Sharper’s twists, if we can call them that, are. It proceeds in the style of a Russian doll, with a series of subsequent chapters, each named for a character, that lays out when, what, and how each major character — each liar — got here.

Sharper. Review By: Jonathan W. Hickman. Be in the know the moment news happens. Subscribe to Daily and. Breaking News Alerts. Email Address.

By contrast, the relationship between Max and Madeline is tough to reconcile. Nerdy and kind, Tom runs a bookstore in the city. And as his relationship with Sandra develops, we almost hope that Sandra will abandon her criminal enterprise, come clean with the young man, and maybe these two attractive kids can explore more authentic emotions. The script's structure, from scribes Brian Gatewood and Alessandro Tanaka, helps to overcome the incongruity of the movie's central mystery. Director Benjamin Caron's "Sharper" feels like a throwback to a time when technology hadn't yet frustrated the con game. Then came cell phones and the Internet.

Feb. 17 (UPI) -- Neo-noir thriller Sharper, animated comedy series Animaniacs, retro-future dramedy Hello Tomorrow and fantasy crime series Carnival Row are ...

[ air Sunday on](https://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/TV/2023/01/16/bafta-host/9271673877534/) BBC One and will be available to stream via the BBC iPlayer and Britbox streaming app. [will feature the 21st annual](https://www.pbs.org/wnet/gperf/aarp-the-magazine-announces-nominees-for-the-annual-movies-for-grownups-awards/14278/) Movies for Grownups Awards with AARP the Magazine at 9 p.m. Grant hosts this year's ceremony, [which will be attended](https://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/2023/02/10/Prince-William-Kate-Middleton-attend-BAFTA-Film-Awards/2871676046032/) by Prince William, president of BAFTA since 201, and Kate Middleton, following the couple's two-year absence from the event. [premieres Friday on](https://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/TV/2023/01/09/Carnival-Row-final-season-trailer/9451673285952/) Prime Video. [ streams Friday on](https://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/Movies/2023/01/12/Sharper-trailer-Julianne-Moore-Sebastian-Stan-Apple-TV/6691673541136/) Apple TV+. The revival of 1990s animated series Animaniacs returns for a third and final season Friday on Hulu.

Sharper star Briana Middleton talks about the lessons learned from working with co-star Julianne Moore on set of the Apple TV+ psychological thriller.

“Love is one of the things that maybe all of our characters are searching for in this film. “It really takes the pressure off of having to have this really polished performance.” In its exploration of human nature, Sharper grapples with the harsh realities of what people are willing to do to survive but also what people are willing to do for love. “Is it a love story?” Middleton ponders the question. “I love prep and research,” the actress says of her process. At times, she had to work to distance herself from the part and remind herself that she was playing a role: “I do think this stuff lives in your body, especially after doing it so many times and living in it.” “There’s this idea that you need to go away and do your thing, do your prep. “Thank God, everyone’s so nice,” the relative newcomer says of her castmates. It was Middleton’s connection to her character that helped her push through those more difficult scenes. Then, you have to come and do this really polished, finished performance. What begins as a picture-perfect love story between Sandra and Tom (Justice Smith) slowly unravels, as the story reveals its characters are not who they appear to be. Upon reading the script, the New Orleans-based actress says she immediately was won over by her character.

The Lehman Trilogy, Self Esteem, Russell Kane and more – the best film, theatre, pop, classical, comedy, dance and visual art.

Apple TV Plus and A24's neo-noir film 'Sharper' is a New York City–based con artist saga. Was the high-stakes thriller filmed there?

It’s like if Richard Curtis had come to New York and we were making a slightly indie version of Notting Hill there, you know, we start in a bookshop," Benjamin said, comparing Sharper to the (much lighter) Roger Michell classic. It’s a city that operates at the sharp end of the American dream. [Backstage](https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/sharper-starring-julianne-moore-and-sebastian-filming-nyc-74049/), the Sharper cast was seen shooting in Lower Manhattan on Thompson Street, between Houston and Prince. It’s a transactional city that, in a few short decades, has become the heart of market capitalism. As detailed by [signs posted](https://twitter.com/fIcrence/status/1439995257089896450) around the aforementioned streets, the project was working under the name Woohoo back in September 2021. [Ariana Grande](https://www.distractify.com/p/ariana-grande-net-worth)'s opulent tune "7 Rings," the trailer for 2023 neo-noir flick [Sharper](https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/sharper/umc.cmc.5ud0ivpwgqw2st0u4z73gwpar) encourages viewers to "read between the lies," as it showcases master manipulation and secrets galore.

Sebastian Stan, Justice Smith, & Briana Middleton discuss their new movie Sharper, plot twists, director Benjamin Caron, & Stan teases Thunderbolts.

STAN: I think we had a lot of fun and that was one of the things, [Benjamin Caron] would always be like, “Less is more, less is more.” At least with me. I have a lot of stuff that I'm really proud of and I have a lot of stuff that I'm not as proud of, and I would say probably The Get Down. I think I just tried to lock down on the things that were similar and to ground me in just a throughline of truth throughout the whole movie. The nature of filming, in general, like if you have a location booked, you're gonna bang out all the things that are in that location. I was joking that I don't ever have to audition again, people just need to watch this film and be like, “Okay, she can do that.” No, I mean I tried not to get too heady about how different she was in different points in the film. So I'm curious for all three of you, what was it like reading the script for the first time, and how much had you been told about the arcs, or how much were you reading the script for the first time of being like, “Holy… I mean, when I read it, I was doing what you explained exactly, just thinking, “Oh, I have this figured out.” Then 10 pages later it's completely destroyed and put on its head, and I knew it'd be a really exciting thing to experience in a film. Like part of me, in my head, I'm like, “What was I the most terrible at?” So that then maybe I can try and top that. STAN: Yeah, it's like this is what maybe being at a concert, you know, on that stage… Then, once I finally get outside, the energy is usually so impactful that I actually get excited in a way, and then it just feels like I'm more present than I ever would think I am. I don't know, I don't know what that is. SEBASTIAN STAN: I always just wonder how I'm going to get through that for about like the first hour up to.