Collector’s Edition

“Extremely rich, very married, eminently corruptible, and a willing infidel.”

That description is used to describe the unwitting marks targeted by the titular con men in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. But except for the “very married” part, it’s also a pretty accurate depiction of the Scoundrels themselves, played here by Steve Martin and Michael Caine in a pair of very different but equally winning performances. The movie was released a little more than 30 years ago — Christmastime 1988 — which makes this a fine time to revisit the breezy, sleazy con men comedy thanks to this Collector’s Edition from Shout Select.

Lawrence Jamieson (Caine) is a suave and sophisticated English con man who operates in the town of Beaumont sur Mer on the French Riviera. With the help of corrupt police official Andre (Anton Rodgers), Lawrence seduces and scams rich married women by posing as a prince in peril. It’s a very lucrative set-up until Lawrence bumps into Freddy Benson (Martin), an upstart American hustler making his way to Beaumont sur Mer. Lawrence has received word of a con artist known as “the Jackal” operating in the area, so he is on high alert when Freddy enters the picture.
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