The Con Artists 1976

Comedy

Crime

Runtime

105 mins

Language

Italian

Directed by

Sergio Corbucci

Made by

Capital Film

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The Con Artists Plot Summary

Read the complete plot summary and ending explained for The Con Artists (1976). From turning points to emotional moments, uncover what really happened and why it matters.

In southern France during the Roaring Twenties, Philip Bang, Anthony Quinn, a notorious master con man, is being relocated to a high-security facility for hard labor after causing an uproar at supper. This move is actually part of a larger scheme to spring him from prison, arranged with the aid of his former wife and partner, Belle Duke (a casino yacht proprietor and herself a con artist), and his daughter, Charlotte. The plan rolls forward as Bang is en route to a transit facility, and at the moment of stepping out to a wagon restroom, he unexpectedly becomes an unwilling escape accomplice to another con man, the young Italian Felix, who quickly leaves Bang in the lurch.

Before Felix can enjoy his newfound freedom, Belle Duke’s men grab him, mistaking him for Bang. Once her team learns the truth, Belle Duke insists that Felix free Bang. Felix manages to slip away from her thugs, but Belle Duke uses Charlotte to set a trap, leaving Felix with little choice but to agree to her demands. Drawing on his own experience with the transit system, a purloined priest’s cassock, and a cuckoo clock bomb, Felix orchestrates Bang’s breakout. Yet Bang is reluctant to return to Belle Duke, not least because he has previously fleeced her of her wealth and now fears her vengeance.

As the pair test Felix’s skills and attitude, a fragile trio forms: Bang, Felix, and Charlotte. Charlotte has fallen in love with Felix, which adds a personal layer to the volatile partnership. Bang decides to test Belle Duke once more by staging a grand deception: they use the money they’ve scrambled together to buy a seemingly worthless swampland, presenting it as a genuine archeological sensation. The ruse relies on real museum exhibits and Bang’s old gang to lend an air of legitimacy, while a supposed black market scheme is pitched to persuade Belle Duke to pay an astronomical price for the land.

The plan momentarily ascends to a higher stakes bluff when Felix raises the ante by claiming that he has kidnapped Charlotte, exploiting Bang’s genuine distress to persuade Belle of the authenticity of their con. Felix then makes a dash with the ill-gotten funds, and is believed to have perished when his escape boat crashes into a boathouse and explodes. Soon after, the police, alerted by Felix as part of the ruse, arrive to arrest Bang. However, the supposed arrest is revealed as another layer of the deception: the police squad is Bang’s own con gang, and a motorcycle escort turns out to be Felix commanding a handful of shop-window mannequins.

After convincing Bang that the kidnapping pretense was merely a maneuver to mislead their rivals, the trio—Bang, Felix, and Charlotte—narrowly escape Belle Duke via a single-engine airplane. In a final gambit, Felix cannot resist one last flourish: when an open door scatters the fleeced 100 million Francs, he theatrically lets them spill out, only to reel them back in, each bill tied to a long line, restoring their control over the fortune and sealing their escape with a last triumphant bluff.

The Con Artists Timeline

Follow the complete movie timeline of The Con Artists (1976) with every major event in chronological order. Great for understanding complex plots and story progression.

Prison relocation triggers the jailbreak plan

In southern France during the Roaring Twenties, Bang is moved to a high-security hard-labor facility as part of a larger jailbreak scheme. The plan is orchestrated by his former wife Belle Duke and his daughter Charlotte, who enlist their aid to spring him. The transfer is presented as routine, concealing the escape plot until it is already underway.

Roaring Twenties, during transport French prison and transport facility

Bang becomes an unwilling escape aide on the train

On the move, Bang is unexpectedly pressed into aiding Felix, a younger con man, as Bang prepares to depart the train via the wagon restroom. Felix improvises a bold escape plan, pulling Bang into the role of accomplice. The unlikely partnership seeds a tangled game of cat-and-mouse between the two men.

During transfer Train en route to transit facility

Felix is mistaken for Bang and captured

Felix is mistaken for Bang and seized by Belle Duke's henchmen, who control her casino yacht. Belle Duke, furious at the mix-up, insists that Bang must be freed and brought to heel. Felix manages to slip away from the thugs, setting the stage for further confrontations.

Shortly after the mistaken capture Belle Duke's casino yacht

Belle Duke schemes with Charlotte to trap them

Belle Duke uses Charlotte to set Bang and Felix up for her own purposes, pressing them into engagement with her plans. Bang is wary, having fleeced Belle before, but he agrees to participate to secure his freedom. The arrangement deepens the manipulation and stakes of the con.

Following Felix’s escape Belle Duke’s casino operations

Felix engineers Bang’s breakout from transit facilities

Leveraging his knowledge of the transit facility, Felix stages a daring escape using a purloined priest's cassock and a cuckoo clock bomb. Bang is pulled into the breakout, and the two men re-enter Belle Duke’s orbit under new pretenses. The escape redefines their alliance and the danger they face.

During the breakout operation Transit facility

Bang hesitates to return to Belle Duke

Bang hesitates to return to Belle Duke, knowing he previously fleeced her of wealth while in prison. His reluctance creates tension but also motivates him to keep the con going for mutual advantage. The risk of Belle's revenge remains a constant cloud over their plan.

Post-breakout On the run across southern France

Felix, Bang, and Charlotte form a triad

After testing Felix’s talents and attitudes, Bang, Felix, and Charlotte become a working team. Charlotte’s loyalty and love for Felix deepen the bond between them as they plan their moves. They begin to execute more elaborate cons against Belle Duke.

Soon after breakout Hideouts along the French coast

Fake archeological sensation to fleece Belle Duke

The trio launches a fake archeological discovery, using authentic museum exhibits to lend legitimacy to a scam around a worthless swampland. They drive the price up with a believable backstory and a staged museum-grade presentation. Belle Duke is drawn in, wagering her money on the bogus find.

Mid-plot Site used for the swampland archeology ruse

Felix ups the stakes with a kidnapping pretence

To cement the illusion, Felix claims Charlotte has been kidnapped, exploiting Bang’s distressed reaction to sell the con to Belle Duke. The ruse heightens Belle Duke’s confidence in the scheme and makes her more determined to close the deal. The deception tightens the trap around Bang and Felix.

Mid-plot Belle Duke's operations base

The money heist and a fake police arrest

Felix sprints away with the money, apparently dying when his escape boat crashes into a boathouse and explodes. The police arrive, supposedly arresting Bang in despair, but the squad turns out to be Bang’s own con gang in disguise. The double bluff keeps Bang and Felix free to press the con further.

Following the crash Boathouse and riverfront

Police reveal and mannequin-led escape

The police reveal themselves as Bang’s con comrades, and Felix leads a motorcycle escort composed of shop-window mannequins. The trick deceives Belle Duke and buys them more time to plan their next move. The ruse showcases the team's theatrical cunning and resourcefulness.

Shortly after the arrest ruse Dock area and street near the boathouse

Escape by single-engine airplane

Bang, Felix, and Charlotte escape Belle Duke by slipping away on a single-engine airplane. Belle Duke’s pursuit intensifies as she realizes the con has outpaced her. The trio rides a high-altitude finale toward safety and revenge against the casino queen.

Final act Coastal airstrip / airfield

Final bluff with the cash on the wing

In a last gambit, Felix throws open the plane door and spills the fleeced 100 million Francs into the wind, only to reel them back in with a cunningly arranged line. The money is repeatedly bluffed and controlled through clever ropework and timing. The caper ends with the crew clutching their prize as Belle Duke’s pursuit fades into the clouds.

Final moment In flight over the coast

The Con Artists Characters

Explore all characters from The Con Artists (1976). Get detailed profiles with their roles, arcs, and key relationships explained.

Philip Bang (Anthony Quinn)

A notorious master con man who is relocated to a high-security facility as part of a larger escape plan. He is suave, calculating, and capable of turning tight situations to his advantage, even when his own freedom hinges on others. His past grifts have made him wary of Belle Duke's vengeance, yet his charm remains a key asset in the cons.

🧠 Strategic 🎭 Charismatic

Belle Duke (Capucine)

Owner of a casino yacht and a seasoned con artist who uses others to further her wealth and revenge. She plays rival players against each other and wields leverage over Charlotte to force Felix's cooperation. Her ruthlessness is matched by a flair for dramatic schemes.

🎭 Manipulative 💎 Wealth-focused

Félix (Adriano Celentano)

A young Italian con man who initially appears as Bang's reluctant escape aide. His ingenuity and audacity drive many of the film's key reversals, including using disguises and calculated false deaths to manipulate Belle Duke and Bang. He partners with Charlotte and Bang, testing loyalties along the way.

🧠 Inventive 🕶️ Charismatic

Charlotte (Corinne Cléry)

Bang's daughter who becomes entangled in the con's web and falls for Felix. She navigates shifting loyalties between her father and the man she loves, playing a pivotal role in the deception. Her presence humanizes the caper while increasing the stakes.

💖 Loyal 🎯 Cunning

The Con Artists Settings

Learn where and when The Con Artists (1976) takes place. Explore the film’s settings, era, and how they shape the narrative.

Time period

Roaring Twenties

The action unfolds in the 1920s, an era of newfound wealth and glamorous nightlife. Across the south of France, high-society gatherings and cunning robberies create a playground for the con artists.

Location

Southern France

Set in the sun-drenched south of France during the Roaring Twenties, the film uses the Riviera's luxury, casinos, and fast transit to stage its schemes. The glamorous backdrop blends opulence with danger as trains, casino yachts, and high-stakes cons set the pace of the story.

🎭 Glamour 🌊 Côte d'Azur 🕰️ Jazz Age

The Con Artists Themes

Discover the main themes in The Con Artists (1976). Analyze the deeper meanings, emotional layers, and social commentary behind the film.

🎭

Deception

A web of lies and misdirection drives the plot. Bang, Felix, and Belle Duke keep altering identities and schemes, while Charlotte becomes a pawn and a participant in each new ruse. The con works through layered bluffs that blur the line between truth and performance.

🧠

Cunning

Strategic wit and psychological manipulation are the engines of every move. Characters improvise with disguises, fake crimes, and carefully timed reveals to outsmart rivals. The film treats cleverness as both craft and sport.

💘

Affection

Romance and loyalty weave through the con: Charlotte's affection for Felix and Bang's guarded past with Belle Duke complicate judgments. The relationships shift alliances and motive, adding emotional stakes to the caper.

🎲

Gambling & Illusion

The plot frames crime as spectacle: fake archeological discoveries, staged kidnappings, and money tricks create a carnival atmosphere. Wealth is gambled for, and every bluff threatens to collapse under scrutiny. The con is as much about style as it is about theft.

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The Con Artists Spoiler-Free Summary

Discover the spoiler-free summary of The Con Artists (1976). Get a concise overview without any spoilers.

In the sun‑drenched Riviera of the Roaring Twenties, a world of glittering yachts, smoky cafés and whispered bets frames a tale of elegant deception. The age is one of excess and opportunity, where fortunes change hands as quickly as the tide, and the line between gentleman and cheat blurs beneath the din of accordions and clinking glasses. The film moves with a breezy, almost cinematic confidence, its tone a mix of sly humor and high‑stakes tension, inviting the audience to feel the thrill of a perfect con just before the curtain lifts.

Belle Duke commands a sleek casino yacht and a reputation for turning every gamble into a personal vendetta. Still smarting from a bitter split with her former lover, she plots a daring scheme to exact revenge, setting in motion a plan that could free the man who once out‑witted her. Across the glittering decks, Philip Bang lives as a legend of the con‑artist world, his charm matched only by his reputation for pulling the wool over anyone’s eyes. Their tangled history fuels a fragile truce that threatens to collapse under the weight of old grievances and new ambitions.

Enter Felix, an audacious Italian crook whose own appetite for risk lands him squarely in the middle of Belle’s revenge. Compelled to join forces with Philip, he discovers that the stakes are far more personal than he expected when he meets Charlotte, Philip’s determined daughter. Their connection adds a delicate thread of affection to an already precarious partnership, hinting at loyalties that might shift as quickly as the con they are about to pull. As the trio navigates a world where trust is a currency and every glance could conceal a hidden agenda, the film teases a game of wits that promises both danger and delight, leaving the audience eager to see how far each player will go to outsmart the others.

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