Roger Ebert, in his review of "Nine Queens" for the "Chicago Sun-Times", gave the film a score of three out of four stars, commending its screenplay and calling the film "an elegant and sly deadpan comedy." Michael Wilmington of the "Chicago Tribune" awarded the film three-and-a-half out of four stars, and called it "One of the most clever, most enjoyable thrillers in years." "Orlando Sentinel" film critic Roger Moore gave the film four stars out of five, writing, "the laughs are dark, the puzzle steadily more engrossing and the surprises, just like "Heist", are doozies, up to the finale." Edward Guthmann of the "San Francisco Chronicle" also gave the film a positive review, writing: "Fast-paced and unerringly surprising, "Nine Queens" is nicely performed by a large cast [...] David Mamet plowed this con-the-con turf in "Heist", "House of Games" and "The Spanish Prisoner", but Bielinsky, in his directing debut, makes it seem sassy and reinvented."