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Dir. Robert Luketic
Rating: 4.4 | 1 User Review | Send to Friend
By Stacy Lipson
"Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner," the catch phrase shouted in the Vegas casinos when a gamer seems about to hit a winning streak, is, perhaps, as close to realistic casino action as this limp thriller by director Robert Luketic gets. A direct shame, as the film is based on fascinating real events, which, left to their own devices, should have been more than enough. For M.I.T student Ben Campbell (Jim Sturgess), the dream of going to Harvard Medical School is within his grasp. All Campbell has to do is impress a swanky Harvard Medical School admissions officer, proving he deserves a scholarship. With the help of Micky Rosa (Kevin Spacey), a genius mathematics professor and fellow student Jill Taylor (Kate Bosworth), Ben learns the secret of blackjack: card counting. Every weekend, Ben and his fellow sidekicks fly out to Las Vegas to try their luck at the casinos. Although the film starts with good intentions -- cue chase scenes and angry casino bosses -- it fails on even the most fundamentally basic tenements of realism and storytelling. In some ways, it struggles to resemble the style and oozing charm of Steven Soderburgh's Vegas-based Ocean’s series, but with very little of the verve -- or the star power -- to hold our attention. Spacey’s role is regulated to the sidelines for much of the film and Bosworth -- coming off of a humiliatingly bad turn as Lois Lane in Superman Returns does nothing to burnish her tarnished sheen here. Viewers hoping for an action-packed film about the Las Vegas limelight will leave wishing they hadn’t bothered.
The disc also comes with blackjack training videos, director's commentary, and a small doc about the lifestyle of the rich and gambling.
1 User Review
Rating: 8.0
By: Mandy
I think this review is a bit harsh on the movie. Perhaps it's my undying love for all things Jim Sturgess, but I thought this movie was clever and well thought out. I had bought it On Demand and played it a second time immediately after I watched it the first time. One should never go based on the previews featured on t.v. to determine how a movie will pan out. As for the lack of "star power," who says that you need the most familiar of actors and actresses in a film to make it good? Not to mention, the soundtrack used for this film was very fitting. MGMT's "Time to Pretend," LCD Soundsystem's "Big Ideas," and Peter Bjorn and John's ever popular "Young Folks" to name a few really helped maintain the fast-paced action of Las Vegas and the thrill of hitting the casinos. I'm a big gambling junkie (delving in blackjack, but sticking mostly to texas hold'em) and this movie held its own. While I haven't seen Rounders in quite sometime, I feel that 21 might exceed my expectations when it comes to depicting the thrills and chills of gambling (in different ways of course). Or maybe I'm way off-base, I was one of the few that was extremely disappointed with Pineapple Express, which so many praised...
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