21 (Robert Luketic, 2008): USA

Reviewed by William Conlin. Viewed on Netflix Instant View.

For anyone who has ever played blackjack in Las Vegas, Robert Lucketic’s casino caper 21 is more of a fantasy film than a drama. But despite its outwardly enjoyable nature, this film has just as many flaws as it does successes. So instead of my standard reviewing style I’ve decided to post the “Pros” and “Cons” of this film.

MIT student Ben Campbell is the smartest in his class. He can disprove Newton’s principles and design cars that drive themselves, but there’s one field he’s lacking in: money. He needs $300,000 to attend Harvard and has no clue how to pay it. When he’s invited to join a group of elite mathematicians for the chance of a lifetime, Ben finds his financial solution in the form of card counting in Vegas. But with the thrill of the game, the danger of the heist and the chance to finally fulfill his dream, Ben finds himself tangled in a game with much higher stakes than Blackjack.

First, let’s look at performances:
PRO: Kevin Spacey and Laurence Fishburne. Both actors not only play their characters with precision, they manage to completely dwarf the principle actors in the process. Spacey portrays the MIT professor who organizes the card counting operation and Fishburne is the casino watchdog tasked with ending it. Though the two actors barely interact, their characters’ animosity is palpable throughout the film.
CON: Jim Sturgess. Jim Sturgess is one of my favorite young actors today but this role was not meant for him. His attempt at a Boston accent leaves a sour taste in your mouth for the whole film and his transition from geek to hero (that everyone expects to see) happens in such a convoluted manner that it makes you wonder why they didn’t just cut the second act right out of the film.

Now to the all important production value:
PRO: Cinematographer Russell Carpenter.  He carpenters camera angles that lend an interesting feel to otherwise mundane scenes. His use of long, smooth shots captures the “chaotic order” that is Las Vegas and his interesting use of ultra slow frame-rates gives the sharpest moments of the film an added intensity.
CON: Editor Elliot Graham. Sadly, this film was not edited well. Graham takes otherwise well-made scenes and dulls them down with extremely noticeable jump cuts and continuity errors.

And finally, let’s talk about the film’s content:
PRO: Concept. Who doesn’t want to take a Vegas casino for millions of dollars? The sheer idea of this film (and the fact that it’s based on a true story) is enough to make a gambler’s mouth water.
CON: The script. Peter Steinfeld and Allan Loeb’s script has some interesting moments but overall the film is chock-full of pop culture clichés and jokes more likely to come from an old “B movie” than a current drama.

Though I enjoyed watching this film because I like the game of Blackjack, unless you are interested in gambling, I’d say pass. The casual “Vegas” film watcher would probably be much happier with something along the line of Ocean’s Eleven.

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Published:
07.06.09 / 1am
Category:
Films, Online Films