The Gambler

 THE GAMBLER

Director : Rupert Wyatt
Year : 2015
Genre : Drama
Rating : ***

 

Based on Karel Reiszs' 1974 cult movie of the same name, 'The Gambler' is a fun but unremarkable crime drama from 'Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes' director Rupert Wyatt. In a role originally played by James Caan, Mark Wahlberg stars as Jim Bennett -  a high school professor who suffers from a vice-like gambling addiction and is given seven days to pay off his never-ending debts. Desperately turning to a number of people for help including his wealthy mother (Jessica Lange) and a shady loan shark (an overly diaphoretic John Goodman), Bennett embarks on a perilous and possibly life-threatening quest to save his life as well as the lives of those around him.

Ever since it's somewhat mistimed release on Christmas Day, critics haven't been too kind to 'The Gambler', with some saying that the plot is too reminiscent of other casino movies while others say that Wahlberg himself is severely miscast as the central lead. However, despite it's rather clumsily written screenplay and one-dimensional characterisations, I actually found 'The Gambler' to be a rather entertaining, enjoyable and sometimes tense experience. Mark Wahlberg is, as always, a memorable and charismatic protagonist, Jessica Lange is wonderfully volcanic as his continually put-upon and increasingly rancorous mother and Wyatts direction is typically stylish and crisp. It's certainly not a great film, heck, it's not even a good film per se. But as nifty, serviceable thrillers go, you could certainly do a lot worse than this.