PAGE 32 - KANATA KOURIER-STANDARD - APRIL 4, 2008

Arts & Entertainment REEL REVIEWS

3.5 OUT OF 5 STARS
KATIE BRADFORD

Gambling cool again in film about poker playing prodigies

Poker seems to have found new popularity lately, making card playing and gambling cool again. While 21 doesnt glamorize poker, it does hype up the card shark . . . and interestingly enough, the nerd. If you read this column last week, youll know that there are some nerd movies that really grind my gears with their stupid clichs and glorification of violence. Luckily, this film (for the most part) avoids these issues. 21 follows MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology ) student Ben Campbell, a math prodigy hoping to go to Harvard medical school. Bosworth), the object of Bens desire. So, thinking with his checkbook and . . . other parts . . . Ben decides to sign up. We t h e n f o l l ow h i m through the year as he takes weekend trips to Vegas, narrowly avoiding capture by the scary security consultant Cole Williams (Laurence Fishburne) and his goons who dont take kindly to the team legally taking thousands a week from the casino. For the most part, this is an excellent movie. The style of filmmaking from director Robert Luketic (Legally Blonde) is far more skilled and crisp than his previous work. The card theme is used quite often to add flair, and creative camera angles also keep the viewer interested. Vegas feels as glitzy as the characters think it is, bringing us to their level and sharply contrasting the bleak, snowy Boston where

KATIE BRADFORD

The only problem? Hes broke, and school costs $300,000 (and to think I complain about $6,000). Enter Micky Rosa (Kevin Spacey), professor by day, leader of a secret society of blackjack cheaters by night. These misfits are some of the schools smartest students, and theyre all card counters. The team includes the beautiful Jill Taylor (Kate

"There are also holes in the plot. For instance, were told that Ben is one of the most brilliant kids at the school. If this is true, which it appears to be, why oh why would he not put his money in the bank!" Katie Bradford
they reside on weekdays. The main issue in the film is the writing. Based

on the novel Bringing Down the House by Ben Mezrich, one of the films top marketing points is its true story status. This is believable, especially in the realistic characters. The nerds are nerds, and not in pocket protector, nasally voiced kind of way. The problem in writing arises from the many terrible one liners that spew from the mouths of great actors such as Fishburne, Spacey, and even Sturgess (who recently shot to fame in Across the Universe and The Other Boleyn Girl). The result diminishes the effect of the rest of the film. The cool shots, the fantastic editing, the great talent, is placed in the shadow of terrible dialogue. There are also holes in the plot. For instance, were told that Ben is one of the most

brilliant kids at the school. If this is true, which it appears to be, why oh why would he not put his money in the bank! I ask you: do the ceiling panels of your dorm room seem like a safe place to keep $300,000? I can name a dozen reasons why its not (these include fire, water mane breaks and the most obvious theft), and Im not at MIT or building robots. In all, though, the film is sexy, current and exciting. It appeals to its obvious demographic, the 18 to 25 year old crowd, with its portrayal of student lifestyle and student issues (if I could do math, I would be counting cards too!). However, the inclusion of seasoned actors helps this film also market to a crowd that hopefully is done with exams, lecture halls and all-nighters.

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