In 1974, James Caan starred in a film called The Gambler. While I never saw the film, people seemed to like it and it garnered Cann a Golden Globe nomination. Fast forward 40 years and Paramount’s bringing us a remake of the same film, this time starring a slimmed down Mark Wahlberg in the titular role.
Directed by Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) from a screenplay by William Monahan (The Departed), The Gambler follows a literature professor named Jim Bennett (Wahlberg) who has a gambling problem. He’s an all or nothing gambler and for some reason loves to lose all the money he’s won. As a high stakes gambler who doesn’t know when to quit, Jim eventually digs himself into a debt hole so big that he’s given one week to pay back his loans to a powerful Korean (Mister Lee-Alvin Ing) who runs an underground gambling spa as well as a loan shark named Neville (Michael Kenneth Williams) who doesn’t like to be given the runaround. How much does he owe? $260K. At the same time, he slowly begins to start something with one of his brightest students, a girl (Brie Larson) who has seen him outside of class in his other life. This film follows Jim and how his two lives eventually clash.
Movies about gambling always interest me. Anything high stakes and with a lot on the line usually means you’ll be sucked into a film whether it’s good or not. Unfortunately, The Gambler doesn’t fully capitalize on that easy, surefire gimmick. Instead, it takes a different and more difficult road to get to the ending that you could predict before the film really gets its wheels turning.
The Gambler isn’t your typical gambling film. It’s as much about addiction as it is about a guy trying to pay his debt off, but the problem is the guy is a self-deprecating asshole who just doesn’t care about life. He encourages death throughout the entire film and even when other people attempt to care for him he finds a way to shove them out of his life. It’s for that latter reason that you can’t invest yourself fully in the character and find ways to root for him. On the other hand, it’s this completely selfish, arrogant and condescending nature that also makes Jim an interesting character. He is a man that could have it all. He comes from a wealthy family, has a good job, is an accomplished novelist and happens to be good looking, but he prefers to be the model for how to throw everything good in your life down the toilet. In fact, that’s the reason why you can’t turn away from the film. This guy’s stubborn nature is what encourages you to stick around and see how else he can screw up his life or, eventually, those around him.
When it comes to the performances, pacing and structure, I thought everyone did a nice job. It was nice to see Wahlberg slim out for a role, truly trying to change up his appearance and take a crack at a character that’s both incredibly smart and incredibly dumb. Brie Larson’s role was very small but she made the most of her time. Williams was also solid but whenever John Goodman was on the screen, he stole the show because he’s just that damn good. Rupert Wyatt did a good job pacing the film, making sure there wasn’t much down time and that Jim was always working on something. I will say the writing could have been better as well as the structure of the film. It all just felt too formulaic and because of that it prevented me from becoming engrossed in the film, especially since this is a Hollywood film and you can imagine how it’s going to play out at the end after the first 20-30 minutes.
While I can’t compare this film to the original, what I can say is that The Gambler is decent enough for one watch. It isn’t something that would get better over time nor is it a film that needs multiple viewings. It’s enough to entertain you for its 111 minute duration but it can feel trying at times because of how frustrating Jim is as a character. I did have fun watching the film and enjoyed how far Jim would go with his terrible personality, but the film did feel a bit hollow and something that could have been better if it had taken some risks.
Rating: A mediocre gambling film that doesn’t take enough risks to warrant more than one viewing (5.9/10)
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