"Rounders" (1998)

Earlier this week Jim tweeted to me that we have more Brian Cox movies on the blog than Matt Damon movies. This made me realize that I haven't seen a Matt Damon movie recently, this made me sad. So to counteract that immediate feeling of depression, I looked up in my library for any Damon movie. And now we are here, a copy of "Rounders" landed in my hands. To my surprise Edward Norton, another actor I enjoy, shares the cover with Damon on this movie. Actually there is a handful amount of notable actors in this movie.



Like many any other poker movies, there is always a man trying to break his gaming habits and go straight. This is where we meet Mike McDermott (Damon) who quits the game after going broke on one hand with KGB (John Malkovich), a Russian mobster who runs his own poker games. As Mike goes straight, finishing off his schooling to be a Lawyer, he is slowly lured back into poker. The final nail in the casket is when his long time friend Lester 'Worm' Murphy (Norton) is free from the slammer, and the two dive back into their old habits. They stroll into other games, play by their rules and take everyone for what they got. But Mike tries to convince Worm to go straight, it doesn't work. Not even two weeks after being released, Worm racks up a debt of 7 grand from a local club and 25 from outstanding debts. After getting some serious heat, Worm skips town and after vouching for him, Mike needs to win back all the debt that Worm raked up.

Worm, Mike and Knish take apart the tourist at Atlantic City.

The main attraction to the movie is the acting. The two friends, Mike and Worm were wonderfully played by their respected actors. But that was expected from those two. The biggest surprise was John Malkovich, the man who can play a thousand different characters. And there is no reason why you wouldn't pick him to play the most interesting Russian mobster this side of Queens. There is something interesting about listening to Malkovich's voice with a strong Russian accent, it was amusing to say the least. John Turturro is in this film, and he plays Knish the safe cool headed business owner. He runs his own business of grinding out money out of newbies. He doesn't make the high bets, but he takes enough to pay his rent and put food on the table.

I wouldn't say I'm an expert on poker, actually calling me average would be a compliment. But I do know enough to get what is happening on the table. Watching the action of the poker games is intense for the most of it. And watching the smooth tatics of Mike clean up and figuring out how the crooked Worm will mess everything up makes it all the more fun. The final one-on-one battle between KGB and Mike was a tad bit cliche and felt kind of cheesy, but it was one of the most tense movies in the movie. When a movie makes a turn of the card make me sweat, it must have done something right. It is especially fun to listen to Mike narrate all the different types of poker players, moves and strategies. I'm not sure how much of it is correct, but again it was entertaining.

Malkovich plays one badass Russian.

I can't say this movie is for everyone, but it does make for a great drama movie. As a poker fan I enjoyed it enough, and as a fan of most of the actors on screen it was great. They all played their unique characters well and it was intriguing to see how they all react to similar positions. It isn't the best movie I've seen this month, but it definitely the best one this work week.