21 Movie Review
Kevin Spacey and Laurence Fishburne give gravitas to bland film.
21 is a lifeless adaptation of the acclaimed true life novel "Bringing Down the House", which recounts the adventures of a group of MIT students who took on Las Vegas.
21 is a generic re-telling of an extraordinary story
21 stars British actor Jim Sturgess (Across the Universe) as Ben, a brilliant yet socially awkward MIT student who has aspirations to attend Harvard Medical School, yet he cannot afford the enormous tuition fee. Enter the devious mathematics professor Micky Rosa (Kevin Spacey, Superman Returns) who recruits Ben to be apart of his card counting scheme poised to make millions from the blackjack tables in Las Vegas.
From then on, 21 follows the usual generic formula seen in most of these films as a simple man becomes seduced by wealth and power, only to crash and burn due to his inflamed ego and the shady dealings of his mentor. The use of a narrator enhances its generic vibe, and a fantastical conclusion ruins whatever realistic credentials it had going for it.
21 dazzles with its visuals, yet drops the ball with its insipid screenplay
Australian director Robert Luketic (Legally Blonde) provides plenty images of the glitzy casinos and nightspots which make up the city of sin, Las Vegas. These images are coupled with a never ending string of montages featuring marathon sessions of blackjack and copious amounts of partying.
Yet just like Las Vegas itself, it is all a distraction meant to occupy the senses while taking the viewer for a ride, as the films source material is white washed under the guise of dramatic licence into a formulaic gambling / grifter movie, and not a very good one at that.
This is a shame when considering the potential this film had due mostly to its engrossing and fantastical original material. It fails to excite, is way too long (coming in at 123 min), and sides with style over substance.
Kevin Spacey and Laurence Fishburne save 21 from crapping out
21 takes a further misstep with the casting of Jim Sturgess in the lead role. He just does not contain an alluring presence to compensate for the films weak script, nor does he draw the attention of the films viewers. However, the presence of two time Oscar winning actor Kevin Spacey (who is also one of the films producers) and the Oscar nominated Laurence Fishburne (What’s Love Got to Do With It) does the film wonders as they lend gravitas in their roles of devious maths teacher and old school security consultant respectively. None of the films young cast can match up against these two fine actors, who are sorely missed when they are not on the screen.
