Rating

8 / 10

Starring

Jim Sturgess, Kevin Spacey, Kate Bosworth, and Laurence Fishburne

The plot

A 21-year-old from MIT is drafted by his crafty math professor to play in a group of six students trying their hands at counting cards in Las Vegas.

The good

Some will be upset that Sturgess is devoid of the sexy English accent he toted in “Across the Universe,” but this does not mean he is without charm. Perhaps this is because of his impeccable ability to wear his heart on his sleeve, as he vividly displays each and every emotion on his face. With such an easily readable mug, it’s a good thing they weren’t playing poker.

The camera work in this film is amazing, full of close-ups of the players and their cards. It makes the viewer feel as though they are part of the game.

One scene in particular is shot in slow motion, following Sturgess as he counts the cards in his head. This sort of display paired with the the explanation of card jargon at the beginning of the film make it easy for anyone to understand the game, whether they are a card shark or merely a Go Fish aficionado.

The shots of Las Vegas, both inside the casinos and out on the strip, are equally impressive. The sparkling lights and loud music portray Las Vegas as a city of temptation and desire.

The bad

With a movie that has an obvious theme such as cards, it is difficult to avoid the temptation to use cheesy puns, and unfortunately, the writers of “21” were not able to resist. The film is littered with subtle lines like, “Basic strategy says you should hit that” in reference to a sultry casino patron in a tight mini skirt.

Cheesy puns are not the only instance of bad writing in the movie. Lawrence Fishbourne’s character, an old Las Vegas thug turned casino security guard, is full of pathetic one-liners that attempt to make him more “tough” such as, “You wanna fight the system? This is the system!” as he punches Ben Campbell (Sturgess) in the face.

He tries too hard to be a true thug. Just being Lawrence Fishburne should be enough intimidation and power needed for the role.

In one of the final scenes of the movie, the card counters wear disguises to hide their identities from the casino security. Sturgess looks a bit like Kip from “Napoleon Dynamite,” Kate Bosworth wears a brown wig and Kevin Spacey decides to dress like Bono.

This was too much. Maybe this was an attempt toward comic relief, but it really was unsettling to see one of my favorite actors in that horrendous get-up.

The lowdown: “21” is an exciting and clever movie. Like they say with a winning hand of blackjack, this one is a “Winner, winner, chicken dinner.”