The true story of MIT whiz kids who developed a system to take Las Vegas blackjack tables for all they were worth gets the big screen make over in 21. Under the tutelage of college professor and former card counter extraordinaire Mickey Rosa (Kevin Spacey), five college kids battle not only the mathematical odds, but Vegas security, internal divisions and their own mentor in this flick about gambling’s highs and lows. The cast and filmmakers have a juicy piece of source material to work with, but can their adaptation match the giddy thrills of gambling in the real world?
Unfortunately, no. The reworking of the actual events takes the most predictable, generic route possible and short changes the inherent drama and excitement of the story they are telling, so much so that the plot accurately unfolds in your mind about five minutes before it does on screen. They can’t even get the cookie cutter, everyman hero right. Ben Campbell (Jim Sturges, Across the Universe) is clearly intended to be the protagonist we can all relate too, because we all aspire to attend Harvard due to our mathematical prowess, right? No matter, he can come across as delightfully dull, that’ll bring him down to our level. He can be in love with an unattainable girl- Kate Bosworth, playing a fellow brainiac, which is admittedly unintentionally funny at first. As for visual style, think a whole lot of flashy music video techniques that are somewhat impressive but ultimately contribute nothing. If it’s a visual metaphor for the gaudy but shallow world of Las Vegas, it only works on a level that reinforces the suspicion that the film you are watching is empty of real emotion and ideas, so kind of pointless in the end.
It’s not all terrible. Spacey as the manipulative mentor and Laurence Fishburne as the casino security specialist are both great characters well acted by two talented veterans. Had the film been built around the long simmering conflict between these two it could have been more engrossing. The finale is also an exciting action set piece, although it’s counterproductive to the cautionary tale that the plot seemed to be aiming for until that point. In a way, it best sums up how 21 can’t decide if it wants to be a fun popcorn flick like Oceans 11 or a stylish examination of greed and power like Casino. It ends up failing at both.
The conclusion has Ben asking his Harvard interviewer, “Did I dazzle you? Did I jump off the page?” No you didn’t Ben, you left me decidedly under-whelmed. Now get the hell out of my office.
