The Gambler

By: Robert Murphy 

Putting it all on the line and gambling away my hard earned cash has never been an idea that never really appealed to me, the odds never looked favorable to me so I've stayed clear of gambling. Jim Bennett (Mark Wahlberg) doesn't seem to share this fear though and after a touching goodbye from his grandfather in the opening scenes for The Gambler, he runs off to try his luck with a fresh ten grand in his pocket. It seems for him, the thrill of betting it all appeals to him more than the average gambler out there but with debts to every loan guy around, you would think he'd take the money and run. This isn't the case though as Jim will dig himself further and further into debt and his own grave if he doesn't turn things around. The cocky smile that is constantly strewn across Mr.Bennett's face for the entirety of the movie makes me think that there is much more going on then there actually is. 

It would turn out that Mark Wahlberg's cocky demeanor for the entire movie would prove to be the downfall of his character as a whole. You would expect a man who has powerful people threatening to kill him at every turn and even laying out some plastic sheets like a scene right out of Dexter to be the tiniest bit frightened for his life but Jim never really seems to care. You could say that he has a death wish but that's not really the case, even though he spots off to his would be killers, powerful and intimidating Frank (John Goodman), gangster turned loan sharking/entrepreneur Neville Baraka (Michael Kenneth Williams) and Mister Lee (Alvin Ing). This isn't the case though because about halfway through The Gambler you learn what Jim is all about and that is the fact that beating the odds and creating that magical black jack hit come real is as close to something real that he has ever felt. In fact, his powerful speech to his would be girlfriend, Amy (Brie Larson), was probably the one moment I enjoyed his character because it's the only part that actually felt real to me. The rest of the time his character, as I said, runs around pushing everyone's buttons like a little kid in a grocery store. He never seems to be in any real danger throughout the whole shabang and with a drama about being indebted to powerful people and fighting for your life, shouldn't you feel something close to an adrenaline rush while watching?  

Scenes that did get my blood pumping were the moments spent away from Bennett's lack of concern for his own well being and others around him. The trio of loan sharking big wigs I mentioned before were particularly some of the best. Michael Williams playing the guy who wants to get out of this life of beating people senseless and illegal activity does a great job and changing Bennett's attitude at every turn. He is responsible for the Dexter scene I mention earlier. Alvin Ing also plays the role of the elderly underground casino boss that has been around the block more than a dozen times and is someone you won't want to disappoint when a loan payment comes knocking, his icy stare and overtones making you think just that. John Goodman was particularly enjoyable, his first meeting with Jim would leave any man demoralized at the terms he sets out for his loan and pretty much says what we're all thinking about Jim as a character, he's scum. Later on, Goodman's go fuck yourself speech left me in stitches, it was like listening to the speech from Team America World Police as it turns the f-word into a work of art. All three do a great job and also put Wahlberg's character to shame as they pretty much upstage his performance whenever he is on screen with one of them. 

Near the end of The Gambler, you will see Bennett's plan finally start to take shape a little bit at a time. The whole thing revolves around him borrowing money from each of the bosses one more time and betting it all big time and start clean. This, of course, doesn't get your blood pumping any more than watching him widdle away whatever money comes his way. Even the 240,000 dollars he receives from his mother, Roberta (Jessica Lange), an event which frankly made me wanna tear my hair out and punch the guy in the face but Lange practically does that for me and you. Bennett though is able to get his big pay out and be set free from all of his debts, a momentous occasion that causes him to run out into the night and reenacting a scene from Rocky as he trained for the fight. Why he didn't just pay off his debts with the money from his mother I'll never know, maybe he wanted one last "fooled you all" moment but if that's the case it wasn't presented very well. 

In the end, The Gambler is a rather poor effort at a drama, there literally is NONE to begin with anyways. Bennett spends most of the film running around town not giving a damn about what's happening around him, the fact that he is a liberal arts teacher at a college making it all worse as he spots out philosophical gibberish to the viewers and his class. Supporting characters such as John Goodman, Jessica Lange and Michael Kenneth Williams steal the show with their performances but you need more than what you get from them to save a movie like this. 

Good:

- Goodman, Lange and the other supporting actors 

- Some funny dialogue, John Goodman's speech in particular

Bad:

- Mark Wahlberg's Bennett is cocky and does not make you feel any sense of danger or intrigue for his situation

- The lack of any sort of drama for the situations is very apparent 

- The played out literary teacher angle

Scully Rating: 3.0 out of 10  

Gone Girl

By: Robert Murphy

Often times I will look on in ridicule of those Real Housewives TV shows and think about how someone can be so spoiled and self righteous but after watching Gone Girl, I learned what a truly self righteous woman is like. Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) plays the suburban husband and upon watching the first scene I was thinking that things were going to start out sweet until I heard his voice dictate his intent to smash open her head to reveal the secrets behind his wife, Amy Dunne (Rosamund Pike), soft hearted smile. This notion sets the tone for a movie that I knew was meant to be a little of quilter but I had no idea what I was in for once things started to develop. Nick soon learns that a happy wife is not one that is obtained with a nice home and nice things and if you get lazy in your marriage, you're going to pay the price for it. 

As it is with most any love story things start off fairly gooshy and romantic for this couple, the two share experiences that would make anyone want to puke sunshine and rainbows at how sickeningly good together Nick and Amy are and the two knew this. They both enjoyed being the best couple that they knew, they challenged one another, loved one another and it's actually quite a nice story. We jump to present day and the couple are living in Nick's childhood town after his mother had gotten sick and they moved from New York to try and help her get well. Things are no longer sizzling though between the two and after five years of being together divorce seemed to be coming right around the corner, that is until the morning of their fifth anniversary Amy goes missing. The only thing we are left with are the standard anniversary clues that she leaves for Nick to lead him to his anniversary gift and her narration of her and Nick's life together in her diary entries. As things develop and more and more unravels, Nick begins to look like the fall guy for his wife's murder and his actions during the search for her certainly aren't helping his case. When we start having the truth come out, everything gets much worse for Nick and it's hard to see how he will ever find the truth if he ends up locked away for his wife's murder. 

In any relationship I'm sure that either side would love to know what the other was thinking about the other, it is hard to trust someone and Gone Girl won't make your trust issues any easier when you learn what Amy has done to her husband. The odds from the get go are placed in Nick's favor though because the story follows him getting the clues to Amy's scavenger hunt which turn out to reveal a lot more than a gift for her supposedly loving husband. Even though things haven't gone down a nice path for the two, he is still a good guy but he is left hanging with all the evidence piling against him. What his wife forgets though is that he use to be just as committed to their little game of being better than everyone else at a relationship and that's when the table begins to turn on Amy's story. 

The second half of the movie reveals that in fact Nick is the sap of this story and is stuck in a scheme so meticulously thought out that not even Johnnie Cochran could get him out of it, luckily he does have a killer lawyer, Tanner Bolt (Tyler Perry), to help out. Amy gets to tell the adventure she's been on since her disappearance and how she is throwing everything to the wind especially her figure as she mows down on Kit Kats, donuts and all manner of goodies. This also reveals all the hard work and preparation that went into her disappearance, so much so that it literally scared the crap out of me and I had to take a minute to contemplate all she has done. Things don't stay all peachy for her though as she runs into some back woods trouble as she hides out and has to fall back on an old wealthy fling by the name of Desi (Neil Patrick Harris). It almost enough to make you laugh when you see how things turn out for her and by the end I almost did laugh when things change pacing from tragedy to insanity. 

Gone Girl does exactly what it sets out to do and that's make an almost detective like movie for the viewer to watch and solve. I don't think it will make you re-examine your own marriages or relationships in any way because even though there are some extremely crazy people out there, not everyone is in a relationship quite like this one. I really enjoyed all aspects of the movie personally especially when the narrative for Amy finally reflects her true feelings. She finally gives up or is free in a manner of speaking after faking her death and she recounts everything she doesn't have to do for Nick anymore like stay a size 2 and no more blowjobs, she doesn't have to be that person anymore. Nick's narrative I also enjoyed once he realizes to give up on the fact that he's been a good husband in recent years and refers to himself as an asshole. Once he starts to play Amy's game too things get more exciting in the story and had me right till the end. Gone Girl does hit the solid points of an American failing marriage and I think people will see that, everything else though may be up for your own interpretation.

Good:

- A great mystery slash suspense story

- Affleck and Pike preform both their roles beautifully

- Pike's ill gotten adventures after her disappearance 

Bad:

- The ending may not sit well with people

Scully Rating: 8.8 out of 10