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Rounders

1998

John Dahl

Matt Damon, Edward Norton, Gretchen Mol, John Malkovich ...

7.0

20,638

Drama After losing a high-stakes card game, Mike gives up gambling for law school and a fresh start with his girlfriend. But then his best buddy gets out of prison and in over his head with a ruthless card shark. From there, Mike's strong sense of loyalty, and the lure of the game, draw him back to the tables in a game he cannot afford to lose! A story of passion, risk, and the extreme price of friendship in the world of high-stakes poker.

	Author	Review
United States	Janet Maslin The New York Times	"Though John Dahl's 'Rounders' finally adds up to less than meets the eye, what does meet the eye (and ear) is mischievously entertaining"	NEU
United States	Roger Ebert rogerebert.com	"As a poker movie, it's knowledgeable and entertaining (…) Rating: ★★★ (out of 4)"	POS
United Kingdom	Adam Smith Empire	"Damon does not quite cut the mustard, relying on his boyish charm too much and undercutting the tension. Not a full house by any means (…) Rating: ★★ (out of 5)"	NEG
United Kingdom	Time Out	"[It is] dazzlingly photographed by Jean-Yves Escoffier and given a smokin' score by Christopher Young. For all that, the end result is still short of a winning hand, since the screenplay is so utterly predictable"	NEU
United States	Peter Travers Rolling Stone	"In fighting to show the psychological complexities in Mike that the script ignores, Damon plays it like a rounder instead of a grinder. This kid still has surprises up his sleeve."	POS
United States	Rita Kempley The Washington Post	"Damon's character doesn't really have that much stake in the story's outcome. And while it's intermittently engaging, the drama's flatter than a sucker's wallet"	NEG
United States	Jonathan Rosenbaum Chicago Reader	"Dubious and overrated (...) [The actors] are all pretty good, but not good enough to make this 1998 feature worth seeing."	NEG

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