Seen on: March 28, 2008

The players: Director: Robert Luketic, Writers: Peter Steinfeld, Allan Loeb, Cast: Kevin Spacey, Jim Sturgess, Kate Bosworth, Laurence Fishburne, Liza LaPira

Facts of interest: Based on true events.

The plot: A gifted MIT student (Sturgess) joins a team of con artists who developed a brilliant method to always win at blackjack: counting cards.

Our quick thoughts: In Vegas, you can become anyone you want. That pretty much sums up what Robert Luketic’s latest flick “21” is all about (in one way or the other). Based on the book “Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six MIT Students Who Took Vegas for Millions” by Ben Mezrich, the film tells the adventures of Ben Campbell (Jim Sturgess), a talented MIT student who’s just a few steps away from going to Harvard Medical School. But lacking the funds to fulfill his big dream, Ben joins a team of gifted con artists who spend their weekends in Vegas counting cards to win big at black jack and cripple the casinos.

In a nutshell, the idea behind “21” is good, but the script by Peter Steinfeld and Allan Loeb is bad. The story line stays superficial throughout, and to be honest, we just watch the same thing happening over and over again. The film is of course a clever twist on the standard heist flick, but the existence of plot holes is nearly impossible to deny. In short, “21” examines the rise and fall of a gifted, ambitious college student, who’s pushed to play a dangerous game that can make him rich or corrupt his mind. As expected, Ben quickly succumbs to the power of money and turns into a real jackass, putting everything in his life on the line.

As I already mentioned, the script doesn’t do justice to the original story. Sloppy dialogue and the indisputable lack of some real action damage the plot, while the main characters start to act like over-motivated jerks who violate the game’s rules and have nothing better to do than turn against each other. I stop here because I don’t want to spoil all the fun, but you’ll probably see for yourself that the second part of the film is quite inferior to the better first hour. Several subplots, including a short romance between Ben and one of his teammates, are introduced to raise the dramatic effect of the film, but most of them fall flat because of a lack of development.

Strangely enough, despite the weakness of the script, the film is wildly entertaining. Robert Luketic, who directed the enjoyable “Legally Blonde” but messed up his reputation with “Win a Date with Ted Hamilton” and the awful “Monster-in-law,” finally moves away from romantic comedies and proves he’s a dab hand at helming a fast-paced heist flick. “21” is indeed enjoyable to watch, capturing the audience’s attention via well-structured, smooth transitions between crucial scenes and a horde of vibrating sequences in Las Vegas, where the striking colors give the film a sleek look. The sizzling soundtrack comes in handy as well.

In Jim Sturgess (“Across the Universe”), Luketic found an excellent lead actor who does a flawless job at portraying a young and innocent student changing into an unlikable bastard. At his side, Kate Bosworth not only looks stunning, but she also delivers a convincing performance. Kevin Spacey almost always hits all the right notes, and his role as ruthless MIT professor is no exception. Laurence Fishburne’s presence is a little exaggerated and not entirely convincing for my taste, but he only shows up in a few scenes anyway. 

Freaky quote: "I'm not the same guy I was back in Boston.” – Jim Sturgess

The final word: “21” is entertaining, yes, but the shallow script prevents the film from scoring big. The card games are fairly exciting to watch and the young actors (along with Spacey) make a great team to spend two hours with, even though the plot stays monotonous throughout. Luketic may be on the right track here, so let’s hope he doesn’t gamble too much and plays his cards right next time.