Fans of gambling movies will be able to watch the latest Rupert Wyatt’s film called “The Gambler” in theatres this Christmas. The leading role in the film is played by Mark Wahlberg and it is a remake of a 1974 movie that has the same title and features James Caan as the protagonist.
The story is about Jim Bennett, played by Mark Wahlberg, who is an English college professor in Los Angeles by day and a high roller by night. Bennet is in denial of his gambling addiction and eventually finds himself owning $240,000 to a Koreantown casino. To make everything more interesting for the audience and worse for the professor, he decides to take loans from a gangster called Neville Baraka. Baraka’s character is portrayed by Michael Kenneth Williams.
Throughout the film viewers see Bennett’s attempts to pay off his debt and clear his name. His efforts introduce us to various relationships he has with other people. One of those people is a student named Amy (Brie Larson) who works as a part-time waitress at one of the casinos where he plays. Wahlberg’s character also deals with his wealthy mother (Jessica Lange) and Frank (John Goodman) who is an infamous loan shark.
As viewers can guess, Bennett’s situation goes out of control and creates one fast paced film that includes lots of gambling, rhetoric and violence. At some point there is even some philosophy and throughout the film there is an emphasis on the novel “The Stranger” by Albert Camus.
Since this film is a remake, everyone was sceptical about the final product which was expected to be worse than the original. However, “The Gambler” has already received some good reviews and the strong cast is praised for its performance. Naturally, the one that has to be congratulated is Mark Wahlberg who took the role very seriously and did a good job portraying Bennett’s character.