“If you can’t spot the sucker in the first half hour at the table, you are the sucker.” With those words, begins the tale of Mike McDermott (Matt Damon), a card shark who plays people as well as he does cards. Nonetheless, Mike is still looking for his shot at the World Poker Championship. When we join him, Mike is playing in a backroom game of no limit, Texas Hold’em, with $30,000 of his own money at stake. Unfortunately he gets cocky, misreads opponent Teddy KGB (John Malkovich), and busts out.
Nine months later, Mike has left the game. He delivers boxes and plans for the future by attending law school. He could get back in the game at anytime, but he’s promised his girlfriend Jo (Gretchen Mol) that he’s through with cards. He keeps that promise until his former partner Lester ‘Worm’ Murphy (Edward Norton) is released from prison. Worm, also a card player, quickly accumulates debt, which is added to the debt he accumulated before his incarceration. Worm has angered various people who run games in the area, and his debts are held by loan shark Grama (Michael Rispoli) who purchased them all with funds from KGB. Under persistent pressure from Worm, it’s not long before Mike is drawn back to cards. When Mike makes the mistake of vouching for Worm, he finds that his life is on the line. Suddenly he has just two days to come earn $15,000, or he can forget about living happily ever after.
The brilliance of Rounders lies in its subtle performances. Each of the characters say more with their facial expressions than any great speeches, or dramatic flushes. Sure, Malcovich gets his chance to act slightly loopy when his Russian accented character gets angry, but it’s still the small subtle acting that really makes the movie. In a story about card games and relationships, special effects, CGI, etc. aren’t a factor. Therefore, the characters have to be developed and interesting enough to draw us in to their story; we have to care about them. Damon even gets the chance to shine with his narration, which pulls some great one liners off, even if the narration seems uncomfortable with foul language at the beginning of the picture. If there is a weak performance here, it’s Gretchen Mol. She doesn’t bring a lot of emotion to her role as Mike’s girlfriend, who’s so frustrated by his gambling she leaves. She’s empty.
Director John Dahl (The Last Seduction) has done a great job at making a smart film while maintaining a sense of flashiness. Some of the style is also thanks to Christopher Young’s amazing score for the film, which captures both the feel of the dazzle of Vegas, as well as underground nightclubs. If you’re a fan of poker, Rounders comes highly recommended.
Brought to Blu-ray in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio, this 1080p transfer not reference quality stuff, but it’s the best Rounders has ever looked. During the daylight scenes fine object detail is rather good, and clarity quite pleasing. Many of the indoor scenes, however, look a bit soft. Contrast levels are somewhat inconsistent. Colors are strong, as are details, though we do get some loss of detail in a few wider shots.
The Dolby Digital 5.1 track found on the previous DVD releases has been replaced with a DTS HD Master Audio track. Dialogue is the main draw here as Damon’s character narrates the majority of the film. The surrounds don’t get much of a workout as much of the background audio consists of poker chips clacking and cards shuffling. There are a handful of scenes that sound decent, but by and large this is a surround mix.
All of the special features found here were on the special collector’s edition DVD release put out a few years ago. Frankly, none of it is very special. We get an audio commentary by director John Dahl, screenwriters David Levien and Brian Koppelman, and actor Edward Norton. The second audio commentary features a group of professional poker players. The filmmakers talk about making the movie as well as what they learned about poker during production, and the poker players comment on the realism of the poker-playing in the movie.
There´s a behind-the-scenes featurette that is brief and superficial. “Inside Professional Poker” gives professional poker players the opportunity to talk about how great their profession is. Four pro-players offer poker advice in “Champion Poker Tips.” “Heads Up Texas Hold ´Em” gives you tips about how to play a certain kind of poker.
