Film

Deal

Matthew Scott Hunter

When I first sat down with Deal, I thought it must be bluffing. No, I thought—there’s no way this movie’s as clichéd and flat as it’s letting on. It must be baiting me in—lowering my expectations with this unoriginal tale of an aged poker has-been who takes a promising young protégé under his wing and shows him the ropes—so I won’t see the reversal coming. Then suddenly I realized that there was no reversal coming. There was no bluff. This movie’s cards really were this bad. And now I have a desperate urge to cash in my chips and leave.

A particularly old and arthritic-looking Reynolds plays Tommy Vinson, the Fast Eddie Felson character in this blatant Color of Money rip-off. Tommy could’ve been the best, but quit gambling 20 years ago when it almost destroyed his marriage. Enter Alex Stillman (Harrison), a 21-year-old kid in whom Tommy sees potential after witnessing him play a single hand of poker. It’s not long before Tommy decides to stake Alex (because it doesn’t count as gambling as long as you’re betting your money on whether another person wins or loses, right?).

The film then begins to deal out its own version of poker wisdom (which I wouldn’t recommend taking to the casino tables). Basically, it’s all got to do with tells. Every player has an extremely obvious tell, and if you can hide your own, then you can win every hand without even looking at your cards. Even with poker simplified down to one ludicrous lesson, it takes a frustrating length of time for Alex to figure it out.

A subplot—involving Alex in a handful of embarrassing scenes with Shannon Elizabeth—results in an exceptionally unsurprising twist, which puts the relationship between Tommy and Alex on the rocks. So will mentor and student enter in the same high-stakes competition? Will our estranged protagonists inevitably go head to head at the final table? Will the ending be shamelessly stolen from another recent (and equally awful) poker movie called Lucky You? You won’t find safer bets than these anywhere in Vegas. 

Deal

  * 1/2

Burt Reynolds, Bret Harrison, Shannon Elizabeth

Directed by Gil Cates Jr.

Rated PG-13

  • Get More Stories from Thu, Apr 24, 2008
Top of Story