21

i recently saw this one in the cheap theater. it didnt ever grab my interest enough to go pay full price, but i had some time, and this was the best option.
the movie is ok, its nothing special, but its a bit of fun. the story is about a kid who needs money to pay for college and gets roped into a secret society of math nerds who work a plan to count cards and win money in vegas. the biggest problem with this movie is that there is nothing at all original about it. each and every story point is quite predictable, and there doesnt really seem to be an attempt to break from that generic mold. the plot twists are obvious and not at all surprising. he does well, gets a big ego, gets cut down, and gets the bad guy in the end. yawn.
the good thing going for it is its cast. everybody does a good job, including kevin spacey and laurence fishburne. the main character, played by jim sturgess, does a good job and is quite likable. the best casting goes to some of the second string characters. i really loved aaron yoo as choi and jacob pitts as fisher. i wished we could have seen more of them.
i guess its pretty good for a vegas cards movie, but instantly forgetable.