Forgetting Sarah Marshall and 21

I used to be a mad film buff during high school and loved watching every trailer on http://www.apple.com/trailers/ to see what movie I should see next. After university started, and cinemas fell out of favour as a social outing, I haven’t had the chance to see nearly as many movies as I would like. Thus, I was pretty happy this weekend to see not one but two (!) movies!

Forgetting Sarah Marshall



I never read or heard about this movie until I saw it mentioned in two CardRunners blogs on the same day (yep, my source of movie gossip nowadays is a poker blog, sad I know...). It got a pretty big thumbs-up from both so I thought I’d give it a try. The film is essentially a really standard romantic comedy with a very predictable plot and few twists and turns (and by few, I mean like one, or none).

Basically, the story goes like this. Peter (Jason Segel) is devastated after being dumped by his actress girlfriend Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell) and goes on a holiday to Hawaii in an effort to forget her (get the title?). However, lo and behold, Sarah and her new beau Aldous (played by Russell Brand, who is seriously hilarious throughout the movie) are at the same resort, leading to a series of awkward encounters and contrived situations. Eventually, after meeting and falling for the ultra cute Rachel (Mila Kunis), it seems that Peter has finally moved on...or has he?

LOL :)

Anyway, despite the super standard plot, I have to say that the movie is pretty awesome since it does the simple things really, really well. What the film lacks in originality it certainly makes up for in its witty script, the really likeable characters (who all turn in decent performances) and the several ‘lol wtf?’ moments (you’ll have to see it to understand...).

Overall, I’d rate this movie an 8 out of 10. I won’t be buying the DVD, but I’d be happy to see it again. For more reviews, check out http://au.rottentomatoes.com/m/forgetting_sarah_marshall/, where the tomatometer sits at an impressive 84% overall.

21



21 is based on the book Bringing Down the House (by Ben Mezrich) which in turn is a non-fictional (but highly exaggerated) recount of the exploits of the MIT Blackjack team who card counted (definitely a verb) their way to riches in the 1980s. As many of you probably know, Full Tilt Poker’s Andy Bloch was a member of this team.

The movie itself focuses on Ben (Jim Sturgess), a brilliant but nerdy MIT math student who needs to rack up $300,000 to pay for medical school. Fortunately for him, his teacher (Kevin Spacey) happens to be in the business of blackjack card counting and, upon recognising Ben’s genius, invites him to join the team. Soon, Ben is making thousands of dollars and living the high life in Las Vegas. He goes on shopping sprees on a whim, visits the hottest clubs and bars in town, and sleeps in the most luxurious high roller suites on The Strip. He even gets the girl of his dreams, played by the awesome Kate Bosworth (Blue Crush, Superman Returns). Unfortunately for Ben however, he soon succumbs to the variance of life (a.k.a. his inner demons, a bitter rivalry with a teammate, a corrupt teacher, and a security guard hell bent on revenge) and has to use all his reserves of character and determination to bounce back.

Will he be able to? I guess you’ll just have to watch and see...

(Spoiler: He does.)

In many ways, this film is like an updated version of Rounders. While 21 isn’t nearly as good, the similarities in plot between the two are quite startling. In both, you have a college kid paying his way through school via gambling (though, as us poker players know, neither Mike nor Ben is really gambling!). In both, you have the dramatic fall from grace when the main protagonist’s ego gets a little bit too big (having your entire bankroll on the table might just be plain stupid though...). And in both, you have the amazing “one chance only” comeback, giving the protagonist a sense of redemption and an optimistic outlook for the future.

Because of these similarities, 21 is sure to appeal to anyone who enjoyed Rounders, which is just about anyone who plays poker. For those unfamiliar with Rounders, if you nevertheless enjoy light, fast paced, style-over-substance kind of movies (think The Fast and the Furious, Ocean’s Eleven, The Italian Job etc.), then you’ll probably find something in 21. If, on the other hand, you are someone who prefers the depth of Amélie or Adaptation, then this is probably not for you.

The new generation of young, internet poker players will probably like this film more than most since Ben’s exploits are quite comparable to their own. While grinding in a dimly-lit, smoke-filled basement, à la Mike McD., was probably a very foreign concept to most, stumbling into a remarkably easy get-rich-quick scheme while at university probably isn’t. Also, most players won’t have actually lived the extravagant Las Vegas lifestyle that poker promises, so being able to live it vicariously through the film certainly won’t hurt its appeal.

On the whole, I’d probably give this movie a 7 out of 10. Of course, my poker background has probably caused this rating to be higher than it otherwise would be and the general population will probably not find it nearly as appealing. The media, in particular, has not been very favourable and the tomatometer currently languishes at a dreadful 31%!

Still, I wonder if a decade from now we will look back on this film as the one that spawned a whole generation of wannabe blackjack pros, all gambling to a chorus of “Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!”