Rounders

Rating:
Summary: Extra features justify a new edition
Review: I own the original DVD of this film. Certainly I hesitated to buy a second copy of the essentially same movie, but(...) I thought I'd take a chance. The main feature remains the same, so if you are in the same situation as I was, you'll be paying for the extra features. In short, the extras certainly make it worthwhile to own this edition, whether or not you own the original.

1. If you play poker already, "Heads Up Texas Hold 'Em" won't help you. (I bet you suspected that already.)
2. The two bonus features, "Behind-The-Scenes Special" and "Inside Professional Poker", are short at 5'20" and 5'40" respectively. The former is a little disappointing; it appears that the cast and the staff simply talk about the movie retrospectively after the production. In other words, it looks and feels like an afterthought. The latter is a little more satisfying; it gives some well-known (to regular poker players) principles of poker. The soundtracks are very annoying.
3. Champion Poker Tips gives a few sound-bite tips from Johnny Chan, Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Phil Hellmuth, and Chris Moneymaker. Again, if you play poker already, there is nothing new here.
4. Now, these professional players are featured in the extra commentary. Mr. Whear characterized this commentary as "odd," but I thought this was the best part of this Collector's Edition. The comments they make are sometimes off the wall, but it just adds to the charm (to me, anyway). They analyze the hand Mike McD loses to Teddy KGB at the beginning of the movie, and also the showdown at the end; their analysis is good, and they explain how (and why) things will be quite different in the real life. Also, the commentary shows the characters of these pros. Hellmuth is usually the motor mouth; Chan is the happy guy, but complains about how fat he appears in the film; Moneymaker seems a little reserved around the others; Ferguson is pretty quiet, but when he speaks he is brilliant (he even cracks a joke).
5. Staff's commentary gives some insight into the production of the film, including the real-world model of Teddy KGB (it turns out he is Eddie KGB in real life). This commentary is also good.

What was on the original DVD edition that is missing on this edition is the theatrical trailer. You might wonder why I bring this up. Well, the trailer contains a couple of scenes that didn't make the cut. I'm sure these could have been added as deleted scenes, too. For that, I subtract 1 star.

Rating:
Summary: All In
Review: if you're an avid poker player like me, you absolutely must own this film. not only is it an entertaining film but its portrayal of poker play and psychology of the game is fairly accurate. the cast is great, in particular norton playing the low life cheat and malkovich as teddy kgb with the incredibly funny accent and "don't touch" sign on his stack of oreos. damon also does a good job as the poker player converted square who realizes hes a poker player at heart.

-just to note this has nothing to do with the movie: to all you scrubs who think any two suited cards, J 5, Q 5, and such are good starting hands, always chase till the river, go all in against a tight player with your middle pair, have no regard for kickers, and don't understand a thing about positional play, quit playing and save your money. ever since this recent poker explosion going on i been seeing too many of you suckers in the poker rooms.

Rating:
Summary: A Different Side To Poker
Review: Rounders, a positively captivating movie, has no need for previous knowledge of poker to completely enjoy. Speaking as a person who finds it almost impossible to watch The World Series of Poker, I found Rounders to be truly intriguing.

Matt Damon's superb acting draws excitement, and brings forth a natural love for his character, Mike. On the flip side Edward Norton's character, Worm, only brings out a distinct annoyance for his choices, and ultimately him.

All sides of gambling are shown in Rounders, the high points of winning, and the lowest moments, when its not just money involved. The constant risk and intensity of it all keeps viewers on edge throughout the entire movie.

No matter how hard Mike fights, he can't bring himself to leave gambling behind to start a new path toward law school. Along with a lesson on gambling, Rounders also offers a lesson in life; sometimes no matter how hard we try to change, our lives are destined one way or another.

Rounders was well thought out, and very entertaining. Whether you're a gambler or know nothing of the game, you wont be disappointed.

Rating:
Summary: "It's immoral to let a sucker keep his money."
Review: I used to go to Las Vegas about once a year, that was until I found out I wasn't very good at gambling...and even when I did win, I had trouble knowing when to quit, and usually ended up giving whatever I gained back plus some. The trick is to only take what you could afford to lose, and stay away from the ATM machines. I guess I was what people would have called a `recreational' gambler, but there are those who do it for a living, and even manage to prosper...I guess Kenny Rogers said it best in his song The Gambler, "You got to know when to hold them, and know when to fold them..." Rounders (1998), directed by John Dahl, who later did the enjoyable thriller Joy Ride (2001), stars Matt `Babyface' Damon (The Bourne Identity) and the extremely talented Edward Norton (American History X). Also appearing in the film is John Turturro (O Brother, Where Art Thou?), Gretchen Mol (The Thirteenth Floor), Famke Janssen (Goldeneye), Martin Landau (Ed Wood), and John Malkovich (Shadow of the Vampire).

First, lemme get a couple of terms out of the way. A `rounder', from what I gathered from the film, is a person who sees all the angles and makes a living playing cards. A `grinder' is a rounder, but is a cautious player, interested only in playing it safe, avoiding the big risks and possible big rewards, always satisfied in being able to make enough to live reasonably well. Damon plays Mike McDermott, a law student who earns his living playing cards. As the film begins, we see Mike entering into a high-stakes game, and losing everything in one hand. After his devastating loss, he swears off cards for good, until he's lured back into the game by his best friend Lester `Worm' Murphy (Norton) who was just released from prison and needs to make a lot of cash quick to pay off a large debt he owes to a rather nasty underworld mob, one that kept growing while he was in the stir (that's street lingo for jail, for those not in the know...actually, I'm pretty unhip, but I manage to pick up a few things here or there in an effort to sound cooler than I actually am). Now the boys are fighting the clock, chasing games to earn enough to pay off those who seem not so interested in collecting but more in putting a serious hurt on Worm (he really has the tendency to get under one's skin).

I thought Damon did very well as Mike, an ex-rounder now eeking out a living by driving a delivery truck, trying to get through law school with his girlfriend (Mol). With the reappearance of his childhood friend Worm, he finds himself dragged back into the life (although he didn't seem to fight it too hard), and ultimately has to sacrifice much to extricate himself and his friend from the ever-deepening hole created by Worm as he borrows money off his friend's good reputation. I also really enjoyed Norton's portrayal of Worm, a shady, smart-mouthed scammer constantly looking for the edge (usually involving cheating) chasing the short term gains, trying to stay one step ahead of his troubles. I usually enjoy seeing Edward Norton in films as I get the feeling he's putting forth more than most, driven by a seemingly innate desire to deliver the best possible performance he can, all while making it seem so darn natural (although his role in 2003's The Italian Job seemed a bit light...I guess it's unfair to expect perfection every time at bat) . My favorite character was that of Teddy KGB, played by John Malkovich, a highly connected Russian mobster and owner and proprietor of an underworld poker den. His Russian accent is reason alone to see this film..."Paeeey thet maeen his moneeeey". While I did like all the performances and I thought all the actors were solid, I felt like Martin Landau's character of Mike's somewhat philosophical law school professor a little contrived as he seemed only there to point out a facet of Mike's character that I felt was already detailed in a more subtle manner within the film. I really didn't need his sage advice to learn what was already apparent, and I didn't think Mike did either. That's my only minor issue with this film. The dialog was excellent and snapped, utilizing all kinds of interesting colloquialisms common to the poker world, explaining meanings to the viewer enough to allow us to stay with the characters, but not treating us like we're complete idiots. The film is lengthy (121 minutes), but does move along at a good pace, rarely losing my interest.

The widescreen anamorphic print on this collector's edition DVD looks immaculate, and the audio sounds clear in Dolby Digital 5.1 sound. There are two commentary tracks available, one featuring director John Dahl, screenwriters David Levien & Brian Kopplman and actor Edward Norton and a second featuring actual professional poker players. The commentary with the professionals seems a little odd, as they mainly comment on only the scenes involving poker, so there's a good deal of `dead air'. Other special features include a tutorial on how to play Texas Hold `Em, the poker game played throughout the film, along with allowing the viewer to play in an actual game. This was fun, but since it didn't keep track of winnings, it grew old quickly, but did serve as a good instructional aid to better understand the game played in the film. There's two featurettes, one being a behind the scenes and the other titled `Professional Poker', which looks at real-life poker, with interviews from professional players. Next there's Champion Poker Tips which is a bunch of short, unconnected clips featuring pros mostly doling out advice I could get from my mother, "Never bet more than you can afford to lose"...thanks...Finally there's a couple of trailers and a Miramax 25th anniversary promotional bit.

Cookieman108


Rating:
Summary: THE Best Poker Movie
Review: This movie has the most poker content of any movie. And the poker
content is realistic, unlike many other popular poker movies. It
mainly portrays New York's underground card rooms but also poker in
a casino and in home games. It also shows the ugly side of losing and
the fun of winning.

The story is a good one, though Hollywood, and stands on its own. It
gives the viewer enough to think about for life, not just at the card
table. The main draw however (other than poker) is the acting.
Edward Norton especially does a great job in creating an antihero who
is likable but in the end is someone to avoid.

I highly recommend the movie. Be warned that the language has plenty
of profanity and poker terms unfamiliar to most.

Rating:
Summary: Rounders=Greatness
Review: What can i say about the best movie that I have ever watched. I cant say much to make up for how incredibly scrumptulescent this movie is. The acting and poker play is superb in this movie and very life-like. It all starts with Matt Damon and his problems with the evil KGB. KGB is so funny in this movie. Especially when he sprinkles all the chips on the table and eats the oreo cookies. HAHAHAHAHA! Ah good times. Anyways I personally believe this was Matt Damons best acting job in a film and I cried when he did not win an oscar and was not even put up for one.

I recommend Rounders for people of all ages especially including those named Mike Studer. Go buy Rounders now and i meant that.

Your friendly reviewer
Matt

Rating:
Summary: The Greatest of All Time
Review: What up gangstas. I''m here to say that Rounders is the best movie I've ever seen. If you haven't seen this movie then you have know life and deserve to be eliminated from society. Matt Damon is a great actor and a very convincing poker player. He helps his buddy Worm pay of debts after he is released from jail. Damon who play Mike McDermit is a law student who is wiped clean of poker until he starts again to help Worm. This ruins his relationship with his girlfriend, but he just keeps on rounding. I LOVE THIS MOVIE!

Rating:
Summary: Bravo
Review: I recently just rented this movie at blockbuster being a casual poker player i thought i would like it. Did i ever like it the next day i went up to walmart and bought the dvd. This Movie is about Mike Mcd (matt damon) a law student who gives up poker after he is cleaned out by Teddy KGB. He has to start playing again when his best friend Worm gets out jail and is in quite a bit of debt. This was a tremendous movie i would recommend to any poker fan out there or anyone for that matter. It includes great acting and the poker seens are great. The story is realistic and superb.

The extras are an enhancement to the movie as it includes a texas hold em tutorial. Poker Tips from pro players and commentary about the movie from them. Directory commentary and making the movie.

All i have to say is Bravo to a great movie