I usually enjoy these interconnected ensemble movies but Even Money never quite gelled though the performances from Danny DeVito, Tim Roth were rather good, but not enough to make this a must rental or purchase.
Even Money
(2006)
Genre(s): Drama, Crime
MVD Visual | R – 113 min. – $19.95 | April 14, 2020
Date Published: 07/29/2020 | Author: The Movieman
|
|
|||||||||||
MVD Visual provided me with a free copy of the Blu-ray I reviewed in this Blog Post.
The opinions I share are my own.
THE MOVIE — 2.75/5 |
|
Plot Synopsis: Struggling writer Carol (KIM BASINGER) loses her family’s savings at a casino; a washed-up magician (DANNY DEVITO) tries to help Carol regain her money; Clyde (FOREST WHITAKER) owes so much money to his dangerous bookies (JAY MOHR, GRANT SULLIVAN) that he asks his NBA-destined brother (NICK CANNON) to throw the game. Entering the mix is a dogged detective (KELSEY GRAMMER), a crime boss (TIM ROTH) and Carol’s concerned husband (RAY LIOTTA). Quick Hit Review: Despite apparently previously seeing Even Money (based on ratings on both Letterboxd and IMDb), I really remember nothing about this ensemble crime-drama, which probably says quite a bit about this movie. Watching again many years later, I found this only mildly engaging but only just. The performances were all fine with Danny DeVito, who also served as executive producer, probably being the stand-out. Everyone else were fine, Kim Basinger trying to play a gambling addict came across a bit much, almost over-acting; Jay Mohr as a bookie wasn’t half-bad I suppose; Kelsey Grammer could’ve had a more significant role only popping in a few times; and Tim Roth doesn’t get a whole lot to work with but plays a mob boss well enough. The movie falters with a script and dialogue that doesn’t quite land or as sharp as I suspect the scriptwriter, Robert Tannen (making his feature debut and only has Seeking Justice as his only other credit) or producers thought it was. In the director’s chair is Mark Rydell, who has worked on a variety of TV series in the 60s (like Gunsmoke), having helmed a few films including 1981’s On Golden Pond, though Even Money was his last feature. |
SPECIAL FEATURES – 0.5/5 |
|
The only feature included is the Trailer (2:34). |
VIDEO – 3.75/5 |
| Even Money debuts on Blu-ray courtesy of MVD Visual as, best I can tell, this has not been released elsewhere in high-def. The video, presented in its original 1.85 widescreen aspect ratio, has been given a nice looking if not also unremarkable 1080p HD resolution. Still, I suppose detail on close-ups were alright and colors do appear to be well balanced with modest tamping down due to this being a film nourish style flick. On the plus side, there weren’t any apparent instances of artifacting or aliasing with maybe some natural film grain present. |
AUDIO – 2.75/5 |
| The disc includes a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track but boy is it on the lighter side. Dialogue in most scenes were really tough to understand to the point I had to crank up the volume levels from the default settings I use on all reviews (-27 db). However, others scenes, while still a bit weak, came across well enough. I assume this is what the studio received from (I guess) Yari Film Group but this is one of the weaker lossless tracks I’ve come across, particularly for not a terribly old film. |
OVERALL – 2.5/5 |
|
Overall, I usually enjoy these interconnected ensemble movies but Even Money never quite gelled though the performances from Danny DeVito, Tim Roth and even to some level Jay Mohr were rather good, but not enough to make this a must rental or purchase. |