The Gambler (2014)
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A literature professor's path of self-destruction through gambling leads him into a dangerous web of debt and high-stakes demands.
The story
Jim Bennett is a Los Angeles literature professor who uses gambling as a means of self-destruction, leaving him with significant debts to an underground gambling ring proprietor and a loan shark. With only seven days to pay his debts before facing murder, Jim attempts to navigate his precarious situation. He identifies a potential writing prodigy in his class, Amy Phillips, whom he discovers also works at the underground gambling house. While trying to secure funds from his wealthy mother, Jim finds himself caught between his intellectual aspirations and the violent reality of his gambling addiction.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Jim Bennett, a literature professor in Los Angeles, is drowning in debt to Lee, an underground gambling ring owner, and Neville Baraka, a loan shark. When Lee gives him a seven-day ultimatum to pay up or be killed, Jim's life becomes a desperate gamble. He identifies Amy Phillips, a student and secret waitress at Lee's club, as a literary prodigy. After his mother refuses to help, Jim is forced to deal with various loan sharks, including Frank, who demands Jim admit he is 'not a man.' Neville kidnaps Jim and threatens to kill Amy unless Jim can convince a basketball star, Lamar Allen, to 'point shave' in a semifinal. Jim bribes Lamar and uses money from Frank to bet on the game in Las Vegas. After winning, Jim pays off Neville but still owes Lee and Frank. In a final move, Jim convinces Lee and Frank to meet in a neutral den to wager his remaining debt on a single roulette spin. He wins, leaves the money behind, and walks away free, telling Frank, 'I am not a gambler.'
- First release year
- 2014
- Runtime (minutes)
- 111
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Rupert Wyatt
- Writers
- William Monahan · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Mark Wahlberg · Jim Bennett; John Goodman; Brie Larson · Amy Phillips; Michael K. Williams; Jessica Lange · Roberta; Emory Cohen · one of the professor's students
- Genres
- crime; drama
- Themes
- Self-destruction; Excellence; Debt; Addiction
- Tone and mood
- Slick; Efficient; Fast-paced; Venomous
- Premise and plot tags
- Remake; Crime Drama; Gambling; Sports Betting
- Source material / true-story basis
- Fyodor Dostoevsky's novel 'The Gambler'
- Content notes
- Profanity
- Reception
- The film received mixed to average reviews, with critics noting it was well-paced but suffered from comparisons to the 1974 original. Jessica Lange's performance was highly acclaimed as 'ferocious' and 'strikingly memorable.'
- Reported review scores
- CinemaScore · score: C+ · scale: A to F
- Production trivia
- It features the final film performance of George Kennedy before his death in 2016.; The film was originally intended as a directorial project for Martin Scorsese.; The production was originally intended to star Leonardo DiCaprio.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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