Review: Two for the Money (2005)

Directed by: DJ Caruso | 122 minutes | drama, thriller, comedy | Actors: Al Pacino, Matthew McConaughey, Rene Russo, Armand Assante, Jeremy Piven, Jaime King, Kevin Chapman, Ralph Garman, Gedde Watanabe, Carly Pope, Charles Carroll, Gerard Plunkett, Craig Veroni, James Kirk, Chrislyn Austin, Denise Galik, Gary Hudson

Al Pacino’s roads seem unfathomable. If he chooses a role, however, there is something to gain for him, he proves again with the fascinating but moderately developed ‘Two for the Money’. Pacino is Walter Abrams, a crafty professional gambler in American Football games. As if by thunder, he appears in the life of Brandon Lang, a former player who after a serious injury tries to make a living predicting matches in the sport that made him a star.

The success comes so quickly that you don’t know what to make of the naive Brandon and the movie. We have now been introduced to him in a way that does not bode well: a boy must become a sports hero by his father, who then abandons the family; in other words, here is an ‘American hero’ coming. His alter ego John Anthony – Brandon has to change his name from Abrams to succeed – is, however, a phantom, a shadow of Walter Abrams, his spiritual father.

Who is this empty shell? Smooth Matthew McConaughey faces two unbeatable enemies: a weak roll and an overly strong opponent. Still he has to carry the film for the most part and that is the big shortcoming of ‘Two for the Money’. The fate of Walter Abrams, who excels in one-liners, is more of a concern to us. Abrams is such a cheeky rat you can’t hate, with an ability to throw in his own glasses. The crafty Pacino comes into the picture enough to save the film, because he is happy and good. He swipes and plows through ‘Two for the Money’ to soar above it like the Empire State Building, culminating in a speech to a gambling addicts’ support group, calling the participants insubordinate and giving them the services of his betting office. offers.

Given his role as star of the film, McConaughey cannot be of service and that continues to weigh on the film, even when the emotional focus shifts to Pacino, with Rene Russo in a solid, but emphatically supporting role. The story aims to purify the hurt souls of both protagonists, with only Abrams’s in the arms of his wife leaving any impression. Brandon Lang is allowed, as befits a seasoned sports film hero, to train children.