Molly's Game (2017) Reviews

• Clinically sharp

  borromeot2017-12-14

  The focus is clear and yet cold and distant unless Idris Elba is on the frame. He is a human with his complexities but without barriers. He is open, accessible. Jessica Chastain is a technical marvel to be admired but it is hard, very hard to warm up to her. I felt I needed to see in her what Idris Elba saw and I could do it with my head but not my heart. In any case, it is a brilliant performance. Aaron Sorkin writes and directs this time with remarkable self confidence. The film, like the script is clinically sharp, surgical actually. I bet it's also a great read. For Aaron Sorkin's fans and I count myself as one, this is a must.

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• Jessica Chastain nails her role

  TheTopDawgCritic2018-01-18

  I don't think Molly Bloom could have been cast any better than with Jessica Chastain... she nailed her role. Oddly enough, she looks similar to the actual Molly Bloom. Great film, love the fact this is based on a true story, and what a great story it was. The rest of the cast were great and the directing was decent, although too much back and forth between many timelines. 8.5 rounded up to 9/10 from me for Chastain's excellent performance.

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• Chastain is a knockout

  sierralouie2018-05-13

  Molly's Game works as well as it does due to the sheer vitality of Jessica Chastain's performance. As an actor, she isn't the most overt emoter, and she doesn't need to be. She manages to draw an incredible amount of empathy out of her characters, always in control but willing to let the cracks in the armor show. She is one of the most remarkably restrained, yet emotionally potent, actors in Hollywood. She excels at taking these strong, resolute women through hell and back, coming out stronger and more complex while being very aware of the gender dynamics of her characters. Molly Bloom is by necessity steely and crafty, but she is also a human being in a world that oftentimes has no regard for humanity. As Bloom, Chastain is a scorching force of nature with a hell of a wardrobe. It's easy to praise her more dramatic moments later in the film, but watch her every move during her initial rise to power. You want to root for Molly as she begins to learn, as she faces disrespect from her boss, as she gains more and more confidence. Chastain and Elba give fiery performances that help the film retain some of its shine as it moves toward its conclusion. Shoutout to Camp, d'Arcy James, and Cera for their small but solid roles. The film overall is a bit too long and does inspire some fatigue, but the story is engaging enough and Chastain is an absolute star. There's nothing particularly remarkable about the way the film is constructed, but it manages to keep you reasonably entertained.

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• Chock full of Sorkinian glibness, biopic goes south in the end

  PotassiumMan2017-12-31

  Aaron Sorkin's directorial debut about the Olympic skier Molly Bloom, a brilliant over-achiever who chose to forego law school to become a gambling entrepreneur, is a compelling film that starts out very strong. Even with its lengthy running time, it's never slow or uninvolving. It's gripping and fascinating throughout, thanks to Sorkin's master penmanship at keeping the dialogue and tempo of the film at a heady pace. Jessica Chastain and Idris Elba both give dynamic performances here. Elba makes a great presence as the defense attorney who tries to grapple with the sheer size and scope of Bloom's considerable legal problems as her gambling operation becomes progressively more mired in the criminal world. Even if you find Chastain's character cold and detached, her performance here is strikingly realistic. Alas, we have the film's ending. Where the film goes wrong is this highly far-fetched and phony attempt to humanize Bloom beginning with a chance encounter with her father at a skating rink in Central Park. A corny scene does not sink a film all by itself, but unfortunately this scene was followed up with an equally ridiculous courtroom sequence that struck me as unduly and comically political. It's always a shame for a film to look first-rate for most of the way only to collapse in the final act. Recommended mostly on the strength of the performances, even if the film as a whole misses the mark in the end.

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• Less a dramatic movie than an illustrated Podcast

  gortx2018-01-07

  If you ever wanted to know what a video illustrated Podcast would be like -- then MOLLY'S GAME is the movie for you. Jessica Chastain stars and narrates as Molly Bloom, a former Olympic skier who found herself as a Poker madam who ran ultra-high stakes underground gambling games in L.A. and New York. The high priced events attracted Hollywood celebrities, wealthy financiers, baseball players and the mob. Chastain/Bloom narrates and narrates and narrates. When not narrating, we are given picayune details on gambling, the law, what exact drinks are being served and the ins and out of skiing. Chastain is a wonderful actress, but, she doesn't possess the most proficient narration voice. But, of course, the real 'voice' here is not the actresses, but writer (and first time) director Aaron Sorkin's. It's all very much delivered in his trademark fast rhythms and idiosyncrasies. Sorkin should have just cut out the middle-man and done the narration himself. Sorkin is obviously a gifted writer, but, Sorkingthe DIRECTOR fails him here. In the past, fine filmmakers like David Fincher, Danny Boyle and Mike Nichols knew that as good as the writing is, you also have to show the audience what is happened. Instead, we are told what has happened, what is happened and what will happen. We are told what the characters are not only thinking, but what they are about to do. The effect is suffocating. The viewer is given little to chance to take a breath, let alone enjoy the drama. What makes the Direction so unfortunate, is that the true story of Molly Bloom is inherently interesting. Along with Chastain (who delivers a solid performance despite it all), there are fine actors like Idris Elba, Kevin Costner, Michael Cera, Graham Greene and many others in the cast. But, Sorkin's over-reliance on narration squelches the drama. Oddly, about 3/4 of the way through the 140 minute movie, the narration subsides substantially. Almost two hours in - and we suddenly shift into what resembles a normal motion picture. Those final scenes may not be great, but, at least one can appreciate what the actors are doing without being told in advance every nuance. Finally, there's Sorkin's well known disdain for keeping to the facts of the true story. The central metaphor for the movie how Bloom had a tragic accident that ended her career sending her life into disorder. But, the real Molly Bloom never had a Wide World of Sports style "agony of defeat" fall. Sorkin pulled it out his ass. Nobody is dumb enough to believe that a Hollywood movie with big stars is going to tell the full unvarnished truth, but Sorkin is a serial abuser. Instead of the usual movie disclaimer: "Although based on a true story, some events and characters have been changed for dramatic purposes" - Sorkin's disclaimer should read: "This is fiction, but, but some true events have been included to sell this to the public". Also, Bloom did not have a tough but powerful black Attorney by her side with a cute precocious child (which just so happens to closely mirror the young Molly Bloom who - you guessed it! - was also a cute precocious child). Much of this wouldn't matter so much if MOLLY'S GAME worked better as a movie. Unfortunately, it's all tell without much show.

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