Cool story. Silly direction and bad acting, though.
It’s an intriguing look into a secret world and a great performance from Chastain, but Sorkin’s directorial debut never quite makes the leap from great poker movie to great movie.
A great piece of barnstorming storytelling from West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin.
Thanks to Sorkin’s caustic, witty screenplay and Chastain’s blazing performance, it never loses its momentum or its fatalistic humour.
Pure class. Chastain and Elba deserve Oscar noms, and Sorkin’s second Best Adapted Screenplay award (after The Social Network) is a sure thing.
With its propulsive, savvy dialogue, Aaron Sorkin’s directorial debut about a poker host who called rich men’s bluff has addictive and amoral snap.
Playing high-stakes poker hostess Molly Bloom, Chastain carries Sorkin’s screenplay-heavy directorial debut – and sizzles with Idris Elba.
Surely the first rule of good screenwriting is to give your audience a reason to care?
As a director Sorkin owes more to the slam-bang mayhem of Danny Boyle than the visual elegance of David Fincher, but mostly he gets out of the way of his writing – delivering for good and ill (but mostly good) a full-throttle Sorkin ride.
Jessica Chastain is typically superb in a fascinating but flawed biopic, from Aaron Sorkin.
'Poker princess' Molly Bloom on her stranger-than-fiction life
General release. Check local listings for show times.