21 [Blu-ray]

Product Description

Inspired by the true story of MIT students who mastered the art of card counting and took Vegas casinos for millions in winnings. Looking for a way to pay for tuition Ben Campbell (Jim Sturgess) finds himself quietly recruited by MIT's most gifted students in a daring plot to break Vegas. With the help of a brilliant statistics professor (Kevin Spacey) and armed with fake IDs intelligence and a complicated system of counting cards Ben and his friends succeed in breaking the impenetrable casinos. Now his challenge is keeping the numbers straight and staying one step ahead of the casinos before it all spirals out of control.System Requirements:Running Time: 123 minutesFormat: BLU-RAY DISC Genre: DRAMA/BUDDIES Rating: PG-13

Product Details

• Brand: Sony
• Released on: 2008-07-22
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
• Formats: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Chinese, English, French, Korean, Spanish
• Dubbed in: French, Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .20 pounds
• Running time: 123 minutes

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
An unconvincing exercise in moral complexity, 21 is based on Ben Mezrich's book Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six M.I.T. Students Who Took Vegas for Millions. Jim Sturgess (Across the Universe) plays brilliant, blue-collar scholar Ben Campbell, whose doubts that he'll win a scholarship to Harvard Medical School compel him to join a secret, M.I.T. gang of math whiz kids. Under the silky but chilling command of a math professor (Kevin Spacey), Jim and the others master card counting, i.e., the statistical analysis of cards dealt in blackjack games. The team lives a humdrum existence during the week, but on weekends in Sin City, the students are rolling in cash, going to exclusive clubs, and feeling on top of the world. (Ben even gets the girl: a comely, fellow counter played by Kate Bosworth.) Despite all that success, Ben feels ethically compromised, and indeed director Robert Luketic (Legally Blonde), in the old tradition of American movies, plays it both ways where fun vices are concerned. On the one hand, it feels so good; on the other, ahem, we know it's wrong. That studied ambivalence proves wearing after a while, making the most interesting character in the film a casino watchdog played by Laurence Fishburne. A master at reading the emotions of gamblers beating the house with a scam, he's admirable for being good at his job, but repellent for wrecking the faces of counters in casino dungeons. He's all about moral complexity in the tradition of anti-heroes, and a truly provocative element in an otherwise superficial movie. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews

Totally Enjoyable
I found the story enjoyable, the acting good and the filming beautiful and creative. It isn't an in-depth character study or a tortured drama, but a can-you-imagine of good students and an avaricious teacher getting in over their heads in the world of Vegas gambling. I particularly liked Jim Sturgess in his role and find it hard to believe he is English and not American. The only things that would have made it more enjoyable for me would have been a longer love scene and more details about their shopping and other indulgences. I saw it twice in theaters, bought the DVD, have watched it 5 or 6 times and will watch it again. I can't understand all the mediocre reviews.

gambling glamor made boring film
This film is "inspired by" a true story told in the book Bringing Down the House: The Inside Story of Six M.I.T. Students Who Took Vegas for Millions (2003). In real life, the MIT Blackjack Team devised a complex scheme of card-counting, disguises, and hand signals to win four million dollars in Vegas before the heavy hand of casino security gave them the boot. This film follows that outline, but it's a pale imitation of a genuinely interesting tale of greed, intellect, and emotion. Kevin Spacey stars as the MIT professor Micky Rosa who bullies, badgers, and betrays his six students in venial Vegas. The dialogue is horrible and at points entirely predictable. There's no character development. The sub-plots about friendship and parents hold little interest. The plot does take some unexpected twists, but even this resolves in a cheesy ending. It's quite a feat to make a boring movie about the glitz and glamor of Vegas gambling. Skip the film, and read the book.

It's a MOVIE!!!
Movies are for entertainment purposes, and this was entertaining. This is the first movie I've seen with Jim Sturgess and he was perfect for the part. And, I did not realize he is English...even after the forth or fifth time watching the movie. I liked him so much in this movie, I plan to rent the other movies he is in. The thing that bothered me the most was Jill's hair! Why did they give this attractive character such a bad hairdo? Not only was the color bad, the cut was not flattering at all. Putting the bad hair aside, the movie was great. Every actor was perfect for thier role. This is not a "Gambling" movie, but entertaining movie.

[Buy 21 [Blu-ray]]

[All DVDs]