Rounders [Blu-ray]

One of the biggest mistakes you can make when it comes to the movie "Rounders" is assume that if you have no interest in cards or poker, or don't even know how to play the game that you'll hate the movie or have no desire to want to see it. When I first saw it a few years back, the only card game I knew how to play was blackjack, and yet there was something that really drew me in. Something that clicked for me, and now it is one of my favorite movies. One of those rare movies I could literally leave on all day.Mike makes a living and supports his tuition by grinding it out every night at the poker tables. The goal, he tells us, is to only win one big bet an hour. Still, the dream for him is to make it to the World Series of Poker and face off with the pros. That dream clouds his judgment when he faces off with a dangerous and no-nonsense taking Russian, Teddy KGB and leads him to lose every penny of his money. After that night, he swears off cards for good and promises his girlfriend that he'll never play again.Things get complicated when his buddy, Worm gets out of jail. Worm is a card player who refuses to play "straight up." He's what they call a "mechanic," meaning he usually cheats when he plays. He's got a serious debt to pay and feels the only way he can make the scratch is to play the game. Mike wants to help him out, but he's made promises, but that slowly starts to deteriorate and he ends up being in the game again. While it could very well be a blessing in disguise that Worm has gotten him back into the world of poker, the stakes couldn't be higher and he will end up putting the both of them into the worst kind of trouble.What makes "Rounders" work are the characters and the actors. You'll find a top-notch cast that includes Matt Damon, Edward Norton, John Turturro, John Malkovich and Martin Landau. All are amazing in their roles and really bring their characters to life on the screen. There will be times where you feel sorry for Norton's character and other times where you feel nothing but complete disgust and shame. I think it's one of his best performances, and "Mike" sums it up best when he says that "Worm" knows how to play the part of the loser, because he does it to absolute perfection in this film. The movie isn't about plot, or at least not a complex ones. Sometimes, those are the kinds that work out the best so long as you have an all-star cast that can make it work. Smart writing also is a gigantic help, and I'm happy to say that can be found in here as well.Some cool extra features can be found on this version of the movie, like a behind the scenes featurette, a featurette about Professional Poker, a brief "Head's Up" game that's a nice little introductory to the game and some tips from the pros. There are also two different commentary tracks. The first one features the director, writers and Edward Norton; the second features pros Phil Hellmuth, Chris Ferguson, Johnny Chan and Chris "Moneymaker." I really enjoyed listening to the commentary by the pros. They're not there to really discuss the scenes or lighting, but more about poker itself and getting inside of some of the characters' heads during some of the games.Do you have to know how to play poker to enjoy "Rounders?" Absolutely not. Will it make you want to learn the game? It's possible. It happened to me. Still, it doesn't matter if you end up wanting to play or not. This is a solid movie with great performances all around. It's no wonder that it is one of my favorites, and it is one that I will never get sick of. Take a gamble and give it a shot. -Michael Crane

First, before I explain my title, Rounders, for me, has to be in Matt Damon's top 5 movies he has starred in thus far. I know very, very little about playing cards, with the exceptions being Tunk, Go Fish(hahahaha!).....man, is that it?! Brain fart, I'll probably update this later with maybe 2 to 3 more that I can't think of at the moment. But, whether you play for fun or for real, putting your hard earned bucks where your mouth is, Rounders displays such vivid disappointment AND excitement; and with the cast assembled for Rounders, they all brought their A game and from the opening hand(like that, hand-cards-yeah), you are sucked into believing this is real. No CGI, no special effects, nothing extra to sell this movie because it just did not need it. There is a scene where these judges, who gather together to play cards what seems to be frequently, has Martin Landau, who plays Abe Petrovsky, assisted by Matt Damon's character, Mike McDermott, in spectacular fashion in winning a hand. Seeing Landau immediately made me think of his playing opposite of Peter Falk in an episode of Columbo, and I thought, "Man, with the guys installed here to be the judges, Peter Falk would have sent this over the top!" Anywho, it is very easy to imagine a person getting completely sucked in to this lifestyle because the adrenal rush, whether you are losing or hopefully winning, comes through, convincingly. Edward Norton, who plays Worm, shows the extreme of gambling with cards, who upon being released from prison, has to get his fix on like an addict. It is hard to like him because he never, never, NEVER EVER EVER EVER(what's up Smo-KEY!), considers anything but how to win, often with deception and lies. I found myself saying, "Stupid, what are you doing?!" Yeah, Norton can act and even with pondering how, as MIke says with the voice overs, no one ever stood for Worm up to that point in his life, you still want to gut punch him into seeing the thick of the moment(s). A+++++. ALL. DAY. LONG.NOW, to the point I made in my title. The image shown is not what I received but it's what I expected. Not a big deal, until you DO NOT get what other reviewers mentioned. Others have spoke about the bonus features, about those REAL card players which constitutes the background of how the actors were prepared to do what they do. NONE OF THIS accompanied my purchase. There is no disc menu, no bonus features and has package synopsis in both English & French. I can only assume the company who made this particular Blu-ray version were stationed in Canada. Again, this should not be an issue but it is since the back story to Rounders is not provided. Before you buy this movie, BE ABSOLUTELY sure you are getting your money's worth. Ebay offers the Blu-ray/DVD combo for less money, although it is not clear if the bonus features are available. This footage does exist, so be sure to ask the seller if their offering does indeed include this.

Matt Damon, Edward Norton, both great actors, and with a great story and good direction their skills very shine. You need no knowledge of poker, to enjoy this movie, you don't even have to feel for poker at any level than the games a person played with their parents. A portrayl of following your dreams at the cost of anything. Is what lies beneath the story. "What Choice," the proffessor (Martin Landau) asks Mike(Matt Damnon). That right there was basically the pillar of the story. What choice does a person have when they are faced with what they want to do and what is expected of them. Can they ever conform? Or do they have to do what they want? These are the inner questions.The interesting parts are the poker games as well. Now I'm young, not old enough to go to a casino, and yet two months, after researching poker, using many things that are shown in the movie, I probably spent a hundred, hundred ten on the books, and got back two three hundred dollars playing a bunch of kids for their lunch money. Like (Damon says) "The goal is to get one big pot every hour." Those small interesting lessons, work great for real play.Poker's shown as it really is, not a game of chance as much as skill strategy, and a little luck. No more luck though then throwing the ball from the freethrow line after practicing for days on end.

loved this one. talented bunch of actors

If you don’t understand anything about Poker or rounding, there is no play any watching this movie, but for the people who do we all understand what’s going on in the movie and to disagree that this is one of the best gambling movies You would have to be out of your mind