The whizzo-conceit and slick visual bling do give it an undeniably diverting buzz, yet the movie’s cautionary formula shows its hand way before the clunky final reel.
Comment
04/11/08
21 (2008)
35
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:160
Fresh:56
Rotten:104
Average Rating:5.2/10
Consensus: 21 could have been a fascinating study had it not supplanted the true story on which it is based with mundane melodrama.
Theatrical Release:11-04-2008
Synopsis: Inspired by a true story, 21 mixes Las Vegas casino wheeling and dealing with college-kid angst: think OCEAN'S ELEVEN via THE PAPER CHASE. Kevin Spacey is crafty MIT professor Micky Rosa, who... [More]
Starring: Kevin Spacey, Jim Sturgess, Kate Bosworth, Laurence Fishburne
Director: Robert Luketic
Reviews for 21
Top CriticThere is a message about life, money and happiness in here somewhere but it’s undone by a contrived ending.
04/11/08
Top CriticDisappointing thriller that's let down by a tedious script, a frankly ridiculous final act and some dodgy overacting by Kevin Spacey.
10/18/08
As ever with gambling films, it's difficult to convey the thrill of winning at second hand; the human-interest complications are unconvincing and Spacey himself, I'm afraid, is a lugubrious and deadening presence.
10/18/08
Top CriticThis movie's script sticks so closely to formula that it could be a film school project.
04/20/08
Despite primal instincts and fast-moving montages, 21 is a tired, music video-style fable.
04/11/08
Top CriticSpacey makes a nicely chilly villain and Bosworth a warm and glamorous leading lady, if an implausible maths genius.
10/18/08
Given the true story that inspired it, 21 really should have been a sure-fire bet. As it is, it’s a split hand that only pays off thanks to Fishburne and Spacey. Still beats Lucky You, though.
04/11/08
The Ocean’s Eleven: The College Years mood makes for a breezy good time, even if there is, like Vegas, precious little substance beneath the glitz.
04/11/08
Top CriticSturgess quietly sparkles as the born loser who struggles to adapt to life on winners' row.
04/11/08
Top CriticClick to read the article
10/18/08
Top CriticClick to read the article
10/18/08
21 will deliver what the average Joe is looking for in spades. But just be ready for a schizophrenic cinematic experience that may leave you feeling like you just saw three separate movies.
06/12/08
Top CriticAs an adaptation, it's a disappointment. As Hollywood fare, it's a bust.
03/28/08
The only element in 21 that saves the film from being a dreary coming-of-age story grafted onto a two-hour commercial for the Las Vegas Visitors and Convention Bureau is Spacey.
05/01/08
Like the Strip itself, it's all lights and music throbbing so hard you confuse yourself into thinking you're having fun.
03/31/08
For most of its length, 21 seems like a cautionary tale ... at least, until the whole point is negated by a tacked-on happy ending.
04/03/08
[Director] Luketic and his screenwriters preserve the excitement and a fair amount of the blackjack strategy -- yet somehow the whole exercise plays like a high-tech John Hughes movie.
03/27/08
a genial, generic effort attached to an intrinsically interesting premise.
03/27/08
It's a gamble whether or not "21" will provide enough excitement to make you shout, "Winner, winner, chicken dinner."
04/01/08
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