Mississippi Grind is a film about gambling – or more rightly gambling addiction. It stars Ben Mendelsohn ('Slow West') as Gerry a divorced father who is in real estate. He has sunk pretty low and owes everyone money – he has 'the next one will be a winner' type attitude. Then he meets Curtis – played by the always good value Ryan Reynolds. They meet at a card game and sort of hit it off and lo and behold seem to be good for each other and their gambling.
What follows is a road trip of sorts which is punctuated by their need for a fix - that is more gambling. These guys will gamble on anything – even what eye wear the next guy coming out of the washroom will have on. Essentially both men are losers but ones who are both essentially likable. The portrayal by both leading men manages to illicit sympathy for both men despite the warning signs that these men are self destructive.
Now I really enjoyed this but it is missing something and that is the heavy dose of realism. 'Gambleaholics' rarely quit – they just go broke. Part of this is shown by Gerry who will stoop lower than a snakes belly to feed his habit. However, the ending for me fell kind of flat. One of the recurring themes of the film is that 'the destination is the journey' and it is for that self same reason that I am awarding the mark I have. This is a good journey – sadly the ending left it firmly in Narnia which was a shame and a dodged issue as far as I am concerned. I have known and still do know gambling addicts and they are wonderful people who invariably will lie, steal, rob – anything as their lives spiral downwards. It is a shame that the truth for the majority was glossed over by a feel good ending that spoiled the film.
What follows is a road trip of sorts which is punctuated by their need for a fix - that is more gambling. These guys will gamble on anything – even what eye wear the next guy coming out of the washroom will have on. Essentially both men are losers but ones who are both essentially likable. The portrayal by both leading men manages to illicit sympathy for both men despite the warning signs that these men are self destructive.
Now I really enjoyed this but it is missing something and that is the heavy dose of realism. 'Gambleaholics' rarely quit – they just go broke. Part of this is shown by Gerry who will stoop lower than a snakes belly to feed his habit. However, the ending for me fell kind of flat. One of the recurring themes of the film is that 'the destination is the journey' and it is for that self same reason that I am awarding the mark I have. This is a good journey – sadly the ending left it firmly in Narnia which was a shame and a dodged issue as far as I am concerned. I have known and still do know gambling addicts and they are wonderful people who invariably will lie, steal, rob – anything as their lives spiral downwards. It is a shame that the truth for the majority was glossed over by a feel good ending that spoiled the film.