Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Two for the Money (2005)
Cast: Matthew McConaughey (Brandon Lang), Al Pacino (Walter Abrams), Rene Russo (Toni Morrow)
For complete cast info, see IMDb's Two for the Money page.
A movie that combines sports (a former football player with a career-ending injury and sports betting), drama, and comedy that stars Matthew McConaughey! What's not to like?
I do wonder if it's in Matthew McConaughey's contract that every time he's in a movie he has to be shown at least twice without his shirt on. Not that this is a complaint, just wondering. He's shown working out and is really ripped for this part of the football-obsessed Brandon Lang.
The logic of what Brandon does is pretty solid, too. If your life is football and as a quaterback you could predict other teams perfectly, why not get into sports betting instead of coaching? He has a gift for predicting the outcomes of games that is very valuable to those who bet on sports.
I think the movie was well done and enjoyable. A few points were a bit drawn out and one of the things both David and I thought would happen at some point in the movie didn't happen (leading David to ask, "That's it?" at the end), but I thought the ending was very well done and sometimes it's best to tease your audience about having something happen rather than allowing all their suspicions to be right.
Two for the Money is defined as a thriller by some and I don't get that part at all. No one was murdering people. I never feared for any character's life seriously, etc. I'd say it's mostly a sports drama with some comedy thrown in to lighten the mood.
Grade: BLabels: 2005, Al Pacino, drama, Matthew McConaughey, movie, sports, thriller