Two for the Money DVD Review:

Gambling films are nothing new. They are similar to drug films, because they both have addiction, and they both start with everything going great for the lead character, but over time the addiction tears them apart and their lives start to fall to pieces. Although Two for the Money is definitely a gambling film, it manages to find a new approach and original setting for the film. It isn’t one of the better films dealing with this addiction, but at least it is an original film in many cases.

Mathew McConaughey natural fits into the persona of Brandon Lang, a charismatic guy who wanted to play football for a living until he was injured. After that dream was crushed be found that he had a knack for picking winners on a sports advice hotline. He is so accurate that he is recruited for a large company in sports gambling, run by Walter Abrams (Al Pacino). Lang continues to pick winners, and soon everyone is looking to him when they bet, meaning that he is responsible for the huge stakes that a number of people are putting on his decisions. After a while the pressure starts to get to Brandon and he doesn’t have the same success that he once did.

What makes Two for the Money much easier to watch is the fact that Brandon never gambles. So, although there is a great deal of pressure on him, and it could mean the end of his career, all he has to do is walk away and he will not have lost anything. Had Pacino’s character, Walter Abrams, been the center of the film’s story, I imagine that the ending might not be so positive. With Brandon we are allowed to see the worst of what gambling can do to a person, but by the end of the film it can be quickly resolved.

The film is perfectly cast, which is why it is so upsetting that the final product is only decent and occasionally entertaining. Jeremy Piven doesn’t seem to be making much of a jump from his character on Entourage to a seller on Two for the Money, but he is always fun to watch. Russo gives the tough intelligent wife performance, having little opportunity to actually be involved in the action, but also providing all of the necessary conflict. The saddest thing about the film is that Pacino seems perfect for the role, but he never really spreads his wings. It is a dialed down version of what we are used to seeing from him.

The DVD has a stylish menu and an assortment of special features. There are a number of theatrical and television trailers for the film, deleted scenes, and a few featurettes. The best special feature, however, is the commentary track with DJ Caruso and Dan Gilroy. The two featurettes on the DVD are “The Making of Two for the Money”, which has behind the scenes footage, and “Insider Interview: The Real Brandon”, which is done by screenwriter Dan Gilroy.



Ryan Izay