The opportunity to reinvent yourself, make millions of dollars, and experience the most decadent pleasures and thrills all before graduating college is the true story of MIT students in the '90s and inspiration for the movie 21.
Juxtaposing the often gray skies of Boston with the lights and glamour of Las Vegas, the film starts with Ben Campbell (Jim Sturgess), a brilliant MIT student who's struggling with how he will pay for the exorbitant cost of Harvard medical school upon graduation.
Professor Micky Rosa (slick Kevin Spacey) takes note of Ben's exceptional intellect and recruits him to the clandestine team comprised of other selected students to master the art of counting cards to beat the odds in blackjack through an intricate system of codes. On the weekends they go to Vegas, where their skills are applied to the high stakes casino tables under the guise of fake identities. Love interest (Kate Bosworth), close calls with Vegas security staff (Laurence Fishburne), and the egos' insatiable appetite provide for excitement and the satisfaction of karmic payback.
Jeff Ma, whose experience the movie is based on, visited the set in Vegas and Boston and even had a cameo appearance as a blackjack dealer. According to the film's press notes, "while on the MIT team, Ma was the big player; once his teammates, called spotters, had found a hot deck, Ma would sit down and play very high wagers with the odds in his favor. Ma said that he had to overcome the natural parts of his personality to play the big player convincingly."
Robert Luketic ( Legally Blonde ) directs a strong cast. Sturgess is endearing in his innocence, and develops into a commanding and charismatic presence as he encounters his own power, intelligence, and desire. Spacey and Fishburne deliver the high caliber performances we have grown to expect of these seasoned actors.
21 is a fusion of action and drama with some comedy and romance, and is a film that everyone can enjoy. Intelligent characters get seduced into excess and decadence, the consequences of ambition, along with the benefits and rewards, which all makes for good solid entertainment.
Feeds