Not quite a winner

Rating: 5/10 (1 April 2008)

I personally think that Jim Sturgess is a very promising actor. His stage presence was believable and he has a lot in store for him. Being a film with Sturgess, Kevin Spacey and Laurence Fishbourne, I was pretty stoked for this film. However, 21 turns out to be quite drawn out and the trailer for the film seemed more exciting.
The story is inspired by a very popular book called "Bringing Down the House". The main character, Ben Campbell, goes to MIT and need 300,000 dollars to go to med school. To suffice this requirement, he is invited by a group of students to a Blackjack group. He learns the technique of counting cards and goes to Las Vegas every weekend to make money and enjoy the high roller life at the same time.
The premise of the story sounds very interesting. However the story seems to stray to many Hollywood clichés. Despite interesting characters, it can be pretty obvious how the characters affect the plot. The film also incorporate multiple strands of storyline together into one film. The film is built of Ben's experiences in Las Vegas, his relationship with his older friends/his mom, and the security professional who is trying to put an end to the Blackjack Team. Although the transitions between storyline are effective, the side stories aren't very exciting to watch and again it is pretty predictable.
The dialogue is very slick and fluid although I was not completely assured by Sturgess's ability to act and speak in American English. Also, the film doesn't throughly explain the concept of counting cards. I was confused to what he was doing at many points during the film. Also I think it was possible to cut out some of the scenes in the film. It got a little drawn out and wasn't adding much to the overall story plot.
When the ending was nearing, I felt like this was going to end very poorly. It had caused me to temporarily not like any of the characters. However, the film went a little further in the ending than I thought it was going to be and it turned to be a fulfilling ending. Overall, 21 was a bit of a disappointment. Despite the slick dialogue and promising story, it became too predictable and drawn out.