Great lead performances help tell a fascinating story

Rating: 7/10 (6 May 2020)

While I didn't particularly like the structure or length of the film, Jessica Chastain's performance was enough for it to be a definite success. I was expecting this to play out like a corny sports movie but its actually quite authentic with little to no glamorising of Bloom herself and poker games that are actually portrayed realistically- quite a rarity in Hollywood movies. I would certainly have preferred a more fluid telling of the story, with less interlacing of the two timelines and a shorter runtime. However, thanks to excellent supporting performances from Idris Elba and Kevin Costner, many of the extraneous scenes were perfectly enjoyable. I did find the overall tone of the film to be a little ostentatious but there is more than enough substance to make this a fairly memorable experience.