The Prime Gig
Vince Vaughn stars in this story of high-pressure boiler room  telemarketing scams. Vaughn plays Pendelton "Penny" Wise (get it?), a small-time  operator who's looking for a bigger score. He takes a "prime gig" with Kelly  Grant (Ed Harris), a high-stakes player with a shady gold mine to sell.Prime  Gigsets up an unusual tension: you want to root for Penny even though you  know he may be bilking people out of their life savings and is most definitely a  sleazebag. Harris does well, making what could have been a typical Gordon Gekko  knockoff character a little more internalized and interesting, and Julia Ormond  does a fine job of fleshing out a character who very well may have been named  "Romantic Interest." Vaughn uses his onscreen persona well here--he deftly  maintains the hero-scumball balance, never quite letting go of either.Prime  Gigis not a perfectly realized movie, but a compelling watch nonetheless.--Ali Davis