Runner Runner (2013)

Written by Kenneth Axel Carlsson on December 30, 2014

A kid is getting other kids to play poker online. The head of the university doesn't like it and threaten to throw him out. The kid (Justin Timberlake) takes all his money and play some poker, hoping that he will win and his future secure. Well, you guessed it, he loses everything. But, not because he is bad or anything, no, there is this guy called Ivan (Ben Affleck) who runs these online casinos, and who cheats the poor young kids.

Now there is only one sensible thing to do, which is to go to Costa Rica and confront the bad guy with his scheme. Thats exactly what I would do. Well, nah, not really, but I hope you see where I am going with this. He arrives in Costa Rica, and soon finds himself at the deep end of the pool, hunted by Ivan, some dude named Herrera and the FBI... of course.

The plot is idiotic, as you might have guessed. It makes no sense, and the poor actors don't know how to act. And honestly, I don't blame them, they don't understand the manuscript either. I looked for a little light in the darkness, and I think I found it... the photography. There are some beautiful images in this movie, worthy of a James Bond movie, and you know what, the plot matches the Bond movies of late pretty well too. Yeah, I am not a big Bond fan either.

Last words... it's not worth it. Ben Affleck is an overrated actor, not worth your time. Mr. Timberlake should just have stopped after The Social Network, and he would have stopped on top. This movie... don't waste your time on it. If you like poker and want to see a nice poker movie, watch Rounders instead, or even 21.