In my quest to conquer as many award season movies as possible I went to see Molly's Game last night. This was a movie I've been quite excited about, as I was at a Q&A with Jessica Chastain where she seemed very excited about it. Not to mention this is the directorial debut of one of the best screenwriters out there Aaron Sorkin.
This movie follows the true story of Molly Bloom and the FBI trying to put her in jail. Molly was originally a skier that narrowly missed out on the Olympics due to a freak accident. She then moves to LA and starts hosting huge poker games for her boss, but when he starts treating her worse and worse she starts her own games and becomes known as the Poker Princess. With these huge poker games she gets into some big trouble and the case surrounding that trouble is where we are put into the story.
Aaron Sorkin has never directed before, and yet his writing has given him a distinct style that translates very well into his directing. I just think it's amazing that you can easily tell this is his movie despite it being his directorial debut. I really like the way he chose to tell this story. The main story-line is Molly and her lawyer preparing a defense but the film uses a ton of flashbacks so the audience is shown the entire story. We also get Molly's full point of view because a lot of the flashbacks are narrated by her. Sorkin is well known for his fantastic dialogue and holy moly is it great here. Pretty much every line feels real but also amped up to make the film more exciting. The only issue I see in Sorkin's work on this film is that it's just too long. This movie is two hours and twenty minutes long and I think there is enough that is drawn out too much or not necessary that you could cut this down to around two hours. That being said, I still really enjoyed everything I got during the run time.
Jessica Chastain is becoming one of my favourite actresses working today, and this is easily one of her best roles. In all honesty, she is playing a fugitive, and one that isn't necessarily a bad person but has made some very clear mistakes. Chastain plays Molly in a way that doesn't shy away from her issues but also portrays her in a very sympathetic manner. Based on everything I know about Molly Bloom this is the perfect way to portray her, as she has made numerous mistakes but is also a strong victim of circumstance. Idris Elba plays Molly's lawyer in the film and I think he did a fantastic job. There is one really great speech he has that honestly made my jaw drop. He also does a good job of playing into the sympathy the audience feels for Molly, it is clear that he sees her as a good person which helps the audience to see her that way as well. If I had to pick out a surprise performance in this film, it would have to be Michael Cera. Cera is absolutely incredible in this movie as one of the players in Molly's poker games. We usually see him as an awkward guy cracking up jokes but this is a more serious role for him. When I look at Michael Cera I see a pretty goofy guy, but the way he composes himself in this film makes him surprisingly intimidating and he steals a lot of the scenes he's in. Another surprise was Kevin Costner as Molly's father. He isn't in much of the film but when he is he really shines. The relationship he and Molly have is a pretty complicated one and I think he and Chastain portray that perfectly. Also, the actresses that played younger Molly were fantastic, it honestly felt like they were just a younger version of Chastain's portrayal both physically and emotionally.
This is a really good movie filled with some fantastic performances. The actors are great and the script they are given to work with is fantastically written. The film is a little too long and that causes it to drag from time to time, but this story is too fascinating for that to detract very much.
Rating: 4.1/5
Written by Matt McKenzie
This movie follows the true story of Molly Bloom and the FBI trying to put her in jail. Molly was originally a skier that narrowly missed out on the Olympics due to a freak accident. She then moves to LA and starts hosting huge poker games for her boss, but when he starts treating her worse and worse she starts her own games and becomes known as the Poker Princess. With these huge poker games she gets into some big trouble and the case surrounding that trouble is where we are put into the story.
Aaron Sorkin has never directed before, and yet his writing has given him a distinct style that translates very well into his directing. I just think it's amazing that you can easily tell this is his movie despite it being his directorial debut. I really like the way he chose to tell this story. The main story-line is Molly and her lawyer preparing a defense but the film uses a ton of flashbacks so the audience is shown the entire story. We also get Molly's full point of view because a lot of the flashbacks are narrated by her. Sorkin is well known for his fantastic dialogue and holy moly is it great here. Pretty much every line feels real but also amped up to make the film more exciting. The only issue I see in Sorkin's work on this film is that it's just too long. This movie is two hours and twenty minutes long and I think there is enough that is drawn out too much or not necessary that you could cut this down to around two hours. That being said, I still really enjoyed everything I got during the run time.
Jessica Chastain is becoming one of my favourite actresses working today, and this is easily one of her best roles. In all honesty, she is playing a fugitive, and one that isn't necessarily a bad person but has made some very clear mistakes. Chastain plays Molly in a way that doesn't shy away from her issues but also portrays her in a very sympathetic manner. Based on everything I know about Molly Bloom this is the perfect way to portray her, as she has made numerous mistakes but is also a strong victim of circumstance. Idris Elba plays Molly's lawyer in the film and I think he did a fantastic job. There is one really great speech he has that honestly made my jaw drop. He also does a good job of playing into the sympathy the audience feels for Molly, it is clear that he sees her as a good person which helps the audience to see her that way as well. If I had to pick out a surprise performance in this film, it would have to be Michael Cera. Cera is absolutely incredible in this movie as one of the players in Molly's poker games. We usually see him as an awkward guy cracking up jokes but this is a more serious role for him. When I look at Michael Cera I see a pretty goofy guy, but the way he composes himself in this film makes him surprisingly intimidating and he steals a lot of the scenes he's in. Another surprise was Kevin Costner as Molly's father. He isn't in much of the film but when he is he really shines. The relationship he and Molly have is a pretty complicated one and I think he and Chastain portray that perfectly. Also, the actresses that played younger Molly were fantastic, it honestly felt like they were just a younger version of Chastain's portrayal both physically and emotionally.
This is a really good movie filled with some fantastic performances. The actors are great and the script they are given to work with is fantastically written. The film is a little too long and that causes it to drag from time to time, but this story is too fascinating for that to detract very much.
Rating: 4.1/5
Written by Matt McKenzie
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