Molly's Game

Jessica Chastain is really quite good in this biopic of Molly Bloom, a would-be American skier who ended up running some seriously lucrative poker games in the USA. An injury curtails her Olympic aspirations so she heads to Los Angeles and is soon helping "Dean" (Jeremy Strong) run his successful, if somewhat low-brow, poker games. Seeing an opportunity to upscale the whole set-up, she branches out on her own and soon has many of the city's elite turning up to her plush hotel suite to play for millions. The film follows her ups and downs as she treads the line between what's legal and not; what's ethical and not - as well as dealing with the FBI and a few mobsters who fancy a slice of her cake. When, finally, the Feds swoop it falls to Charlie Jaffey (Idris Elba) to get her feet out of the fire. It's not the paciest of films, I have to say. Her narration does rather slow the whole thing down a bit too - as do the frequent retrospective scenes of her rather complex relationship with her parents (Kevin Costner plays her dad) and Elba really only has a chance to shine in one or two scenes towards the end. Still, it offers a fascinating insight into just how millions can be won/lost by otherwise reputable people; and just how ruthless that business and the US Government can be but Aaron Sorkin's usually quick-witted, sophisticated writing is distinctly lacking. It is worth watching, but I expected more.