The true story of a ring of MIT math club students/dropouts who develop an advanced probability-based card counting system that they take to Foxwoods, Atlantic City, and Las Vegas and get rich. What happens next?
In the book, the asian protagonist* is given a western name but in the film he is transformed into a caucasian! Gotta love that CGI, tricksy hobbitses. Kevin Spacey who hasn't made a decent movie in many moons plays the elder statesperson who is running the recruitment, training and management of the underground team.
The book is a semi-trashy non-fiction page-turner but even yet I've read it about a half-dozen times. Saw a featurette on this film and was mildly intrigued.
*real name - Jeff Ma, he's on the lecture circuit and runs a sports futures analysis database/website.
― Steve Shasta, Tuesday, 11 December 2007 16:42 (seventeen years ago)
they shot this at my school. /max
― jessie monster, Tuesday, 11 December 2007 16:43 (seventeen years ago)
http://imdb.com/title/tt0478087/trailers-me60109348
― Steve Shasta, Tuesday, 11 December 2007 16:44 (seventeen years ago)
is this out yet?
― Steve Shasta, Tuesday, 18 March 2008 01:09 (seventeen years ago)
I should be seeing an early showing on Wednesday.
― Simon H., Tuesday, 18 March 2008 01:10 (seventeen years ago)
March 21. I want to hear the original LCD Soundsystem track.
― felicity, Tuesday, 18 March 2008 01:31 (seventeen years ago)
Sorry that's the soundtrack release. Movie is March 28.
― felicity, Tuesday, 18 March 2008 01:35 (seventeen years ago)
The Soulwax mix of "You Can't Always Get What You Want" is growing on me...
― musically, Tuesday, 18 March 2008 01:41 (seventeen years ago)
6. LCD Soundsystem, "Big Ideas"
http://stereogum.com/archives/new-lcd-soundsystem-big-ideas-stereogum-premiere_008203.html
-- The Reverend, Monday, March 3, 2008 7:38 AM (2 weeks ago) Bookmark Link
This is good. My cheat card says "Double down."
― felicity, Tuesday, 18 March 2008 02:41 (seventeen years ago)
#1 film in the US last week, anyone see it?
― Steve Shasta, Saturday, 29 March 2008 16:50 (seventeen years ago)
It just opened yesterday, didn't it? Poor reviews all around.
― Eazy, Saturday, 29 March 2008 17:07 (seventeen years ago)
Shame, because I am fascinated by card counting/gambling scam stuff. I liked "Rounders" though, which the rest of the world thought was shit, so maybe I'll like this.
― Bodrick III, Saturday, 29 March 2008 20:36 (seventeen years ago)
http://www.najp.org/articles/2008/03/21-a-true-story.html
― C0L1N B..., Saturday, 29 March 2008 20:43 (seventeen years ago)
lol my first thought when I saw this was coming out was "yo that nigga was ASIAN not some white ass dude"
― Jimmy The Mod Awaits The Return Of His Beloved, Saturday, 29 March 2008 20:45 (seventeen years ago)
also lol @ this:
#14: People say that I should be happy because the producers, out of an apparent act of charity, did cast two Asian Americans in smaller roles: the Korean dude from Disturbia and some random token hot Asian chick.
that's MARGARET YANG dude.
― Jimmy The Mod Awaits The Return Of His Beloved, Saturday, 29 March 2008 20:46 (seventeen years ago)
not Margaret Yang, unless the actress changed her name
― Hubie Brown, Saturday, 29 March 2008 22:43 (seventeen years ago)
WAU THAT RLY LOOKS LIKE MARGARET YANG
― Jimmy The Mod Awaits The Return Of His Beloved, Saturday, 29 March 2008 23:08 (seventeen years ago)
O_O
― Jimmy The Mod Awaits The Return Of His Beloved, Saturday, 29 March 2008 23:12 (seventeen years ago)
Oh come on.
I get so sick of the Asian on Asian haterade pity party sometimes.
It would be obvious to anyone who actually watched "21" the movie and read Bringing Down the House the book that the film does not purport to be an adaptation. The events are based on . . . blah blah blah this is why you should always stay for the end credits so you do not miswrite stupid blog posts based on your lazy-ass misreading of the word "adapt" in some Fandango listing.
Anyway the movie has some nice location shots of Cambridge and a Jeff Ma cameo. The klepto Asian in the movie? I am so that person in Vegas.
I kind of wish they had kept the rival team storyline and the scene where one goes over to the rival counter's table and extemps:
"Man, I've been playing cards for six, seven hours. That's like four hundred hands, and you should see how many sixes and sevens and nines I got, and have so much trouble adding 'em up, seven plus six and six plus eight, and hey, what have4 you got there, a fivev and a nine, is that fourteen? . . . "
― felicity, Monday, 31 March 2008 06:59 (seventeen years ago)
Wanna feel sorta old?
According to the IMDB, Margaret Yang is 30 this year.
― C. Grisso/McCain, Monday, 31 March 2008 17:39 (seventeen years ago)
I wonder if some people refer to her as Meghan Huang
― mizzell, Monday, 31 March 2008 17:44 (seventeen years ago)