A Última Cartada

This movie simultaneously knows how dumb it is while also believing it to be way smarter than it is. The chaos it creates somehow works just because of that. It tries a bit too much in every aspect but it does feel like the intent was right, it just ended up a bit messy. I can see people hating this but it was just so much fun. The ensemble cast was fantastic and really brought their best with the material they got. The only character I cared about was Alicia Keys' but that didn't matter much when the philosophy of the movie felt a bit nihilistic but not in a completely hopeless way even though it can also be read like that.

Smokin' Aces was most certainly a bit of a magic show within itself, in that while you watched the evident plot go one way, you didn't notice the actual plot until BAM! it came out of nowhere. It wasn't the most coherent of plots sometimes, but for the most part it all wraps up in the end.

As far as greatness goes, this won't be up there winning awards. Rather, it might be remembered fondly as "that cool movie I saw a while ago." Good drama, good action. Ryan Reynolds breaks out in a truly serious and compelling role.

Definitely a movie worth viewing.

I've read some of the reviews for this movie, and I can't agree with them. I completely disagree in that I thought this was a very entertaining movie. The concept was very well thought out but it wasn't perfect, obviously.

Basically, the movie was about several groups of assassins all gunning for the same man for the same price. The reason he is wanted dead is because of his snitching and deceitful ways. I'm not going to give anything away, but once you watch the movie you'll know there's a lot more behind that. Only thing you really need to do is pay as close attention as you can during the beginning, because it does get a little confusing. The story moves along pretty quickly, but you will get the gist of it.

Overall, I thought it was very well done. The plot was good, the characters were amazing (especially Ryan Reynolds), and there were some nice action parts. Even though it dragged on a little bit during the middle, it was necessary to develop plot details. 9 out of 10 stars from me; it was very entertaining and thought provoking. Last but not least, the white karate kid in the trailer was hilarious, "Why you eye-ballin' me son!?".

There was a fair amount of comedy, thrill, and action. Each element was delivered at the right moment. The premise of the movie is not too complex. The movie provides enough background information in order for you to enjoy the movie. You have to buy in to the contrivance that multiple people are going to try to kill one man on the top floor of a casino. If you get pass that, you will have a really good time. Character performances were great. It has an amazing cast. Wonderful performances are given to Ryan Reynolds in a serious role and Jeremey Piven.

OVERALL...The story was good. This movie also had appealing eye-candy. You will get excited about this movie.

Smoking Aces is a film that tries hard, and in doing so is one that is not going to be easy to describe. The basic plot revolves around the central character "Aces" who is testifying against the mob, and in return has a contract out on his head. Locked away in his suite in Las Vegas, he is protected by the Fed, but there are multiple contract killers (all different from each as can be imagined!) out to get him.

First hour seems to be stuck piecing the different contract killers together and their background, whilst the Fed are shown to be trying to figure out what is going on. No one set of actors though gets above the others, and in doing so you have multiple stories in the film tied into the whole premise of the film. Acting is great by the general assemble which includes fine performances by Andy Garcia and Ray Liotta.

Problematically, the film tries to be too cool at the start, and reminds me too much of "Things to do in Denver...." and so on. In addition, the film is really confusing at points but is worth persevering with nevertheless. The complexity makes it very original, and you never know where its going, but it wraps up together in the last 30mins which are more than worth the cinema ticket alone.

No classic, but enjoyable, original and interesting overall..