The crime drama “The Player” (2014) is a remake of the 1974 picture, which tells about the writer’s dependence on gambling, which was praised mainly because of the acting skills of the leading actor James Caan. In the project of Rupert Wyatt, the main role was played by Mark Wahlberg, who recognized the image as the most difficult in his career, and not at all because the performer had to lose 30 kg.
Artful visual mix
Adapted to modernity by Rupert Wyatt, the “Player” (front-end actors: M. Wahlberg, D. Goodman, B. Larson) has a relatively low IMDb rating of 6.00. In a remake, the director of the original film, Karel Rice, who preferred social realism, took Rupert Wyatt. For the director, the film was a great opportunity to once again prove his own professionalism and viability after the triumphant "Rise of the Planet of the Apes."
After the fantastic blockbuster of 2011, the director could become a hostage to expensive mainstream, but White was lucky to avoid such a fate. Reading Rupert, the picture became like a deft visual mix. The director subtly felt when to dip a character with his head in the bathroom or stop on a close-up of a hero reflecting on whether to rush into the pool with his head. At the same time I knew when to speed up, so as not to focus on Benjamin Franklin flashed here and there, to emphasize that the film is not about money at all.
In the movie "Player", the actors were constantly under the strict guidance of the director, so they worked harmoniously and fruitfully.
Plot
The “player” (film 2014) casting actors perceived with all responsibility, suggesting that its premiere will bring them well-deserved laurels of success.
Literature professor and talented writer Jim Bennett (Mark Wahlberg) loses all his savings in an underground casino. In the hope of winning back, he takes a loan from criminal elements, realizing the possible consequences. In parallel with his addiction, the protagonist flirts with his student Amy (Bree Larson), in which he managed to discern an unprecedented creative potential. It provokes an upright conversation between the promising basketball player Lamar (Anthony Kelly), who attends the lectures of the professor exclusively for the sake of show. Meanwhile, aggressive-minded lenders, trying to get their loan back, decide to put pressure on Bennett's loved ones. Experiencing the fate of his students, Jim for the first time seriously thinks about the consequences of his actions and how to pay off the mafia.
This is a brief description of the storyline of the movie “The Player”. Actors of the project, embodying the idea of the creators, built a galaxy of surprisingly vivid and memorable characters.
Lead actor
“Player” is a film whose actors managed to go beyond their usual roles. For example, the leading actor Mark Wahlberg does not appear in the usual role of an action hero. In the project of Rupert Wyatt, he acts in the image of a character obsessed with the game, minimalist, but extremely bright. Many film critics noted that during the viewing it was most fun to watch the transformation of the artist, who, with his textured appearance, gallery of the roles of bad brutal guys and practically the same reputation in real life, ideally turned into a university professor of philology and the author of intellectual literary opus.
Despite the fact that in the storyline the “Player” is secondary, it is simultaneously extraordinary charming, possibly because of the character of Mark Wahlberg. The hero, obsessed with a thirst for self-destruction and close surrounding problems, is truly sorry. Moreover, Wahlberg plays really brilliantly, his hero is the undoubted advantage of the film "Player". Actors involved in the filming process noted his dedication and talent.
Minor Characters
Much of the film “Player”: actors, roles, and video sequences, has been closely monitored and criticized by specialists. Most of all, reviewers found fault with the musical accompaniment of the project, in which the compositions of Bob Dylan, Chopin, Cole Porter and Pulp perfectly coexisted. And the praises were awarded to the colorful secondary characters embodied by the wonderful performers John Goodman (Crew, Stag III), Jessica Lange (Cape of Fear, Blue Sky), Michael K. Williams (Underground Empire, wiretap) ").
The breakthrough in Bree Larson ’s career was the drama The Room, currently the actress is busy filming the blockbusters Avengers: Infinity War and Captain Marvel.
For Anthony Kelly, “The Player” became the debut picture, after which he starred in the short film “Q” (2016).
Summary
Taking into account all the advantages, according to the cinema community, the remake did not go beyond its capabilities, becoming just an average good, high-quality film, however, like the original 1974 film. The main value in it is a cold drive and an exemplary sustained rhythm that prompts you to constantly monitor the dark figure of Wahlberg.