“Irrationally angry at nothing in particular,” promising skier Molly Bloom (Jessica Chastain) turned her disappointment at not making the Winter Olympics into hosting the world’s most “exclusive, glamorous and decadent man cave”. That den of iniquity being a regular high-stakes poker game which as the subtitle of the real-life Molly Bloom’s autobiography suggests lured an array of A-listers “From Hollywood’s Elite to Wall Street’s Billionaire Boys Club”.

Despite not knowing her “nuts” from her “backdoor” (she had to Google the terms as and when they arose), Molly used her contacts first as a cocktail waitress and then as a personal assistant to the real estate agent Dean Keith (Jeremy Strong) to earn upwards of $3000 in tips for organising a single match. Tired of Keith’s bullish behaviour, however, she branched off on her own and her earnings soon rocketed from the thousands to the millions.

So far so good. So far so legal. But her bubble burst when she decided to take a “rake” (a cut) in order to counteract the losses she had sustained from players who couldn’t or wouldn’t settle their debts. The FBI were called in. The services of hotshot lawyer Charlie Jaffey (Idris Elba) were called upon. And she was forced to choose between naming and shaming the A-listers or saving her name and confessing her guilt.

As Player X (Michael Cera) taunted her: “You are so f****d!” And well and truly f****d she was by an Italian heavy who forced his way into her apartment, beat her up, stole her money, put a gun into her mouth and warned her that he knew where her mother lived. Thankfully, the childhood advice she received from her clinical psychologist father Larry (Kevin Costner) saved her from going under. “Don’t look down,” he once instructed her on the ski slopes. “If you look down, that’s where you go.”

Already short-listed for two Golden Globes (best screenplay and best actress), Oscar and BAFTA nominations are sure to follow suit. For the script by the Oscar-winning screenwriter of The Social Network, Aaron Sorkin, who makes his feature directorial debut, is a whirlwind of witty wordplay, bluff and counter-bluff, which through slick editing and rapid-fire delivery makes the 140 minutes fly by.

Jessica Chastain gives a terrific performance as Molly; her steely-eyes and poker face masking a sea of depression into which she slowly sinks. Her interactions with Elba, in particular, fizzing with intelligence. In stark contrast to the strained heart-to-hearts with her estranged father which are charged with and ultimately reveal what makes her “irrationally angry”. In the end, it’s not the winning nor the taking part that counts, but as John Proctor argues in The Crucible, “it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life!”

Director: Aaron Sorkin
Writers: Aaron Sorkin (written for the screen by), Molly Bloom (book)
Stars: Jessica Chastain, Idris Elba, Kevin Costner
Peter Callaghan
Latest posts by Peter Callaghan (see all)