Even Money (2006/I)

Director:

Mark Rydell

Writer (WGA):

Robert Tannen (written by)

Release Date:

19 November 2008 (Egypt)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

Life is a gamble. How much are you willing to risk?

Plot:

Gambling addiction bring the stories of three otherwise unconnected people together as it destroys each of their lives.

Plot Keywords:

Gambling | Bookie | Magician | Addiction | Debt

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Kim Basinger	...	Carolyn Carver
Kelsey Grammer	...	Detective Brunner
Forest Whitaker	...	Clyde Snow
Nick Cannon	...	Godfrey Snow
Carla Gugino	...	Veronica
Charles Robinson	...	Coach Washington (as Charlie Robinson)
Cassandra Hepburn	...	Claudia
Ray Liotta	...	Tom Carver
Carson Brown	...	Nicole Carver
Jay Mohr	...	Augie
Grant Sullivan	...	Murph
James Marsh	...	Writer in Coffee Shop
Shanelle Workman	...	Jill
Texas Battle	...	Darius Jackson
Tim Roth	...	Victor

Also Known As:

Jump Shot (USA) (working title)
Tödlicher Einsatz (Germany) (DVD title)
La apuesta perfecta (Spain) [es]
Sto heilos tou tzogou (Greece) (DVD title) [el]

MPAA:

Rated R for language, violence and brief sexuality.

Runtime:

113 min

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R | Finland:K-15 | Singapore:NC-16 | Australia:MA | New Zealand:R16

Filming Locations:

Ambassador Hotel - 3400 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Yari Film Group (YFG)

Trivia:

Nearly all the basketball scenes begin with a three or four note fanfare that seems intended to be jarring. These notes are actually the beginning of a fight song shared by both the University of California and UCLA.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): Godfrey Snow is Clyde Snow's little brother but the DVD box synopsis calls Godfrey a nephew to Clyde.

Quotes:

Detective Brunner: Like I said we're all chasin somethin. More money. More love. What we're really looking for is more life. But sometimes you go looking for more, and you wind up with less. It's a beautiful world. We ought to be satisfied. But the truth is... we all want more. Some take a chance for the rush of winning. Some for love. But you can't have your dream without laying something on the line. The key is not to risk what you can't afford to lose. You might think you're different. But someday...

Soundtrack:

Bump and Grind

We Are Responsible for Our Actions

I'm always fascinated by any film that can provoke an array of feelings towards it as this films appears to have done. I am in the "liked it very much" camp. Perhaps if one avoids seeing it as a slice of life screenplay, it can be appreciated much better. I saw it as an exercise in watching people proceed to ruin their lives....we're generally responsible for what choices we make. Kelsey Grammar was very good in his role, but I could have done without the false nose, etc. Tim Roth is one of those actors who is never boring regardless of how good or poor the particular film may be. While I can appreciate why some people hate this film, I just approached it from a different angle, took it for what it was and didn't look at my watch once during its run.