Two for the Money

Ever gone to Wal-Mart and seen the rack of "value-priced" movies? You know the ones I mean, those movies that, while maybe not terrible, just weren't good enough for anyone to want them? D.J. Caruso's Two for the Money is a movie of this variety.

Slow-drawling Matthew McConaughey plays protagonist Brandon Lang, a wholesome ex-football player who is brought into the corrupt world of sports-gambling advising. McConaughey will have you grinding your teeth with his attempts at smooth-talking, but tries to compensate for his inability to act by taking off his shirt at every opportunity. As industry guru Walter Abrams, Al Pacino plays a crooked mentor-type character reminiscent of his role in Donnie Brasco, but lacking the passion that made that film so enjoyable. Instead of putting forth the acting we all know he is capable of, Pacino seems content to scream out caricatures of his older roles. Completing the ensemble is Rene Russo, who must have (ahem) known someone to get in this movie-she is simply too old to be believable in the role of temptress.

If Two for the Money had to be summed up in one word it would be lackluster. Attempts at creating tension are sporadically successful, but the only times the audience is really on the edge of its seat is during the clips of football games. At times, director Caruso hints at a desire to expand the plot-to delve, for example, into Lang's troubled childhood or his surprise at discovering that a one-night stand was actually a prostitute. For some reason, however, these paths are revealed but never explored.

Two for the Money hedges its bets on an aging cast and an uninspired plot-and lost. Unfortunately, so does the audience.