Mississippi Grind

Road movie about some cool cats with big problems!

I am generally a pretty big fan of poker/gambling movies. And movies where one guy is a generally a worthless turd. And movies where there is a mysterious witty cool guy played by Ryan Reynolds. This movie had all of these things, and it was doing all of these things super well until the ending. I didn't much care for that. Without spoiling anything I will just say it didn't feel true to the rest of the movie.

A pleasant surprise. Nowadays, the "Hollywood" ending would have been an open ended cop out. This cliché is avoided by the directors.

I was positively charmed by this gambling road trip movie up until that disappointing ending, which kind of undermines everything that comes before it. Excellent work from both lead actors.

Deals in THE GAMBLER (with a cameo by degenerate gambler James Toback), then pays off its debt to CALIFORNIA SPLIT.

Not bad, not great. Shows everyone is dealing with their own private battle, but the film takes too long to gather momentum and for the characters to feel fully developed.

Super désagréable à regarder, mais bon film.

Both Gerry and Curtis are endearing characters despite their self-destructive behaviour and associated bad habits. Much of this has to do with the charm of Mendelsohn and Reynolds. Speaking of which, Analeigh Tipton performing her 'appearing cat' magic trick as Vanessa is the epitome of beguiling. The writing and directing of Fleck and Boden is impressive in that they prioritise the development of a nuanced bromance rather than fixating on gambling per se. The soundtrack is superb.

With roots born from California Split, this two-hander is a fairly simple story about two damaged men with a difficult relationship with money. The performances are fantastic from the two leads as the narrative unfolds unto something that isn't hurried or too concerned about where it will go. I always struggle to watch gambling movies as I hate seeing 'losers' lose more, but I appreciate those scenes here as they are handled with maturity.

Fun story and great acting (I think I need to watch more Ben Mendelsohn), but it's a little slow. I liked how the ending was left up in the air.

Seen: 2.

I love road trip movies and Mendelsohn is wonderful (Reynolds aint).

A well-acted California Split for the 21st Century.

eng; [mississippi grind]; ein pokerspieler trifft auf einen mann, der scheinbar ohne glück spielt - doch zusammen haben sie die vision das zu ändern.;

A good story about an uncommon addiction, told straightforwardly and ably with two charismatic leads.

There was this one great moment that should have been the ending - right when they tossed that dice with double or nothing on several hundred grand. Bigger director would have known to stop right there with an open ending and it would have been a better movie. Not too shabby, though, but no cigar, not by a long shot.

Ben Mendelsohn and Ryan Reynolds work well together in this film. The script has a number of good moments in it. The story drags a little bit at times. Overall I would recommend this film.

Ryan Reynolds and Ben Mendolsohn definitely bring the charm and make you invested in the characters and the unfolding drama that surrounds them as they take on the impossible. Yet there is not enough connection beyond the two of them with any other characters for this film to be a complete masterpiece. It works on a simplistic drama level but it never allowed itself to have that one stand out moment that set it above the genre norm

The film gave me mixed feelings. As a tale of unexpected friendship, male bonding, or a character study of flawed individuals, it was on the money. As a story, it was not that entertaining, and very far removed from realism. I could not understand the motivations of these gambling addicts who spend all their time in bars, casinos or hotel rooms. The high of winning, or crushing void of losing, were not something the film conveyed well. And all the one-scene female characters... why bother?

Gambling is fun. Ben Mendelsohn is good in this but it's very in his wheelhouse character wise so it's unsurprising. End is a bit dark

The Ben Mendelsohn character is compelling, but Ryan Reynolds not so much. I just never got interested enough in this movie to care. Ended up watching some partial chunks and then giving up on it.

This movie offered absolutely nothing new to the gambler sub-genre. It felt predictable and uninspired from first to last frame. A much better trailer though!

I appreciate Fleck and Boden's quiet way of focusing on character and relationship over spectacular event. Here, even the card games seem more focused on people than they are on the cards at the table. And I can't tell that they ever once cut to the dice during the craps game. This privileging of people over the gears of the story gives this film a refreshing tenor.

Agree that this is reminiscent of 70's character drama (e.g., Fat City). The script had potential, and the film has promising start, filmmakers seemed to struggle with the ending; which wouldn't have been so bad if the characters were better drawn. If you love the two main characters and their interactions, the film will be enjoyable. I like them, but they were ultimately just OK. ps68

Pretty good.

A wandering and restrained gambling tale that (thankfully) doesn't follow the typical arch of the genre. The ending was a little excessive but maybe gave meaning as to why we were watching this story in the first place. Mendelsohn was born to play a lowlife gambler.

A hangdog hangout movie that never really ceases to be charming. Pretty much does what California Split did 40 years ago, right on down to the same optimistic-but-not-really-optimistic conclusion (Basically, a painful reminder that money can't buy happiness). The world could definitely use more movies like California Split. Mendelsohn is great.

Video review https://youtu.be/nmEy8SxFj6A

An enjoyable bromance road movie with great acting and dialogue. It never hits any great heights, but it never stoops either, it's entertaining throughout and the two main characters are so realistically drawn, it makes them all the more empathetic.

Woodford ... Poker ... and two excellent actors starring in it. I bet you'll like it too .... My opinion here : http://opinion-as-a-moviefreak.blogspot.be/2015/11/mississippi-grind-2015.html [Full review]

A slow and boring flick that won't let you go because you feel captivated by the main characters and how they portray the story. I loved the ending and this movie really needed a great ending. This movie would have been really bad with a low budget cast!

Sad-sack gambling addict Gerry (Ben Mendelsohn) falls in with smooth-talker Curtis (Ryan Reynolds), and they embark on a road trip down the Mississippi to a fabled poker game in New Orleans, but naturally, things don't work out as planned. An homage to 70s character dramas, certainly not reaching the heights of the best of them, but solid enough (and it eschews contrived nihilism enough) to withstand the comparison. Mendelsohn and Reynolds are both excellent, and it's solidly made all around.

A road trip with a gambling problem. Not the type of film that'll normally interest me. A rather easy going story which work for it, because that leaves a lot of room for what actually makes the movie so lively. The acting! Both Ben Mendelsohn & Ryan Reynolds are on top of their game! And it's to their credit I kept caring about Mississippi Grind (2015).