A compulsive gambler attempts to cure his addiction by moving from Las Vegas to Albuquerque and working at an auto insurance company, only to find old temptations cropping up once again when he's sent out to investigate a dubious car accident just outside of Sin City. After a string of bad luck at the tables, John (Steve Buscemi) decides to give up gambling and take a shot at a "normal" life. Arriving in Albuquerque and landing a job at an auto insurance company, John goes to work for Mr.
Townsend (Peter Dinklage), who pairs him with the company's top fraud debunker, Virgil (Romany Malco), and sends them out on an investigation together. While John is eager to get a promotion, he's reluctant to go anywhere near Las Vegas, and before he leaves he strikes up a tenuous romance with his eccentric co-worker Jill (Sarah Silverman). On the road, Virgil and John encounter a series of offbeat characters including a nude militant (Tim Blake Nelson), a wheelchair-bound stripper (Emmanuelle Chriqui), and a carnival human torch (John Cho). But while Virgil is the one with the experience, John gradually begins to assert himself and soon his efforts begin to pay off as the case moves closer to conclusion. As John's confidence grows, he becomes increasingly aware of the fact that running away from his gambling problem is not the solution, and that he'll only be able to move forward by returning to Las Vegas to face his demons head on. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
Comic casting and comic timing pay off in most scenes, with Dinklage landing the big laughs, Malco doing his wise-guy-talking-down-to-the-doofus patter and Buscemi just bugging out and reacting to the craziness.
For all its clever quirkiness, the end product seems flat and over-thought, which isn't to say it's a bad first step for this ambitious novice director, just a long way from something that will set the world on fire.
It's minor, but I enjoyed it, largely because of the people on-screen, but also for the sneaky sincerity of writer-director Hue Rhodes' chronicle of one compulsive gambler's slouch toward redemption.
Don't get me wrong. I loved Buscemi's low-key performance. But I'm less crazy about the movie, which is sometimes oddly timed and funny and sometimes just plain flat.
The script is both overly simple and unnecessarily complex. As we wander west without tension or purpose across an airless desert, the trip isn't all that enjoyable. For God's sake, are we there yet?
Buscemi delivers game and spry and pleasurable work, but writer-director Hue Rhodes drops him into a mess of a film and lets him dangle helpless and alone.
It's a black comedy with a few exceptional scenes, but never gels together convincingly, making the artistic swing for the fences more of a quiet disappointment than a captivating leap of faith.
"Getting Lucky is a Roll of the Dice"I was intrigues by this movie because it had Steve Buscemi in the leading role and Romany Malco, who I really liked in Weeds. The movie could never really pull itself together though. I really have no idea what this movie was trying to accomplish or what it was trying to be.Saint
John of Las Vegas had some pretty bizarre scenes that were okay like the discussion with a carnival performer who kept bursting into flames. After a couple of scenes though, everything else are just throw away scenes that don't work. Buscemi and Malco weren't bad, they just had nothing to work with. Silverman was her usual annoying self. I dont see how anyone can like her. She isn't funny at all. It seems to me like the writer and director was trying to be too original. The premise could have been cool had it actually turned into a real movie, but it never does. I was really hoping to like this. I always like to enjoy an Independent film that nobody else likes or has seen. This one just can't be enjoyed though; too bad.
July 31, 2011
Melvin White
Super Reviewer
An insurance claims adjuster with a gambling problem is sent to Las Vegas to investigate a wheelchair-bound stripper's car accident. The gambling addiction makes for a nice hook and the cast is appealing (Steve Buscemi and Sarah Silverman), but it never really comes together as a comedy. For unclear reasons, there
are lots of references to Dante's "Inferno."
No quotes approved yet for Saint John of Las Vegas. Logged in users can submit quotes.
Submit a Quote from 'Saint John of Las Vegas'
A quote can be a single line from one character or a memorable dialog between several characters. Please make your quotes accurate. Quotes will be submitted for approval by the RT staff.
Example:
Luke: Alright. I'll give it a try. Yoda: No. Try not. Do or do not. There is no try.
Top Critic
