Pacionsbo Absolutely Fantastic

Portia Hilton Blistering performances.

Zandra The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Cristal The movie really just wants to entertain people.

vincentlynch-moonoi It really wasn't until "The Usual Suspects" (1995) that I really noticed Kevin Spacey, and from then on I really looked at him as one of the very best actors in Hollywood. That doesn't mean I've always appreciated the movies he's selected to appear in, but -- like Jack Nicholson -- even in a bad film, Spacey is interesting to watch.And so, when this film came on cable, I thought I'd watch a bit of it just to enjoy a Spacey performance, but I had no intention of watching the whole film. But, as usual, the joy of watching Spacey act pulled me in and I watched it all...and I'm glad I did. That's not to say this is a great film. It's not. But it's better than average...perhaps.The first strength is in Spacey's performance. Flawless, as it almost always is. And what is Spacey's strength. In my view, much the same as the strength in Spencer Tracy's mature performances -- understatement.Barry Pepper is also excellent as a fellow conspirator of Abramoff's. Jon Lovitz...well, I can't quite decide how I feel about his performance as a sleaze ball, but at the very least he was interesting. No one else in the film stands out in my mind, but everyone does their job.To enjoy this film, you have to either like Spacy or enjoy politics...or both. Recommended, though I doubt this will end up on your DVD shelf.

napierslogs I have a thing against despicable characters like "right-wing fascist" Jack Abramoff in "Casino Jack". I can almost get over my hesitation when he's played by the always likable Kevin Spacey, almost. It's an unlikable character flanked by more unlikable characters that for the most part make up an unlikable film.Yes, it is a true story about the lobbyist who had Republicans in his back pocket, i.e, his wallet, and it's even an interesting true story. Almost an interesting film. They spent way too long introducing us to this arrogant wheeler-dealer, who of course had many facets including family man and a devout Jew, but then forgetting to tell us why he's so interesting.Despite the lack of focus on why we should be watching, the performances are quite entertaining. Spacey, immensely underrated for his comedic acting ability, delivers witty one-liners as best as anyone. Barry Pepper in what could be a career-defining role comes second only to Spacey in entertainment value and sleaziness. And Jon Lovitz, as always, comes through with comic gold as an obnoxious mob-connected imbecile. But should this movie really be a comedy? With Abramoff out of jail and back on the streets, how funny is that? Alex Gibney's documentary "Casino Jack and the United State of Money" is a better product than this, but neither are as interesting as they should be given the subject.

namashi_1 Kevin Spacey is truly an actor to adore. The Two-Time Academy-Award Winner has proved his talent time and again. In 'Casino Jack', he gets even better and delivers a superb performance. 'Casino Jack' is based on Jack Abramoff. Abramoff, is one of the most notorious lobbyist's ever. 'Casino Jack', however focuses, on the time when Abramoff & his protégé went down hard...as their schemes to peddle influence lead to corruption and a brutal murder. Director George Hickenlooper does a good job, while Norman Snider's writing is flawed. The writing in the first hour is spot-on, but in the second hour, it falters. Even the culmination for that matter, doesn't leave the desired impact. Acting wise, as told, Spacey owns the film. He plays Abramoff superbly. He truly is an Icon! Barry Pepper is Excellent. On the whole, 'Casino Jack' can be viewed once, for it's lead star's performance. Must for Spacey Fans!

scrapmetal7 Movies like this, Spinning Boris, Barbarians at the Gate, Recount, bla bla bla... A lot of the reviewers on this board are treating this like a real movie and complaining about the style, the pacing, the acting, or whatever. They don't realize that the HBO docudrama is a genre of its own, and they all are directed like this, and have this kind of music and structure and pacing and so on. If you've seen one, you've seen them all. They are fakey, boringly executed accounts of real things that happened, they feel like they take a million years to watch, and they really only appeal to people the first time they see one.Republican culture is full of sleazy, cynical con artists with big dreams that hinge on manipulating people and ripping them off. This movie is about two such men, Jack Abramoff and Mike Scanlon, and they are worthless people that no one with a soul can empathize with or relate to at all. Watching them make their plans and cheat people and be disloyal to their friends and lovers is boring. there's no entertainment value to it.In movies like this it is important for the screenwriters to feel that they've painted their main character as an irascible, charismatic character, rascally and witty, full of little zinger lines and whatnot. The real Jack Abramoff seems to be a boring douchebag, and he probably did constantly do impressions of celebrities, but I doubt he was as interesting to watch as Kevin Spacey (who is not interesting enough to save this movie).