21

**1/2 – A solid but unspectacular entry in the gambling/poker/blackjack/cardshark genre of film, “21” is relatively entertaining to watch despite some obvious deficiencies. It looks decent and has mostly solid performances from the cast that includes Morpheus, Keyser Soze, Lois Lane and a bunch of nobodies, but doesn’t do anything to make itself stand out in what is becoming a rather crowded niche of film types. My biggest beef with this movie is not the plot or acting or anything like that, but the somewhat offensive premise that is implied; that everyone in the world really just wants to go to Vegas and have fun and that nothing else in life is worth bothering with. The portrayal of two tubby nerds (friends of the main character) as brilliant yet sex-obsessed losers who would trade all their knowledge and abilities for a chance to tag Kate Bosworth is more than a little infuriating.