Oscar-winning screenwriter Aaron Sorkin (The Social Network) makes his directorial debut with Molly’s Game, which is predicated on the lifetime of so-called “Poker Princess” Molly Bloom (Jessica Chastain), a former Olympic snowboarding hopeful who turned to operating high-stakes, celebrity-studded underground poker video games in Los Angeles and New York after an unlucky wipeout on the slopes throughout an Olympic qualifying run dashed her gold-medal goals. Her story, advised in a sequence of flashbacks after she’s arrested by the FBI, is filled with Sorkin’s trademark rat-a-tat dialogue, which Chastain delivers with ease and suave finesse. Her dynamic, compelling efficiency is the perfect factor within the rookie helmer’s intriguing however bloated movie.

Most of the flashbacks happen as Bloom explains her sophisticated story to her lawyer, Charlie Jaffey (Idris Elba, effective and formidable). We achieve some perception into her troublesome childhood and love-hate relationship along with her demanding therapist father (a strong-willed Kevin Costner), who pushed her to be an Olympian. After her tragic damage, Bloom postpones going to legislation faculty and strikes from Colorado to Los Angeles, the place she is rapidly launched to the world of underground poker. She isn’t a participant, however she works for a wealthy sleazeball who runs a weekly sport that’s attended by an assortment of Hollywood A-listers. The film, similar to Bloom’s memoir, doesn’t use the actual names of the Tinseltown regulars, but it surely’s understood that these males are a part of the “exclusive, decadent man club,” and are usually not solely excessive rollers, however excessive up the meals chain in leisure, sports activities, and enterprise. (It’s no secret that Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Matt Damon, and Ben Affleck have been among the many attendees.) When Bloom sees an opportunity to steal the sport away from her boss after he stupidly cuts her pay, she takes it, and elevates and expands the video games to an entire new luxurious stage that draws much more upscale gamers. But after a decade of glitzy success, all of it comes crashing down when she reluctantly will get concerned with Russian mobsters and begins taking a proportion of the pot—a giant no-no. Soon, she’s hauled off to jail for operating an unlawful playing operation.

Sorkin is nice at writing particular person scenes that sparkle with wit and intelligence, and that present loads of rapid-fire inside info (typically an excessive amount of) on all the pieces from mogul snowboarding and poker arms to authorized maneuvers and actual property. Not all of it’s comprehensible, however Sorkin doesn’t care if we will take all of it in or not. What’s essential is that it’s entertaining and propels the story ahead in a principally participating vogue. The film does lose some steam late within the sport, particularly throughout a clumsy, prolonged scene between Bloom and her dad by which he tries to elucidate her motives for the questionable decisions she’s made. It’s one of many movie’s solely intimate scenes, but it surely comes too late and doesn’t go far sufficient. Sorkin regularly retains the highlight on Bloom’s enterprise dealings and authorized woes, and virtually solely ignores her private life, which at one time included heavy drug utilization. She additionally bankrolled the video games, vetted the gamers, and prolonged credit score—all of which have been extraordinarily anxious, because the real-life Bloom has made recognized in numerous interviews. But Sorkin doesn’t go down that path. Perhaps one other director would have insisted on keying in on Bloom behind closed doorways so as to add depth to her character, however sadly, Sorkin doesn’t.

Poker lovers searching for some high-stakes motion can be sorely dissatisfied: The video games aren’t what excite Sorkin. Artful dialogue and getting nice performances from his actors are what depend right here, and on these factors Molly’s Game delivers a successful hand. Overall, the film is extra of a full home than a royal flush. It’s a positive wager that each Sorkin’s script and Chastain’s stellar efficiency will deservedly garner Academy Award nominations. But when you’re a gambler, don’t go all in on them strolling away on the finish of Oscar night time with any of their arms.