When a Las Vegas performer-turned-snitch named Buddy Israel decides to turn state's evidence and testify against the mob, it seems that a whole lot of people would like to make sure he's no longer breathing.
Hords of insane assassins (2 cute) gather in or near a bar waiting to kill an insignificant FBI pencil pusher at 3AM and collect $3M. He's kept in a safe house/bunker nearby surrounded by FBI agents. Action awaits.
Director:
P.J. Pesce
Stars:
Tom Berenger,
Clayne Crawford,
Tommy Flanagan
A case of mistaken identity lands Slevin into the middle of a war being plotted by two of the city's most rival crime bosses: The Rabbi and The Boss. Slevin is under constant surveillance by relentless Detective Brikowski as well as the infamous assassin Goodkat and finds himself having to hatch his own ingenious plot to get them before they get him.
Director:
Paul McGuigan
Stars:
Josh Hartnett,
Ben Kingsley,
Morgan Freeman
A young CIA agent is tasked with looking after a fugitive in a safe house. But when the safe house is attacked, he finds himself on the run with his charge.
Director:
Daniel Espinosa
Stars:
Denzel Washington,
Ryan Reynolds,
Robert Patrick
An aging alcoholic cop is assigned the task of escorting a witness from police custody to a courthouse 16 blocks away. There are, however, chaotic forces at work that prevent them from making it in one piece.
A hard-luck limo driver struggles to go straight and pay off a debt to his bookie. He takes on a job with a crazed passenger, whose sought-after ledger implicates some seriously dangerous criminals.
Mob boss Primo Sparazza has taken out a hefty contract on Buddy "Aces" Israel, a sleazy magician who has agreed to turn state's evidence against the Vegas mob. The FBI, sensing a chance to use this small-time con to bring down big-target Sparazza, places Aces into protective custody-under the supervision of two agents dispatched to Aces' Lake Tahoe hideout. When the word of the price on Aces' head spreads into the community of ex-cons and cons-to-be, it entices bounty hunters, thugs-for-hire, deadly vixens and double-crossing mobsters to join in the hunt. With all eyes on Tahoe, this rogues' gallery collides in a comic race to hit the jackpot and rub out Aces.Written by
Anthony Pereyra {hypersonic91@yahoo.com}
The bonus features reveal that Ben Affleck, who plays one of the bondsmen, couldn't play pool to save his life at the time. He appeared to have no experience with a pool cue, and as a result, the simplest of shots took many takes. See more »
Goofs
At one point, Heller is said to have been OSS (Office of Strategic Services) before he was FBI. At another point, it is said that his undercover op predates the second world war. This is impossible, as the OSS was founded in 1942. See more »
Quotes
[first lines]
Donald Carruthers:
You've got to be careful when doing your stakeouts. I did one for... I was on one for six months. I gained, like, 20, 25 pounds. You keep eating this crap...
Richard Messner:
Well, that's not my problem, though. I don't gain weight. I tried.
Donald Carruthers:
That's 'cause you're 12 years old.
See more »
The movies that are always the most difficult to review are the ones that are not bad, but that still has something missing to them. "Smokin' Aces" is definitely like that. While it's not a bad movie, it's still far from as good as it could have been.
I think the movie started out pretty well. It's got an almost "Lock Stock"-like quality to it where it presents all the main characters in different sequences. After that you feel the stage is set and the guns loaded. Unfortunately then you get the first dip in pace, and the movie never really recovers. Sure, you get a few laughs and some pretty well-done action scenes. But the pace really never picks up and lives up to the promise of the beginnings.
It's difficult for me to put my finger on why i didn't really like this movie. Like i said before it's not bad and it was fairly entertaining. Perhaps my expectations were wrong? I expected something more fast-paced and hysterical, while this is a lot more sombre in pace. The good points are the actors, not that they're great but most of them are pretty good in their parts and many of them are quite funny. Also the action scenes are pretty well done. The negative parts is that i would have liked more action, a quicker pace and a lot less bewildering ending (without giving anything away).
I think most people who like action movies might like this one. It works pretty well, although there are quite a lot of things to improve. I give it a 6/10.
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The movies that are always the most difficult to review are the ones that are not bad, but that still has something missing to them. "Smokin' Aces" is definitely like that. While it's not a bad movie, it's still far from as good as it could have been.
I think the movie started out pretty well. It's got an almost "Lock Stock"-like quality to it where it presents all the main characters in different sequences. After that you feel the stage is set and the guns loaded. Unfortunately then you get the first dip in pace, and the movie never really recovers. Sure, you get a few laughs and some pretty well-done action scenes. But the pace really never picks up and lives up to the promise of the beginnings.
It's difficult for me to put my finger on why i didn't really like this movie. Like i said before it's not bad and it was fairly entertaining. Perhaps my expectations were wrong? I expected something more fast-paced and hysterical, while this is a lot more sombre in pace. The good points are the actors, not that they're great but most of them are pretty good in their parts and many of them are quite funny. Also the action scenes are pretty well done. The negative parts is that i would have liked more action, a quicker pace and a lot less bewildering ending (without giving anything away).
I think most people who like action movies might like this one. It works pretty well, although there are quite a lot of things to improve. I give it a 6/10.