Lay the Favorite (2012)

Ex-private dancer Beth aspires to be a Las Vegas cocktail waitress, when she falls in with Dink, a sports gambler. Sparks fly as she proves to be something of a gambling prodigy--much to the ire of Dink's wife, Tulip.

Director:

Stephen Frears

Writers:

D.V. DeVincentis (screenplay), Beth Raymer (memoir)

Stars:

Rebecca Hall, Bruce Willis, Vince Vaughn

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Rebecca Hall	...	Beth
Joel Murray	...	Darren
Hugo Armstrong	...	Customer
Corbin Bernsen	...	Jerry
Earl Maddox	...	Manager
Rio Hackford	...	Magic
Jo Newman	...	Darcy
Laura Prepon	...	Holly
Bruce Willis	...	Dink Heimowitz
Frank Grillo	...	Frankie
Wayne Pére	...	Scott (as Wayne Péré)
Adam Kozlowski	...	Rio Gambler 1
Al Brown	...	Old Gambler
Thom Sesma	...	Young Guy
Rusty Meyers	...	Rio Gambler 2

Storyline

Beth, who lap dances to make ends meet, leaves Florida for Las Vegas hoping to be a cocktail waitress. She meets two women who introduce her to Dink, a gambler with a system. He hires her - she's good with numbers - and she promptly falls for him, even though he's married to a woman who seems to do nothing but spend his money. Beth tries to entice Dink whose wife, Tulip, tells him to choose; he does and promptly goes on a losing streak. The repercussions of his choice play out with a heavy gambler who has a parole officer, a cheesy bookmaker in Curaçao, Beth's desire to keep a friend out of prison, and help from an unlikely source.

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Plot Keywords:

panties | white panties | woman wears a string bikini | woman wears mismatched lingerie | legs | 

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Taglines:

How far can a losing shot take you?

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language throughout, some sexual content, brief drug use, and nudity

Did You Know?

Trivia

Justin Timberlake was considered for Rosie, but Vince Vaughn was cast.

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Goofs

During the televised basketball game in the closing minutes of the film, the storyline is that the game is down to no time left on the clock, and the NJ player, Reedmore, has the chance to make 2 foul shots to beat LA. When the baseline camera focuses on the player's face, though, the time clock over the hoop at the other end of the court is visible, and the clock plainly reads 6:40 left in the game.

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Quotes

Customer: You should be scared. It's a healthy reaction to a big ass gun like that.

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Connections

Featured in Maltin on Movies: Oz the Great and Powerful (2013)

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Soundtracks

The Air That I Breathe
Written by Albert Hammond & Mike Hazlewood
Performed by The Hollies
Licensed courtesy of EMI Records Ltd
Published by Imagem Music

User Reviews

So much talent, So little result

Beth (Rebecca Hall) is stripping in private homes to make ends meet. On the advise of motel neighbor Holly (Laura Prepon), she goes to work for bookie Dink (Bruce Willis) and finds that she's actually quite good at it. She's good with numbers. People like dealing with her on the phone. And Dink likes her a lot. The problem is Dink's wife Tulip (Catherine Zeta-Jones) doesn't want him to like her so much. When Dink starts to lose money, things blow up.

When you consider the talents in front of and behind the camera, it's a wonder how things could go so wrong. Award winning director Stephen Frears is the biggest culprit. The script may need better jokes, but it's mainly Frears who couldn't extract any laughs from this. In the end, this is mostly his responsibility.

Rebecca Hall is doing a squeaky-voice fast-talking bobble head doll. It's completely fake, and leaves my head shaking. It doesn't fit her at all. If her mannerisms are meant to be funny, it got no laughs from me. Everybody else is doing a competent if not very impressive work. Catherine Zeta-Jones and Bruce Willis could have been an explosive couple but they're not. The only interesting acting comes from Vince Vaughn who plays a wildman bookie.

Not much goes right in this movie. It is absolutely not funny. It is watchable, but afterward I wonder why I watched it.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA UK France

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

22 June 2012 (UK)

Also Known As:

Lay the Favorite

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$26,350,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$20,998, 9 December 2012

Gross USA:

$20,998

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,577,272

Company Credits

Production Co:

Emmett/Furla/Oasis Films (EFO Films), Wild Bunch, Random House Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1