The Gambler

Plot : Literature professor Jim Bennett (Mark Wahlberg) leads a secret life as a highstakes gambler. Always a risktaker, Bennett bets it all when he borrows from a gangster and offers his own life as collateral. Staying one step ahead, he pits his creditor against the operator of an illicit gambling ring while garnering the attention of Frank (John Goodman), a paternalistic loan shark. As his relationship with a student (Brie Larson) deepens, Bennett must risk everything for a second chance. imdb Idioms, slangs and vocabulary used (By Rahmat Vahdani) Stake me 50 grand = lend me that money Take the whole thing against my vigorish = at a high interest rate An ordinary‐looking young man with Size 40 jacket, regular features, and decent dentition = aligned teeth Don't go modest on me = don't pretend you are nothing There will be no apotheosis = being perfect She's the least obstreperous in this room = rowdy, noisy No peer of the realm/life peer = not a member of nobility, This money is much more than I am ordinarily disposed to loan out = usually I don't lend this big an amount of money Eurotrash cokehead = a European socialite who lives in the united states (cokehead=an addict) Page 2 of 3 The film didn't get picked up by the Sundance = it was not selected by this film festival I am 260,000 all in = my whole debt It's an indie at best = it is low quality pop He saves the sixth shot for himself = he will commit suicide Monogram = first initials of your name with a design You stay after = don't leave and stay after everybody else has left Buy‐in at 10,000 $ = You're not the only one losing his shit = getting confused, out of control What are you? Houdini? A famous magician, illusionist 20‐odd years of school = almost Your grandfather pops and u don't have any money? He dies and you inherited nothing? He didn't front me any = didn't pay me before he died You gotta make the turnip bleed = make the impossible possible Synopsis : Jim Bennett (Mark Wahlberg) is a literature professor with a severe gambling addiction caused by his view of the world as either having it all or having nothing. He ends up owing $240,000 to Lee (Alvin Ing), the proprietor of an underground gambling ring, and another $50,000 to Neville Baraka (Michael K. Williams), a loan shark. Lee gives Bennett seven days to pay off his debts or be murdered. During one of his classes, he identifies student Amy Phillips (Brie Larson) as a potential writing prodigy, points out Dexter (Emory Cohen) as a genius tennis star, and confronts Lamar Allen (Anthony Kelley), a student who does not pay attention in class and intends to become an NBA basketball player. Bennett considers borrowing money from Frank (John Goodman), another loan shark, to consolidate his debts and buy himself some time, but refuses to do so after Frank demands he admit that he is not a man. Bennett convinces his mother Roberta (Jessica Lange) to give him enough money to pay off his debts, but during a night out with Amy he gambles it all away. Baraka kidnaps and confronts Bennett, forcing him into an ultimatum—if he does not convince Lamar to win one of his college basketball games by a margin of 7 points or less, he will murder Amy. Bennett goes to Frank, who advises him to adopt a "fuck you" attitude towards life by getting enough money to be completely free, and lends him $260,000 to pay his debt to Lee. Bennett convinces Lee to stake him $150,000, as the only way he can pay his full $410,000 debt Page 3 of 3 to Lee and also pay back the money he borrowed from Frank is to gamble and win. He uses the money from Lee to bribe Lamar into keeping the point spread to under 8 in the basketball game. Bennett sends Dexter to Vegas to bet on the game with the $260,000 he got from Frank. Lamar succeeds in the scheme, and Bennett uses his winnings to pay his debt to Baraka, denying he knows anything about the large bet made in Vegas. He then convinces Lee and Frank to meet him in a neutral gambling den and wagers enough money to pay both Lee and Frank off—if he wins—on a roulette spin. Successful, he walks out, stating he was playing for Frank and Lee. The payment to Frank is more than he owed, but he refuses to take the "cream" when Frank offers to give back the overpayment. Bennett runs through the city to Amy's apartment, a broke but free man.