movie review

BALLAD OF A SMALL PLAYER

Running time: 101 minutes. Rated R (language and suicide). In select theaters. On Netflix Oct. 29.

The first half of “Ballad of a Small Player,” a mysterious psychodrama starring Colin Farrell, is a sexy, hyperactive, high-roller’s “Catch Me If You Can.”

As for the much worse second half, well, it can’t.

The uneven film from “ Conclave ” director Edward Berger takes a hard turn into spiritual and literary territory, which makes sense since it’s based on the novel by Lawrence Osborne.

Yet it behooves films to not behave like books.

Cinematically, while often enjoyable and always a stunner to look at, “Small Player”’s story progresses strangely. Phenomenally entertaining, zippy antics at the start quickly careen into a “betting is bad” morality

See Full Page