Edward Berger makes a dramatic and thematic shift from his previous movie Conclave with Ballad of a Small Player . Conclave was a taut, fictional feature about the secretive papal elections at the Vatican. Ballad of a Small Player , which is out on Netflix, is an occasionally tense, atmospheric and over-stylised character study set in Macau’s glittering gambling halls.

Adapted by screenwriter Rowan Joffe from Lawrence Osborne’s 2014 novel, the film explores cycles of addiction and greed against a backdrop of ritual, superstition and neon decadence. Colin Farrell plays Lord Doyle, a British gambler with mounting debts and a troubled past.

He’s anything but a small player. Moving restlessly between tables, Doyle is drawn to chance and is perpetually on the run. Farrell gives a sh

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