Simply Perfect

Highly Overrated But Still Good

Awesome Movie

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

I really really love this movie. I love the plot twists. I love how Chazz Palminteri (hope I spelled it correct) plays the bad guy. How Mars Callaghan is portraying Johnny. I love the skill show montage they put every now and then. I love the tricks they pull at the pool tables and off the pool tables. I love Christopher Walken and try to follow every movie he ever played a role in, regardless of the movie's quality or ratings. They way the scenes are put together. The flow between them. They way Johnny tricks his girlfriends boss, they way he gets a job selling mobile homes, the ending plot twist, the whole scene with Rico. Everything in this movie is really great. I have seen it so many times I know it by heart. Even Cris Walkens monologue about lions is bloody great (as always). I really urge you to watch this movie. You do not have to like pool to enjoy it.

This is one of those rare movies that grows on me after multiple viewings. Being an avid pool player, and holding movies like "The Hustler" (and to a lesser extent) "The Color of Money" as the all time pool classics, I didn't even pay mind to this movie until eight years after its release. And with that said, it keeps the tradition of pool hall hustling and gambling alive for Generation Xers and Yers.I admit upon first viewing there were too many distracting flaws that overwhelmed my ability to enjoy it. However, once I was able to look past its inconsistencies and get to the essence of the story and the characters, I found it to be an energetic and inspired work with some great (however small) performances by Rick Schroder, Chazz Palimenteri, Christopher Walken, and the late, great, Rod Steiger.There is no doubt that die hard pool aficionados will find the game sequences to be outlandish and exaggerated. But if I recall, so were many of the scenes in "The Hustler" and "The Color of Money". After all, this is an action movie glorifying pocket billiards. It's not an instructional video.Whether or not you really love the game of pool, the art of hustling, the risk of high stakes gambling, and the resulting camaraderie that hanging around a pool hall can bring, give this movie a try or two. I think you'll ultimately enjoy it.

This movie was amazing!!! I got lucky and to be truthfully honest bought the DVD because I saw Walken and Palminteri were starring in it. WOW! absolutely a wonderful find. Christopher Walken (as always captures the screen without even saying a word). It was great to see Rod Steiger again. Ha ha! and Ricky Schroeder has come a long way for "silver spoons". His acting ability was Aces in this wonderful flick. I have always enjoyed watching Palminteri on the screen (always a bad guy but so believable and entertaining as an actor). Such a wonderful cast and I would hope a sequel would arise from this but if not still a great movie that stands on its own. I love the game of pool and this movie does it justice. Even if your not a pool player you could not help but enjoy this movie. All characters have incredible depth. I highly recommend it.

I don't know why I like this movie. But, I do. The whole quiet as a church line is retarded, I cringe every time it is said. I can't believe no one else brought that up. The shots are not all that hard, and if you watch closely some are unwarranted. Why take a fancy, hard shot when you have a duck in the corner. Your opponent will realize you are a good shot and that they are being hustled. Anyone who watched the hustler or color of money knows that you have to let the opponent think they are better than you. Pulling off crazy shots will impress them and make them not want to bet. Also, they make it sound like this guy has never left his hometown. If he is the "god of pool", why would anyone play him for money? All that said, I still like this movie and have watched it several times and will probably watch it in the future. I guess it is my guilty pleasure movie. Everyone's got one, this one is mine.